Should children be homeschooled?

Private schools meet certain parents' needs for their child

Question: Should children be homeschooled?
Position‹3 of 3: Children should be educated through a middle-ground method
Argument‹3 of 3: Private schools meet certain parents' needs for their child

If homeschool is chosen because of the social situation and teachers, private school introduces an alternative.

The argument

This argument is addressed to parents who are considering homeschooling, and it proposes private education as the middle ground between teaching a child at home and sending them into the local public system. The suggestion is that most of what draws parents toward homeschooling can be obtained without withdrawing the child from school altogether. The first point is attendance itself. Private school allows children to attend school physically, which for many families is the deal-breaker with homeschooling. The second is scale. Class sizes are typically smaller, and one study found that 'private high schools on average are less than half the size of public schools. In central cities, for example, the average size of a private high school is 398, compared to 1,083 for a public school.' Size is not merely a matter of comfort. A smaller school means each teacher has more time with their students, which the argument presents as improving the quality of education. The third point concerns fit. Private schools can be selected according to a family's beliefs and values, and the range available is wide: art schools, STEM schools, Catholic schools, with something for most families. A family can therefore find a school matching its own priorities without a parent having to deliver every subject personally. Taken together, the three features cover the attendance, attention and values that parents weigh when they consider teaching at home. Those thinking about the homeschool route may therefore find themselves more interested in private learning, and on this view children are best educated through that middle-ground method.

Premises

[P1]Private schools let children physically attend school while offering much smaller class sizes than public schools. [P2] Smaller classes mean more teacher time and higher-quality education. [P3] Families can also choose a private school matching their beliefs and values, from art to STEM to Catholic. [C] Therefore, as a middle ground that meets parents' specific needs, private schooling is a strong option between homeschooling and public school.

Counter-arguments

Private school can be expensive. In many locations, it can cost almost as much as a college tuition. Homeschooling is much cheaper, and many families financially cannot afford private school even if it is the right option for them.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P2] Private school is not an option for many families.