OUR BLOG
Posted 25 July 2022
As For Me & My House
By Anna Storer
I still remember the day my parents told me they were pulling me out of mainstream school to be home-schooled.
Being the advanced age of 13 years old, of course I knew what was best and passionately told my parents ‘they were ruining my life!’
I had just finished my first year of high school and whilst I was loving the exposure to new playmates and pursuits, they had been watching their daughter’s moral compass slowly move south.
As a pastor’s daughter, I had been brought up in children’s church and also regularly went to youth group on the weekends but let’s face it, 5 days out of 7 can tip the scales when it comes to primary input and influence.
So, from Year 8 through to Year 12, I was home-schooled together with my siblings using a Bible-based American curriculum which is still widely renowned today.
Each and every subject had the Word of God weaved through it and alongside language and literature, I also learnt valuable life concepts all from a Christian perspective. I think it was at this time that a spirit of excellence was ingrained in me, as contrary to what most folks deem home-school lessons to be, the education was excellent and the system encouraged each student to excel. I was able to work at my own pace and graduated from Year 12 ahead of my peers.
After our Year 12 graduation, my brother and I sat for The Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT), which is an aptitude test that assesses a range of competencies considered important for successful tertiary study. We presented these scores in our university applications and my brother went on to successfully complete a Bachelor of Commerce, majoring in E-commerce and IT while I was accepted into a world-class Journalism degree.
I think this is one of the largest concerns of parents thinking about home-schooling, not only that their child will miss out on the quality of education provided by live teachers and the socialisation of a mainstream school, but that it will also hinder their child’s prospects for university entrance.
However, with home-schooling on the rise globally, universities are quite open and adept at accepting home-schooled students who have graduated with international qualifications.
International research shows that home-schooled students often get better test results and consistently earn more degrees (bachelors and above) than traditional high school graduates. This advantageous outcome could be that home-schooled children have the ability to learn in real-life contexts. They also have the opportunity for one-on-one mentoring and tutoring along with regular interactions with more informed peers such as older siblings and parents.
In regards to socialisation, I am 42 years old now and you know what? Yes, I’m not gonna lie, I did miss out. I did miss out on the classroom and playground interactions, which often include ungodly conversations and exposure to non-Christian values and concepts. I did miss out on the bad language, bullying and premature sexualisation which is increasing everywhere, starting earlier and earlier amongst our children.
But whilst some may claim I’m naïve for my age and that, ‘I missed out on so much being home-schooled,’ I say, ‘Okay let’s break it down…which of those things would have bettered my life? Or positively altered the trajectory of my future? Which of these missed elements of ‘socialisation’ in a mainstream school, limited me in becoming a whole, healthy human being?’
I haven’t come up with an answer yet.
What I do measure is, ‘What addictions, mental health or behavioural issues have I never had to struggle with because my heart and mind were kept pure? What important life decisions were made with God as the centre, because not all the options, opinions and voices of the world were laid out for me?’
The truth is, God placed a tree which fruit contained the knowledge of all good and evil in the garden of Eden. It was made readily available. However, He specifically told His beloved not to eat of it. Why? Because He knew that not all knowledge was good, and that simply by our awareness being drawn to it, it could cause death in our lives – which is separation from Him. And sadly, we saw this play out just so in the lives of Adam and Eve, whose fateful decision still affects the entire course of humanity today.
Scripture teaches us, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
So, from the girl whose affections were once being swayed to the dark side, to the woman I am today who passionately loves Jesus and is serving Him fully with her life, can I just take a moment to thank my mum and dad for also making a fate-filled decision long ago.
Thank you, mum and dad, for taking a risk and going against the ‘status quo’…
Thank you, mum and dad, for taking the responsibility of stewarding my life seriously…
Thank you, mum and dad, for drawing a line in the sand and not only prophetically declaring, but practically walking out the mandate, even in education, “that as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Joshua 24:15
