Are homeschoolers prepared for real world?

Are homeschoolers prepared for real world?
Family shatters stereotype of socially immature, academically inferior graduates

OZARK-Clever resident Patti Hobbs' eyes light up and the smile widens across her face as she begins talking about her six children. When Hobbs first ventured into the homeschool world nearly 20 years ago, many probably considered her family an outcast. Homeschoolers were thought to be socially immature and academically inferior. However, the Hobbs children, like so many homeschooled children in today's age, have proven those statements wrong.

Nate and Ben Hobbs have both graduated with honors with bachelor's degrees from the University of Missouri-Rolla. They are both currently enrolled in the doctorate programs at different universities.

Ben Hobbs, 22, said homeschooling not only prepared him for college, but for life as a responsible adult.

"The education I received didn't merely prepare me for the next academic level, but also instilled in me responsibility, moral values and a love of learning," he said. "Academically, the transfer between homeschooling and college was smooth. I found no gaps in my education. Like everyone, I struggled in some areas more than others. However, even in the areas in which I struggled, the accountability and desire to learn provided by my homeschooling background, combined with the expertise of professors, helped me to improve quickly."

Ben Hobbs said the transfer from homeschooling to college on a social level was a bit nerve-racking. However, public and private schooled teenagers experience these same fears.

""I was definitely nervous at first and I would agree that my background made me more nervous than a typical public school student," he said. "Regardless of the fact that I was nervous, I was excited and eager about living and learning independently, far from home. I wanted to test myself and see how I would react to a new environment."

Sam Hobbs, a sophomore at Gutenberg College in Oregon, said he was also nervous when transitioning from home to college-especially in a classroom environment.

"Isn't everyone?" was his initial reply after being asked if he was nervous to attend college. "I was not used to being in a classroom with a bunch of other kids and was not used to being talked at by a person who I could not stop and ask questions of."

That didn't affect him, however, Sam Hobbs took it as a learning experience.

As far as study skills, Sam and Ben Hobbs agreed that homeschooling helped them develop proper study skills in order to better succeed in college.

"People's study habits are unique," Ben Hobbs said. "Homeschooling helps a student recognize how they learn, allowing them to develop the skills without binding them to a general predefined form. I think my study skills are better than a large portion of public school students because I have a stronger work ethic. Homeschooling rewards hard work by allowing students to get done early."

"I think that homeschooling was an excellent preparation for college," Sam Hobbs said. "I may not have been as familiar with the typical classroom settings, but it helped me to interact much more with the tutors and the older students."

Adjusting to a classroom setting is what Christian County homeschooled families viewed as the biggest obstacle for their children when entering college. However, it is not an obstacle difficult to overcome.

"I think my son will have an adjustment to being in a classroom situation, but he's very experienced at time management since he's been responsible for doing his school work independently for years now," said Joe Defazio, Ozark homeschool father of two. "I think he'll do well."

Sparta resident Shannon Wales said she was always appreciative of her parents decision to homeschool her and her seven siblings, however, taking college courses made her realize how much she truly benefited from being homeschooled.

"It made me really appreciate being homeschooled because I would get bored sitting there in the class listening to the teacher lecture," she said. "It just seemed to drag on and I wanted to get ahead."

Now that she is a wife and mother, Wales and her husband have already thought about the possibility of homeschooling their own children.

"I think we'd like to, but since we're not there yet," she said trailing off. Wales' son, Kaden, is only 8 months.

And Wales is not alone. Sam and Ben Hobbs both said they both plan to homeschool their future children. And according to "Homeschooling Grows Up," a research study on adults who were homeschooled, 74 percent of those who were homeschooled are currently homeschooling their own children.

"The results of the research defuse long-held false criticisms of homeschooling and seem to indicate that homeschooling produces successful adults who are actively involved in their communities and who continue to value education for themselves and their children," the study states.

Wales, who was homeschooled since the fourth grade, named a number of reasons for considering homeschooling her own children-including spirituality, morals and academics.

"I think the biggest thing is that I know what he is learning," she said. "There is always going to be a lot of influences and I don't always know what the teacher's beliefs are."

Wales also said that her son's education is important to her.

"By homeschooling, I think that I would be able to personalize what he learns by his interests, abilities, skills and talents," she said. "There are going to be challenges and I want him to expect and accept challenges. But he will be able to take the time that he needs to really learn it and not be pulled along by the rest of the class. I think he would be able to excel by having a study program more catered to his personal abilities."

The "Homeschooling Grows Up" survey said that out of the more than 5,000 surveyed, 95 percent say they are glad they were homeschooled and 92 percent say having been homeschooled is an advantage to them as adults.

There are exceptions to every rule. However, it appears that overall, homeschoolers are getting along just fine in the world. They are blending in with public and private school graduates and entering the same professions. They are involved with civic, community, political and religious affairs. And the number of children being homeschooled is on the rise.

Bambi Whitaker, Clever homeschool mother and on the board of directors for the Southwest Home Education Ministry, said parents who are considering homeschooling need to get as much information as possible "in order to make an informed decision."