Vocations

Pope Benedict and Pope John Paul II on Vocations -

"Rather, it is important to accomplish the communion of life which shows them how beautiful it is to be a priest. Only then, the young man will say, “Yes, this can be a future for me too; it is possible to live like this” (Insegnamenti I, [2005], 354). Referring to the witness that awakens vocations, the Second Vatican Council underlines the example of charity and of brotherly collaboration which priests must offer (cf. Decree Optatam totius, 2).

I like to remember what my venerable Predecessor John Paul II wrote: “The very life of priests, their unconditional dedication to God's flock, their witness of loving service to the Lord and to his Church - a witness marked by free acceptance of the cross in the spirit of hope and Easter joy - their fraternal unity and zeal for the evangelization of the world are the first and most convincing factor in the growth of vocations” (Pastores dabo vobis, 41). It can be said that priestly vocations are born of the example of priests, as a sort of a precious patrimony communicated by word, by example and by a whole way of life. "

~ from http://www.vocationsandprayer.org/?rub=news/news&newsid=n42f7edbf1adbe

Encouragement for homeschoolers from a Public School teacher

Certified teacher joins home-school world
Amy Travis


In 2006, I took the leap from public school teacher to home-school mom for my kindergarten daughter. I did what most home-school mothers do and joined a home-school group for support. To be honest, I thought I would be lending most of the support. I had the elementary education degree and many successful years of teaching under my belt. They should be so lucky to have me in the group.

Ego check! They didn’t need my advice on materials. There is a whole world of home-school materials that is every bit as good as public school curriculum. At first I found my refuge in the small overlap of curriculums used both by home-schoolers and the public school systems. I was overwhelmed by all the information, materials, activities and co-ops that these families were using.

As I made my way into this world, I was amazed at all the new options and ideas I had never seen or heard of as a public school teacher. These parents had a right to snub me and my ego. They may not have had an elementary education degree or even stepped a foot in a classroom, but these parents had nothing to learn from me, and I had much to learn from them.

Four years later, when I’m in home-school circles I don’t even mention I was once a teacher in the public schools. It means nothing in the home-school world, and from what I have witnessed, it shouldn’t. My home-school teaching (which now includes my son as well as my daughter) has taken place in the states of Arizona and Washington, where I have met hundreds of home-school families. I can’t recall a single family from either of these states that is doing a disservice to their children or their state.

Let’s take a look at what regulations are doing for public school teachers. They are overwhelmed with all the requirements and push for students to do well on standardized tests. I still keep in touch with old teacher friends. Many feel as if their days are filled with teaching the one almighty test. I can quote some as saying, “Teaching isn’t even fun anymore.”

How about instead of fighting for more regulations on home-school parents, we fight for fewer regulations on public school teachers? I had some great teachers 30 years ago who did not face the same government regulations. I’m not saying teachers shouldn’t be held to a high standard – just maybe not one, single standard: the test.

Do we really want to put these same crazy regulations on home-school families? These parents are enjoying what they do and not getting one government cent to do it.

There is a wealth of information that proves the benefits of home schooling. More government involvement isn’t going to solve the problem of some family in New Haven who is abusing the system for some reason. It is only going to hurt those good families that are doing what they should. As with anything, someone is always going to abuse the system, but all should not be punished for the few.

Sorry I can’t provide some dirt on the home-school community. Funny, they are just doing a great job – all without regulations.

I understand that not all home-school parents are great teachers, as not all public school teachers are top-notch. I assume that not all teachers in the public schools feel the pressure of standardized testing, but I can’t find one who doesn’t. I sure hope they are out there.

I received my teaching degree from Indiana University in Fort Wayne and continue to renew my certificate. I currently live in Arizona and stay connected with family living in Fort Wayne.

The above material comes not from researched evidence, but from the truth I have seen and from the heart.

Amy Travis is a former Fort Wayne resident and IPFW graduate who currently lives in Arizona. She is a former public school teacher home-schooling her two children. She wrote this for The Journal Gazette.

What about Socialization?

Web Sites About Socialization

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/socialization.htm <--- some tough and eye-opening words here.

A clip of it -

How is Socialization Best Learned?
Posted by Karen, Redwood Games

What About Socialization? For some reason, this is the main concern non-homeschoolers seem to have about homeschooling. They can't put down homeschool for academic reasons since studies show that homeschoolers do significantly better than PS students on tests regardless of their parents' educational level. So they fall back on this "concern."

