“Education is the best gift my parent gave me.” – Lailah Gifty Akita
Has the idea of homeschooling your child ever struck you?
Obviously, not having done it before, you might not know where to begin.
There are many questions that surround homeschooling your child, and you need to know the pros and cons, before you dive headlong into it. In your favour is, of course, is the fact that you won’t be the first person to have tried it.
We have put together a quick guide to aid you in making your decision and assist you with the homeschooling registration process.
Technically, school isn’t compulsory, but education is, which implies that, if you’re able to, you could teach your offspring at home, if you so choose.
Simply follow our informative guide!
Let’s start by having a look at the advantages of homeschooling.
Homeschooling: The Advantages
Over many years and in recent times, in particular, homeschooling has become an appealing consideration for an increasing number of families.
With many children being requested or directed to learn from home during 2020 and 2021, parents were thrown headlong into the fray of homeschooling; juggling careers or businesses at the same time. For an ever-growing number, the reality and possibility of continuing with the process has struck a positive chord.
It is, of course, true that homeschooling has been around and has been legal for many, many years in South Africa. Nevertheless, you will need to know how to apply for home schooling in South Africa.
Learn how registering for home schooling in SA works on Superprof.
So, what are the positives when it comes to homeschooling?
- It is a great way to bond with your child. You must, however, bear in mind, that you have enrolled for a full-time job, which means that you’ll be spending most of your time as your child’s teacher. There is still the opportunity to connect with your child on a different level and you will just need to remember to switch out of teacher-mode and just be Mom or Dad again.
- You can keep abreast of your child’s schoolwork. Curricula can be very loaded and it will be important for you to plan carefully, so that you can help your ‘learner’ cover the curriculum within the space of a school year. Plan carefully so that important sections of work are adequately catered for and that less critical information is not given too much attention. You will now also be in a wonderful position to assess how your child works and if there are wasteful activities that they engage in which are detrimental to their progress. Keep them on task!
- Set a routine/timetable. Be disciplined yourself and follow a solid routine – it creates order and stability! Since you’re both at home, you and your child can mutually agree on a starting time and a draft a timetable which sets out breaks. You could even structure the lessons around your very young child’s nap time, if necessary.
- Competing with other students is removed from the equation. Your child will only be competing with him- or herself. The important thing is for you, the teacher, to instil in the learner the love of learning. The student must be brought to the point where he or she recognises that their learning is about self improvement and, ultimately, self-actualisation.
- Homeschooling can take place anywhere. A science lesson could take place on the beach or in a botanical garden. The options are as vast as your imagination! Jack Hanna once said,
“The world is the true classroom.”
But, are there disadvantages to homeschooling?
Homeschooling: The Disadvantages
You can bet there are disadvantages, but they are not insurmountable! Here are some of the drawbacks you will have to consider:
- Financial cost. You will bear all the cost for materials, books and tuition.Try to ascertain in advance what these would be and draft a budget to provide for them.
- Shortage of facilities. You may not have all the resources that a school has and may not know what you require in advance. Consult with experienced educators or administrators, who can advise you on what to get and where to procure resources.
- Increased feeling of isolation and lack of social interaction: Be realistic and know that your child will be missing out on interacting with others on a daily basis – you too! Arrange some game time or down-time with others, which can be built into the Physical Education or extra-mural programme. You could still arrange for your child to receiving tennis, swimming or cricket coaching along with other learners!
- Lacking curriculum structure: You will have to create a structure to follow. You could, alternatively, access the Department of Basic Education's (DBE) curriculum online and use it as is or in an adapted form.
- Lower levels of concentration and reduced focus on learning. The onus is going to be on your shoulders to keep your ‘learner’ motivated, excited and disciplined or their grades and satisfaction levels will start to head south.
Be aware of these possible drawbacks and plan to mitigate their impact!
What Skills are Necessary for Homeschooling?
Do you feel confident enough to attempt it? Think you don’t have the required skills? You may have left school before completing matric and don’t feel equipped for the task!
There’s no need to panic!
If you wish to teach your children at home, it would be great if you’re a tutor or a teacher, but, at the end of the day, it’s not obligatory.
