Homeschooling figures continue to rise but ask any homeschooling family and they’ll tell you about the many homeschooling myths surrounding their educational choices. Homeschoolers often find themselves defending their decision and enlightening others on what life is really like when you homeschool.

Some of the most common homeschooling myths debunked!

Homeschooling Myths #1

Homeschooled children don’t socialise

The nature of homeschooling often means learning takes place in all kinds of settings with homeschoolers regularly taking trips out to places like museums, libraries, parks. Their social experiences are wide as they mix with children of various ages and adults. Some families also meet up with local homeschooling groups where they participate together in a range of activities. At Wolsey Hall Oxford we encourage students to engage in our community and we regularly share news, run competitions, offer study tips and advice.

Homeschooling Myths #2

All homeschooling families are the same

Homeschoolers can be found all over the world – at Wolsey Hall we teach students in over 90 countries! Families come from a wide range of backgrounds and choose homeschooling for various reasons. It could be because they are homeschooling whilst travelling or because their child struggles in a mainstream school due to school anxiety, bullying or a learning difficulty. One thing homeschooling families all have in common though is to see their child reach their full potential!

We have both expat and locals homeschooling in Vietnam

Homeschooling Myths #3

All homeschooling services are the same

This is simply untrue. At Wolsey Hall we pride ourselves in providing a flexible service tailored to your child’s needs. If they need extra help and support then it’s yours, if they want to study at a faster or slower pace, no problem! Our learning system is a carefully balanced mix of online and offline study which we have developed based on our many years’ experience. This enables students to study anywhere in the world and at a time to suit them, no online class attendance is required. When you enrol with us you are assigned a Student Progress Manager who is on hand to answer all your queries. And your Tutors are there to guide you to success so you and your family has a whole team of homeschooling support available.

Homeschooling Myths #4

Only high achieving parents can homeschool

Every parent feels anxious and daunted by becoming their child’s home educator but think about it – you are imparting knowledge to your child every day about all kinds of things. It’s true that many home ed parents have a particularly strong interest and capability in one or two subjects but this isn’t always the case. You can learn as you go along by researching the subjects with your child. Or you can use a distance learning college like Wolsey Hall Oxford where your child is provided with a structured curriculum, where materials are prepared for you and links to resources provided. Our Tutors support your child’s learning and are on hand to answer all those tricky questions and dilemmas!

Homeschooling Myths #5

Homeschooling only works if the child is gifted

Children with all academic abilities find homeschooling successful. This is especially so with Wolsey Hall because your responsibility to educate your child is shared with us and their learning pace is set by them. Learning should be fun and enjoyable, not an endurance test! The beauty of homeschooling is that you create the environment that’s perfectly suited to your child to maximise their ability to learn, rather than a standard mainstream classroom. We work with a diverse range of students, many of whom need extra support and specialist teaching and we pride ourselves on supporting each student to reach their own full potential.

Homeschooling Myths #6

There’s no difference between homeschooling and unschooling

Unschooling has been around since the 1970s, led by educator John Holt who encouraged families to opt out of traditional schooling in favour of unschooling. The main difference between unschooling and homeschooling is the approach to learning. With homeschooling, parents are the educators who often follow lesson plans with assignments and grades being awarded. Some sort of structure and timetable is favoured. Unschooling follows the idea that children are naturally curious and their learning will follow whatever they are interested in. Free from a curriculum, children do not gain qualifications while unschooling but are encouraged to gain their sense of personal responsibility and self-motivation to learn.