It is precisely for this reason that I do homeschool. I wish to have my children be socialized so that they:

-take responsibility for their actions;

-can relate to all ages in a courteous manner;

-are not pressured into "lookism," materialism, precocious sexuality, drugs, gangs or violence;

-see themselves as individuals who control events rather than members of a group and followers to whom things happen;

-retain a close, mutually respectful relationship with their families;

-see themselves as an important part of the larger society, not some warehoused teenager with no role except consumerism.

And what do schools do to "socialize" kids?

-They group them according to age (a completely artificial grouping - when was the last time you only worked with co-workers within a year of your age?);

-they expose them to kids who have poor impulse-control and lack empathy

-they force the kids who missed a concept to go on at the group pace so that they NEVER catch up;

-they force the kids who already learned a concept to wait around wasting their time until the rest of the class catches up;

-they group kids in projects so that they can learn to work together, totally ignoring the fact that in the work place, your team-mates will be accountable for their work output and FIRED if they don't produce, thus the motivated kids do all the work and the unmotivated kids miss out completely. This is not a realistic reflection of how the "real world" works.

-they allow bullying, harassment and so on because "kids need to get tough" because they'll face it in the "real world." What a crock! If someone threatens to hit you (or does hit you) when you are an adult they are arrested! When someone steals your lunch money, they are arrested! Not only that, we adults choose our friends from people who are civilized. The people with whom we work have the self-discipline required for decent social interaction, or they are fired. We don't have to subject our children to these horrible conditions in order to ready them for a "real world."

Bottom line: The school world is a completely unrealistic place that brings kids down to the lowest common denominator.

P.S. If they are not convinced, then have them read, Reviving Ophelia. This is a book on teenage girls by a psychiatrist. She doesn't ever mention homeschooling but indicts the schools as "sick" and blames them for the problems of depression, anorexia, low self-esteem that her patients (from otherwise normal, loving families) experienced. She says that even the best of families cannot combat the effects of the constant harassment, sexual stereotyping and appearance judgement that occurs in the schools.

http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/articles/042998a.htm

http://www.amazon.com/Weapons-Mass-Instruction-Schoolteachers-Compulsory/dp/0865716315/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265486409&sr=8-1

Getting your "Homeschool Train" back on track

from Catholic Heritage Curriculum ~

The homeschooling journey shares some interesting parallels with a vacation by train; in fact, derailing of the ‘Homeschooling Express’ has occurred more than once in almost every family who is making the trip.

If your ‘homeschool train’ is wobbling on the rails, the following tips might be just the ‘ticket’ to put your train safely back on track.

1. Start with the Core
Particularly if this is your first year, stick to the basics. By so doing, your students will cover all the key subjects as you learn the ropes and they settle into your homeschool routine.

2. Use Lesson Plans.....at least for the first year or two. Lesson plans save preparation time and eliminate the uncertainty of that pit-in-the-stomach question: Am I covering all that needs to be covered? CHC lesson plans highlight core subjects for those who wish to begin with the ‘easiest route’ to the same destination, but also include all subjects as your family gradually ‘picks up speed’ toward implementing a complete curriculum, along with enrichment materials and attention-grabbing activities.

3. Don’t Add or Substitute
If you are stressed and confused by decisions about what and how much to teach, stick with the lesson plans. Additions and substitutions add to the expense, preparation time, and workload. The lesson plans are complete and thorough without confusing additions.

4. Don’t Compare Your Children.....to one another, or to children outside the family. This creates a fear of ‘being ahead’ or ‘being behind.’ Remember that God creates each of us as individuals, with differing abilities. Children in public school are rarely exactly at grade level in each and every subject; it is not uncommon for children to be a few grades ahead in one or more subjects, a few grades behind in one or more subjects, and right on target in the rest. Homeschooled children are no different in this regard. However, the significant difference between the two settings is that homeschooled children can move ahead at their own pace, and receive immediate, personally tailored instruction for those areas in which they lag.

5. Avoid Burnout……by adding too much and expecting too much, too soon. Enjoy each mile of the train trip, without expecting to arrive just after the train has left the station. Just as it is only at the end of the journey, when your family has returned from vacation, when you can truly assess the success of the trip, so also with homeschooling does a retrospective reveal the territory covered. Certainly, keep track of strides in learning, but don’t make a final assessment of progress from last year to this, until year’s end.

