In March of 2020, everything about school changed. Sudden lockdown orders all around the world meant that rather than simply being for those who wanted to control their own curriculum or keep their children out of the school system, homeschooling was universal. Teachers may have been setting the lessons, but it was up to parents to oversee and supervise and to the children to do the work.
Most schools have since reopened, albeit with careful COVID-19 restrictions in place, but some are still choosing to teach their children at home. For these individuals, the world of homeschooling has been forever altered by the time we all spent locked up in our houses.
Here are a few interesting facts about homeschooling after the pandemic.
Homeschooling Has Been On The Rise
Before the pandemic, about 3.3% of children nationally were homeschooled. After the pandemic, however, those numbers spiked significantly. The rate of homeschooling in Massachusetts, for example, had jumped to 12.1% by October of 2020. This is possibly because of the ease with which parents can now access digital learning resources to better instruct and involve their children.
It could also potentially be to do with the sudden explosion of online community spaces for activities such as reading, writing, watching TV, or creating art.
Home Schools are More Equipped Than Ever
Once upon a time, a home school was a place where you could avoid modern technology in favor of teaching your children with good old-fashioned workbooks and encyclopedias. This is no longer the case! Nowadays, homes are as full of technology as schools are, if not more so.
Plus, those wanting to kit out their home to become an exceptional house of learning can easily acquire the technological tools to do so. Keeping an eye out for a childrens tablet sale is a great way to ensure that the homeschooling environment has all the latest tools needed to ensure a child gets a well-rounded education suited to the modern world.
Homeschooling Can Be Social, Too
The traditional image of a homeschooled child is one sitting alone at a big wooden table surrounded by books. If our imaginations are being kind, we will often allow them a sibling or too, as well. After the pandemic, that image is no longer relevant at all. It is extremely common to find groups of homeschooled kids in one neighborhood or city, all of whose parents take a turn at the schooling.
This may be because of the way in which schools have long been encouraging group work to continue outside of the classroom. Or it may be as a result of the new connections made outside school as a necessary socialization tactic because of the enforced isolation of the pandemic. Either way, the nature of homeschooling is changing to be a community activity rather than a solo endeavor.
Whether or not you are a fan of the idea of homeschooling, there is plenty to be said for the ways in which it has evolved over the years, especially in the wake of the pandemic lockdowns!
