PAGBABAGO
Dr. Florangel Rosario-Braid
Although homeschooling in the country is legal, it is not yet widespread. But it is growing in popularity. Latest statistics taken during pre-Covid days showed a total of 12,000, but this must have increased at a faster rate during the pandemic when this delivery mode was considered sensible.
Homeschooling and other learning delivery modes could be some of the innovations that should be examined by the Educational Commission after it gets organized following the EDCOM 2 bill lapsing into law last July 23. The law would create a second Congressional Commission on Education that would undertake a comprehensive national assessment of the educational sector. It would hopefully address the learning crisis, among them the worrisome performance of our students in international competitions, the mismatch between learners’ competencies and needs in the market, and of course address the need for budgetary increase primarily for teachers and learning technologies.
With this growing interest in alternatives to schooling, we can now plan on how we can maximize their known advantages which are freedom, flexibility, individualized learning, and strong relationships. It gives families the freedom to learn in a safe, secure environment at their own pace and provides parents their constitutional right to direct the education of their children as provided in Article 14, Section 2 (4) of the 1987 Constitution: “The state shall encourage nonformal, indigenous learning systems, self-learning, independent and out-of-school study programs.” But it also has its disadvantages – lack of interaction with teachers and fellow students, a lot of work, less time for oneself, facing bias, and missing out on certain opportunities.
We must now gather impact studies of learning outcomes from the more than three decades of experience. What we know is that several geniuses in science and literature were homeschooled. The roster includes Thomas Edison. Alexander Graham Bell, Albert Einstein, Charles Dickens, and Mark Twain. It seems that achievers and highly motivated people benefit more from unstructured learning than traditional schooling. How about under achievers and less motivated students?
The concept of non-school alternatives started with Ivan Illich, an Austrian scholar, who wrote “Deschooling Society” in 1971. This radical discourse on the ineffectual nature of institutionalized education led him to recommends “self-directed learning supported by social relations in an informal arrangement.” The author noted that “schools have failed our individual needs, supporting false and misleading notions of progress and development, fostered by belief that increasing production, consumption, and profit are yardsticks for measuring the quality of human life.”
Earlier, media critic Marshall McLuhan noted that “most learning occurs outside the classroom.”
Former Senator Francis Pangilinan recognized the merits of out of school learning when he authored a senate resolution recognizing Philippine National Home Schooling Day on March 3.
To date, we have about 20 home schools in the Philippines which offer learning alternatives – from pre-school to secondary or pre-college stage. The lessons are presented in printed modules or lessons on radio and television, and accredited by the Department of Education which helps parents who are primarily responsible in selecting the lessons to be taught.
According to Home School Legal Defense Association, a non-profit advocacy organization consisting of 100,000 families, donors, home school leaders, and legislators, there are about three million homeschooling initiatives. Six countries – the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, India, Australia, and New Zealand are more advanced and have the most homeschooling programs. Norway, Poland, Switzerland and Iceland are also implementing homeschooling.
But over 30 countries – mostly in Europe – Germany, Russia, Greece, and most countries in Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America where it is outlawed. In countries like France and Singapore, it is not illegal, but it is highly regulated. This is because of the country’s philosophical approach to rights, education, and children.
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