Education Corner

Foundations Educational Consulting is a Cleveland based educator created business to support students, families and the educational community.  

Sara Williams, M.Ed. is founder of Foundations Educational Consulting and is a public speaker, a homeschool mother, co-op creator, & veteran and licensed Master Teacher who provides tutoring, homeschool assessments, professional development & consultations in all sectors of education.

E-Mail: foundationsedconsulting@gmail.com

"In this corner weighing in at a whopping 900 hours having trained since birth never leaving the safety of home and mentored by a strange helicopter parent who really isn't a teacher and can't possibly have taught anything...we have the mighty, the socially awkward, thoroughly researched yet fully unaccountable and unassessed….give it up for the one, the only….”Hot Shot Hommmmmmme Schoooooooooler!” 

"In this corner of the ring weighing in at a little over 900 hours filled with pointless assemblies, teacher breaks for specials, plagued by discipline issues accompanied by lots of lost time in the training process, mentored and trained by the world renowned bully system and mentally drained, over evaluated classroom teacher….let’s hear it for the one, the only…assembly line, homework and overly assessed, employee ready….”Stuuuudious Stuuuuudddeeennnttttt”

If the world of homeschool and school-based learning was in a boxing ring, this may be what a model of the intro may sound like. How about this? In America we have Democrat vs. Republican, Black vs. White, Civil Rights vs. Gay Rights, East Side vs. West Side and a list of competitions that could go on for hours. Now added to this list of debates, which is not such a new debate, we have Homeschool versus Traditional School-Based learning. Like the above mentioned debates, there is always preconceived notions, inaccuracies shared, unfounded accusations and personal biases present. 

For many parents, issues such as mass school shootings, student bullying and suicide epidemics, sexuality debates, influx of standardized testing, tapped out teachers, stressed out administrators, bad state report card ratings, Common Core and too much homework, a number of parents are opting to remove their children from the traditional school setting. Many are opting to enroll their children in on-line public schools while others may be willing to sacrifice dual incomes or a regular 9-5 work shift to be able to provide a homeschool education from scratch, compliments of a researching, lesson plan prepping mom or dad. in addition to playing organized sports, attending prom and earning a diploma, homeschool students represent a growing college entrance rate in top universities around the world.

The reality is, there are many aspects to consider from both angles. Many people do not know that homeschooling does not just occur in just one way, but actually represents a number of methodologies that best suit the family pursuing this form of education. Nor do many understand or even know what goes into homeschooling or the reason why this growing trend is expanding by leaps and bounds. A many more people may not know that in school, teachers work countless hours on weekends, after school and during scheduled school calendar breaks planning specific tailor made lesson plans that reflect differentiated instruction for learners that take into consideration test cores, the whole child (type of learner, multiple intelligences, child interest, and how to best motivate particular students). Many teachers become like a parent to their students making purchases out of their own pocket to support their classroom and students on an on-going basis, foregoing lunch breaks and coming to work earlier than their contract stipulates jsut to be sure a child is grasping a concept.  

At the end of the day, families decide what is in the best interest of their child. Gone are the days when there truly was a village to help raise children. There are no curfews, front porches with lights on, parents calling other parents to share a child is on their way home, and neighbors giving friendly advice and quiet waves of hello from their stoop. We are in a technological age where people are rushed, much of what we need or want is literally at our fingertips and ready to meet those needs 24 hours a day seven days a week. 

Whichever decision a parent makes on behalf of their child is one that is not to be taken likely and adequate research and a fair evaluation of both sides should be made. Unlike boxing, once in the ring, both homeschoolers and school-based students can win simultaneously and leave the ring winners equipped  to be world changers representing their educational path beautifully.