Didn't homeschool here but started a charter school instead. Some of our neighbors did homeschool and I have mixed feelings about it. Some did very well, some not so well; but of course the same can be said of all of the kids in the area no matter which way they went.
A few things I'll note:
- educational spending has almost zero correlation with outcomes
- the number one indicator of educational success is parental involvement
- homeschooling and charter schools tend to attract the outliers from both ends. The smart who are underserved where they are and the kids with problems whose parents are involved enough to search for solutions.
- the real losers are those whose parents can't or won't get involved and who aren't succeeding on their own
In the current educational environment, teachers are often viewed as babysitters whose job is to educate children "correctly" and parents are only there to ensure that "correctly" matches their expectations. In the "good old days" when parents and teachers beat children regularly, at least they were unified in their expectations that children would listen to and obey teachers and not disrupt class. Now it is more common to see underpaid teachers without any support confronted by angry parents when their children misbehave and fail to actually learn.
This is the _most_ important thing. Parents keeping a laser eye on their kids' performance in school, and having their own standards that the school must live up to, regardless of what commitees and boards and suits and academics and "experts" say. Even if it's just a standard for math competence. If the school isn't up to the mark, either pull up the school for it, or switch schools, or after school classes if it's an isolated problem. Many would be surprised at how many parents either can't(common in first generation educated) or won't do this.
> Spending has no correlation with success
In a setting where more spending is for more labour (when the labour is not done by parents/family) this is not true. Primary schools giving individual attention to students for example will do better than those with 100 students a class. But in most cases, more spending leads to more unnecessary flashy stuff. So in the real world, what you are saying is true.
Charter schools like yours are also sorely needed in america where math standards are absolutely woeful compared to RoW.
Yeah I think the context matters a lot there. I’m assuming it means “on a state by state basis”, which is true. But within my state, at least, family income, outside spending, and property tax revenues correlate very strongly with outcomes.
I've seen that too, but to my understanding it is less about the money and more about the parent participation. Wealthy school districts don't have any problem with finding volunteers for all sorts of activities, because one of the parents is frequently a stay-at-home parent.
This is true, but it’s also true that the money buys all of those extra activities and services. At my kids’ school, the garden program, music program, arts program, and teachers aides are all funded by the PTA. The field trips are funded by the students families so must be calibrated to their budgets. There are also volunteers associated with all of those programs, but they wouldn’t exist without the money.
A few (much wealthier) towns over, the district wide PTA raises millions of dollars yearly to support additional programs and facilities, and the district can offer higher salaries because of the larger tax base. Again, lots of parent involvement, but there’s also more to be involved in.
I have also played for decades. I have beat it multiple times, but never on my PC. The only places I have beat it were on my (Apple) phone and on my (Android) tablet. Something about the UI difference subtly impacts my playstyle.
Conclusion
Exposure to some dental x-rays performed in the past, when radiation exposure was greater than in the current era, appears to be associated with increased risk of intra-cranial meningioma.
As someone with more data, your observation is incorrect and has led you to an erroneous conclusion. The other stores are on the brink of unprofitability also but are seen as having less desirable merchandise so they weren't the favored target.
The oldest one loved it and thrived in Montessori and stayed in it until we started a Charter school to avoid the local Middle School.
The second one HATED Montessori and we had to move him out to the local elementary school.
In the end it came down to personality. The second kid had a personality that just wouldn't work in a Montessori environment. He would do what he wanted to when he wanted to and would refuse to be redirected in any way, shape or form. Same school, mostly the same teachers, but totally opposite outcomes.
Until he was a junior in HS he refused most guidance and advice about school and learing. Then, one day, the light came on and he did a 180 on his schoolwork and life planning.
Now studying for the MCAT to become a neurosurgeon with a minor in CS where before he was a C student.
A few things I'll note:
In the current educational environment, teachers are often viewed as babysitters whose job is to educate children "correctly" and parents are only there to ensure that "correctly" matches their expectations. In the "good old days" when parents and teachers beat children regularly, at least they were unified in their expectations that children would listen to and obey teachers and not disrupt class. Now it is more common to see underpaid teachers without any support confronted by angry parents when their children misbehave and fail to actually learn.