6. Without Discipline…...children may make a break for the door and take a flying leap from the train. If your children don’t listen or mind outside of homeschool, they won’t listen or mind during homeschool. It is impossible to succeed at homeschooling without discipline. [If you are having discipline issues, put all academics on hold and work on this pivotal parenting skill first. Click here for helpful resources.]

7. Combine Grades Where Possible
Do you have children who are close in age? Grades are somewhat arbitrary divisions that don’t necessarily reflect a student’s readiness to learn. [It is not out of the ordinary for parents to notice that, while Mom is teaching a kindergartener, the preschooler is catching on just as quickly.] There is absolutely nothing ‘wrong’ with having two children in the same grade, or using the same materials for two children. [One helpful resource is the Multi-Level Science Guide.]

8. Praise
Praise at least twice as much as you correct. Point out and applaud your children for the good points and improvement in their work before you suggest corrections or further improvements.

9. Pray
Begin each school day with a simple prayer for wisdom, guidance, and the desire to use skills learned to help others to the glory of God. Use the free Wednesday that is built into CHC lesson plans and make a mini-holiday/holy day of it. Assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and take the kids to the park for a picnic, or go out to lunch.

10. Relax
Just as you would on that train-travel vacation, take photos and create a brief written record of those ‘ooh and ahh’ moments. Keep a portfolio of the year’s activities [and collection of best papers] so you can look back on all the happy times, surrounded by evidence of your children’s progress, and warmed by soul-satisfying memories.

Government schooling is .... Weapons of Mass Destruction

from Mama's Littly Ditty blog -

The following essay was published in the Wall Street Journal on July 25, 1991. It was written by John Taylor Gatto the same year he was he was the New York State Teacher of the Year and titled "I Quit, I Think".

It explained his reasons for ending his teaching career in spite of having no savings and no idea what to do with himself in his mid-fifties to pay the rent.

Government schooling is the most radical adventure in history. It kills the family by monopolizing the best times of childhood and by teaching disrespect for home and parents. The whole blueprint of school procedure is Egyptian, not Greek or Roman. It grows from the theological idea that human value is a scarce thing, represented symbolically by the narrow peak of a pyramid.

That idea passed into American history through the Puritans. It found its "scientific" presentation in the bell curve, along which talent supposedly apportions itself by some Iron Law of Biology. It’s a religious notion, School is its church. I offer rituals to keep heresy at bay. I provide documentation to justify the heavenly pyramid.

Socrates foresaw if teaching became a formal profession, something like this would happen. Professional interest is served by making what is easy to do seem hard; by subordinating the laity to the priesthood. School is too vital a jobs-project, contract giver and protector of the social order to allow itself to be "re-formed." It has political allies to guard its marches, that’s why reforms come and go without changing much. Even reformers can’t imagine school much different.

David learns to read at age four; Rachel, at age nine: In normal development, when both are 13, you can’t tell which one learned first—the five-year spread means nothing at all. But in school I label Rachel "learning disabled" and slow David down a bit, too. For a paycheck, I adjust David to depend on me to tell him when to go and stop. He won’t outgrow that dependency. I identify Rachel as discount merchandise, "special education" fodder. She’ll be locked in her place forever.
In 30 years of teaching kids rich and poor I almost never met a learning disabled child; hardly ever met a gifted and talented one either. Like all school categories, these are sacred myths, created by human imagination. They derive from questionable values we never examine because they preserve the temple of schooling.

That’s the secret behind short-answer tests, bells, uniform time blocks, age grading, standardization, and all the rest of the school religion punishing our nation. There isn’t a right way to become educated; there are as many ways as fingerprints. We don’t need state-certified teachers to make education happen—that probably guarantees it won’t.

How much more evidence is necessary? Good schools don’t need more money or a longer year; they need real free-market choices, variety that speaks to every need and runs risks. We don’t need a national curriculum or national testing either. Both initiatives arise from ignorance of how people learn or deliberate indifference to it. I can’t teach this way any longer. If you hear of a job where I don’t have to hurt kids to make a living, let me know. Come fall I’ll be looking for work.

