Traditional School VS Homeschooling, the future of Education

The popularity of homeschooling is rising in the United Arab Emirates and around the globe. According to a recent report...

The popularity of homeschooling is rising in the United Arab Emirates and around the globe. According to a recent report by the BBC, the approximate number of homeschooled students in the United Kingdom rose from 34,000 in 2012 to 48,000 in 2017, representing a 40% increase. This trend is mirrored in other regions such as the United States and Australia, where the numbers nearly doubled between 1999-2016 and 2011-2018, respectively. What is the reason behind these statistics? Why are parents enrolling their children to homeschooling programs? Aside from being cost-effective, online homeschooling is going mainstream for several reasons.

Homeschooled Children Perform Better

Researchshows that homeschooled children have better academic outcomes than their counterparts in traditional schools.The study showed that 69% of homeschoolersgraduated from college in comparison to 59% of students from public schools and 51% from private schools. This showed that homeschooled students tend to perform better on standardized test than their counterparts. These advantageous outcomes could be attributed to a number of reasons, including interactive environments, one-on-one mentoring, warm personal relationships, and the freedom for imagination among other benefits.

Did you know that the benefits of homeschooling extend into adulthood? An Australian survey discovered that homeschooled students went on to earn more degrees and academic accolades than the general population.As shown in figure 1 below, homeschooled students outperformed their counterparts across all the age groups.

Figure 1. Bachelor Degrees held by the general public versus homeschooled respondents in different age brackets (Source: Home Education Network)

Personalized Learning

Homeschooling is founded on the idea that children should learn in the style and speed that matches their abilities and personality.For example, if a kid struggles in a certain area, the tutor can easily incorporate additional and relevant resources to help. This technique, known as ”personalized learning,” is increasingly attracting the attention and admiration of notable individuals such as Bill Gates.According to the teaching approach, the learning outcome is improved when children are taught based on what they like and how they learn best.

Homeschooling also protects kids with special needs from social stigma and prejudices in the traditional school system. The child is allowed to learn in a familiar and supportive environment. In the United Arab Emirates and other regions where religious and family values are key to an education system, homeschooling offers an effective way to monitor and instill the right morals. Homeschooling platforms such as theBritish Online School (BOS) Homeschoolingoffer student-centered learning with a keen interest in the child as a whole.The online school incorporates some Finnish teaching methods to ensure that kids progress faster, but at their own pace.

Independence and Emotional Freedom

Learning that your child was subjected to bullying and other downsides of a toxic school environment is disheartening to most parents. Some critics of homeschooling may argue that these experiences toughen up the children, but at what cost? Bullied children have a higher risk of developing symptoms of anxiety and depression. The negative mental and physical health issues directly affect the academic achievement of the children.

On the contrary, homeschooled children have the opportunity to thrive in a more harmonious environment. Enrolling for the British Online School’s homeschooling program removes the social downsides of a traditional classroom. The kids are free from unnecessary stress and negative peer pressure. According to an informative bookby Susannah Sheffer, homeschooled children are more emotionally mature, happy, and display higher self-esteem. Additionally, the BOS enhances the mental and emotional health of your children by employing a 15-minute break for every 45 minutes of learning. This prevents burnout while boosting the focus and retention of the children.

Financial Costs

According to an article published by the Khaleej Times, parents in the UAE could save up to 75% in tuition by subscribing to homeschooling institutions such as the British Online School. The monetary incentive for homeschooling is especially significant in the current education landscape, whereby there seems to be an annual fee hike. Aside from a considerable cost-cut in tuition fees, homeschooling relieves parents from a plethora of expenses. This includes expensive learning resources, school uniform, and transport expenses among others.

Teacher-to-Student Ratio

The teacher-to-student ratio and the connection between a learner and the tutor are often regarded as some of the main determinants of learning outcomes. Unsurprisingly, homeschooling excels in both of these benchmarks. For example, BOSHomeschoolingemploys the services of qualified and experienced teachers from the United Kingdom. They offer the Cambridge International Primary Curriculum from year 1 to 6 alongside Modern Foreign Languages (English, French and Arabic) for adults and children. The tutors are fully dedicated to the specific needs and capabilities of the students enrolled in the program.

Consistent and Integrated Education

Good education equips your kids with all the tools and skills they need to succeed. The integrated and consistent education approach of BOS homeschooling helps set up your children for a successful future. The online tutor understands and uses the kid’s background and experiences to design future learning activities. Homeschooling education from BOS is consistent with a long-term plan to blend the previous, ongoing, and future topics seamlessly.

Final Remarks

Could homeschooling be the future of education in the UAE? Current trends suggest that more and more people in the UAE and all over the world are considering homeschooling for their children. The rising popularity is attributed to lower financial costs, personalized learning, and other benefits highlighted above. It’s also worth noting that homeschooling can be practiced freely in the UAE provided you enroll your children in accredited institutions. For more information on the benefits of homeschooling, please visit the British Online School for Homeschoolers.