- Homeschooling is totally different to conventional schooling, in that you don’t need to follow the academic calendar – start and close your term as you see fit, but make sure you have allocated sufficient hours or days to complete the curriculum;
- You don’t need to slavishly follow the curriculum of the Department of Basic Education to the tee, but it would be advantageous if your child is going to face a DBE matric examination, at the end of his or her homeschooling;
- Online there are numerous resources to assist you;
Options available include distance learning, remote learning, homeschooling and unschooling, which is dictated by the learner’s interests. The latter option can only be pursued once permission has been granted by your province’s Head of Education.
Find more about home schooling pros and cons on Superprof.
So, when you decide to apply for home schooling in South Africa, you. the parent, must meet the following criteria:
- At least have a high school qualification (Matric Certificate)
- Issue the school with a notice that you intend homeschooling
- Possess a written curriculum
- Have a homeschooling plan which covers at least 180 days
- Meet annual testing requirements.
Further, in your day-to-day activities, you will need to:
- Research topics/subjects that you don’t know
- Assemble or create resources for homeschooling
- Be patient and vigilant
- Learn to use different teaching approaches and implement them
- Be very adaptable
- Organise, seet goals and ensure that your child achieves them
- Effectively use teachable moments.
Homeschooling: Getting Started
Is homeschooling the best idea for your child?
Homeschooling can benefit children of all ages.
Not all children feel happy or comfortable in a conventional school setting for a number reasons. Homeschooling can be beneficial to, for example, LSEN learners (Learners with Special Educational Needs) or any child who may have been bullied at school.
Homeschooling registration involves the following:
- Apply to the Head of Education in your province to be allowed to homeschool your child or children.
- Wait for permission to be granted – this may take several months, so do apply well in advance.
- The same applies for when you reach the point where you can no longer provide or afford the service for your child; know that there will be a waiting period before you child will be allowed back into a mainstream or special class again.
Homeschooling: A Typical Day
Since there is no single, right way to go about homeschooling, a typical day does not exist, as your situation may change from day to day and many factors come into play.
You will have to figure out what works best for yourself, your child and family.
There are a number of homeschooling scenarios which place varying demands on families:
- Both parents are self-employed or working from home and have employed a tutor.
- Both parents are involved in homeschooling their child.
- One parent is actively homeschooling.
- Parents work part-time.
- The family is travelling the world.
The routine you follow in a ‘typical day’ will crystallise over time as you start to find you feet, in what will be a new and challenging situation for all concerned. Realise that you will have to experiment a bit before you strike on a winning formula.
Find more about home schooling your child on Superprof.
Generally, your homeschooling timetable won’t be as strictly structured as a school’s. You will have the latitude to switch things around, as the situation requires or when teachable moments arise.
As a rule of thumb, it may be good to follow a structured timetable as children, generally, like to know what’s coming next and the order gives them a sense of security, cutting down on their levels of anxiety or anxiousness.
Also, do ensure that you have put together all the resources for homeschooling that you are going to require. If, at any point, you are stuck refer to a friend who is currently, or has previously worked as a teacher or tutor.
On a day, you may decide to visit a museum, do a science experiment or go outside and explore nature. That’s all well and good, but at least plan it in advance so that your ‘learner’ can mentally prepare for the event. The out-of-doors visit may be weather dependent, so state that when you propose the idea, several days in advance.
There will, of course, be occasions where something occurs outside, like a sudden rainbow, and then your breaking away from your planned programme cannot be planned for in advance.
Go for it!
Just get back on task as soon as you can!
So, while your child must receive a full-time education, this does not, necessarily, have to be provided by the child’s parents. You may make use of a private tutor to provide the lessons or to support you, if you wish to teach the lessons yourself. The tutor could be drawn in to help you draw up lesson plans which are aligned to the DBE’s curriculum.
Search for a tutor on Superprof and become connected to a great selection of experienced and talented tutors, who can provide academic support and even assist with sports, extra-mural activities and arts and crafts (Creative Arts).
You and your child will determine the type of support or tutoring he or she requires. Face-to-face tutoring is great, especially if the tutor and learner build a great rapport. This can be done in the comfort of your own home, where you are able to provide some oversight and security. This kind of tutoring, of course, comes at a price, but sometimes your mental health and the safety and security of your child (besides the fact that their schooling needs are met) are the overriding considerations!
Most Superpof tutors offer the first lesson free of charge, so make a bee-line to their website and try out one or two before you decide who may be the best fit for you and your child. Carpe diem!
Find more about home schooling requirements in SA on Superprof.
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