His latest book is again receiving acclaim - http://www.amazon.com/Weapons-Mass-Instruction-Schoolteachers-Compulsory/dp/0865716315

Newest Homeschool study

New Nationwide Study Confirms Homeschool Academic Achievement
Ian SlatterDirector of Media Relations
August 10, 2009

LINK

Despite much resistance from outside the homeschool movement, whether from teachers unions, politicians, school administrators, judges, social service workers, or even family members, over the past few decades homeschoolers have slowly but surely won acceptance as a mainstream education alternative. This has been due in part to the commissioning of research which demonstrates the academic success of the average homeschooler.

The last piece of major research looking at homeschool academic achievement was completed in 1998 by Dr. Lawrence Rudner. Rudner, a professor at the ERIC Clearinghouse, which is part of the University of Maryland, surveyed over 20,000 homeschooled students. His study, titled Home Schooling Works, discovered that homeschoolers (on average) scored about 30 percentile points higher than the national average on standardized achievement tests.

This research and several other studies supporting the claims of homeschoolers have helped the homeschool cause tremendously. Today, you would be hard pressed to find an opponent of homeschooling who says that homeschoolers, on average, are poor academic achievers.
There is one problem, however. Rudner’s research was conducted over a decade ago. Without another look at the level of academic achievement among homeschooled students, critics could begin to say that research on homeschool achievement is outdated and no longer relevant.

Recognizing this problem, HSLDA commissioned Dr. Brian Ray, an internationally recognized scholar and president of the non-profit National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI), to collect data for the 2007–08 academic year for a new study which would build upon 25 years of homeschool academic scholarship conducted by Ray himself, Rudner, and many others.
Drawing from 15 independent testing services, the Progress Report 2009: Homeschool Academic Achievement and Demographics included 11,739 homeschooled students from all 50 states who took three well-known tests—California Achievement Test, Iowa Tests of Basic Skills, and Stanford Achievement Test for the 2007–08 academic year. The Progress Report is the most comprehensive homeschool academic study ever completed.

The Results
Overall the study showed significant advances in homeschool academic achievement as well as revealing that issues such as student gender, parents’ education level, and family income had little bearing on the results of homeschooled students.

National Average Percentile Scores
Subtest
Homeschool =HS Public School = PS
Reading - 89hs 50 ps
Language - 84hs 50 ps
Math - 84hs 50 ps

Science - 86hs 50 ps
Social Studies - 84hs 50 ps
Core A - 88hs 50 ps
Composite B - 86hs 50 ps
a. Core is a combination of Reading, Language, and Math.

b. Composite is a combination of all subtests that the student took on the test.

There was little difference between the results of homeschooled boys and girls on core scores.
Boys—87th percentile Girls—88th percentile

Household income had little impact on the results of homeschooled students.
$34,999 or less—85th percentile

$35,000–$49,999—86th percentile

$50,000–$69,999—86th percentile

$70,000 or more—89th percentile

The education level of the parents made a noticeable difference, but the homeschooled children of non-college educated parents still scored in the 83rd percentile, which is well above the national average.
Neither parent has a college degree—83rd percentile

One parent has a college degree—86th percentile

Both parents have a college degree—90th percentile
Whether either parent was a certified teacher did not matter.
Certified (i.e., either parent ever certified)—87th percentile

Not certified (i.e., neither parent ever certified)—88th percentile

Parental spending on home education made little difference.
Spent $600 or more on the student—89th percentile

Spent under $600 on the student—86th percentile

The extent of government regulation on homeschoolers did not affect the results.
Low state regulation—87th percentile

Medium state regulation—88th percentile

High state regulation—87th percentile
HSLDA defines the extent of government regulation this way:
States with low regulation: No state requirement for parents to initiate any contact or State requires parental notification only.
States with moderate regulation: State requires parents to send notification, test scores, and/or professional evaluation of student progress.
State with high regulation: State requires parents to send notification or achievement test scores and/or professional evaluation, plus other requirements (e.g. curriculum approval by the state, teacher qualification of parents, or home visits by state officials).

The question HSLDA regularly puts before state legislatures is, “If government regulation does not improve the results of homeschoolers why is it necessary?”

In short, the results found in the new study are consistent with 25 years of research, which show that as a group homeschoolers consistently perform above average academically. The Progress Report also shows that, even as the numbers and diversity of homeschoolers have grown tremendously over the past 10 years, homeschoolers have actually increased the already sizeable gap in academic achievement between themselves and their public school counterparts-moving from about 30 percentile points higher in the Rudner study (1998) to 37 percentile points higher in the Progress Report (2009).

As mentioned earlier, the achievement gaps that are well-documented in public school between boys and girls, parents with lower incomes, and parents with lower levels of education are not found among homeschoolers. While it is not possible to draw a definitive conclusion, it does appear from all the existing research that homeschooling equalizes every student upwards.

Homeschoolers are actually achieving every day what the public schools claim are their goals—to narrow achievement gaps and to educate each child to a high level.
Of course, an education movement which consistently shows that children can be educated to a standard significantly above the average public school student at a fraction of the cost—the average spent by participants in the Progress Report was about $500 per child per year as opposed to the public school average of nearly $10,000 per child per year—will inevitably draw attention from the K-12 public education industry.

Answering the Critics
This particular study is the most comprehensive ever undertaken. It attempts to build upon and improve on the previous research. One criticism of the Rudner study was that it only drew students from one large testing service. Although there was no reason to believe that homeschoolers participating with that service were automatically non-representative of the broader homeschool community, HSLDA decided to answer this criticism by using 15 independent testing services for this new study. There can be no doubt that homeschoolers from all walks of life and backgrounds participated in the Progress Report.
While it is true that not every homeschooler in America was part of this study, it is also true that the Progress Report provides clear evidence of the success of homeschool programs.
The reason is that all social science studies are based on samples. The goal is to make the sample as representative as possible because then more confident conclusions can be drawn about the larger population. Those conclusions are then validated when other studies find the same or similar results.

Critics tend to focus on this narrow point and maintain that they will not be satisfied until every homeschooler is submitted to a test. This is not a reasonable request because not all homeschoolers take standardized achievement tests. In fact, while the majority of homeschool parents do indeed test their children simply to track their progress and also to provide them with the experience of test-taking, it is far from a comprehensive and universal practice among homeschoolers.

The best researchers can do is provide a sample of homeschooling families and compare the results of their children to those of public school students, in order to give the most accurate picture of how homeschoolers in general are faring academically.

The concern that the only families who chose to participate are the most successful homeschoolers can be alleviated by the fact that the overwhelming majority of parents did not know their children's test results before agreeing to participate in the study.

HSLDA believes that this study along with the several that have been done in the past are clear evidence that homeschoolers are succeeding academically.

Final Thought
Homeschooling is making great strides and hundreds of thousands of parents across America are showing every day what can be achieved when parents exercise their right to homeschool and make tremendous sacrifices to provide their children with the best education available.

Read the full report.

Preparing to Homeschool

Ready…Set…Homeschool!
by Linda Schrock Taylor

It's that time of year again. Parents are worrying and debating, "Should we let the children return to public school for just one more year?" Parents are refiguring budgets and wondering, "Could we drive the old car another year and put the kids in private school?" Parents are reevaluating long-range financial goals to determine which might be put on the back burner until later; so as to homeschool children who are growing up quickly now. Many parents arrive at the decision to homeschool, but then fail to act upon their decision, fearful of taking 'The Giant Step,' as we called it in our home. Do not be fearful. Act. Your children will be all the better for it, and you will never regret your decision.

Too often parents have believed the official state slogan, "You need to be a certified teacher in order to teach." That is nonsense, and one need only look at the failure of the public school system to see how 'well' those thousands of certified, degreed, experienced administrators and teachers have failed America. That system of 'educated professionals' has hurt the American people so severely that millions of individuals, and our nation, may never recover. America now ranks alongside countries long noted for having unskilled workers, low literacy rates, and the destructive effects of illiteracy: poverty; crime; welfare; gangs; illegitimacy; large prison populations; industry and manufacturing moving to countries where literate workers can read orders, blueprints, and manuals for operating high-tech production machinery. Mexican workers have a 90% literacy rate; American workers have about a 70% literacy rate. Eventually, Mexico may have to close its borders against Americans sneaking in to find work.

Certainly loving, committed parents can educate their children better than the State is doing. Children being homeschooled by parents who are focused; who willingly sit and learn with their children; who mediate experiences and information; are far better off than the children in most public schools in America. However, children who are being kept home from school by parents who lack plans, goals, and a commitment to truly educate their children, are better off in school where, hopefully, they will have a few good teachers and come away with something.

Parents do not need to "know everything" in order to homeschool. I have a master's degree and I certainly could not begin to teach my son everything that he needs, and I want for him, to know. Luckily the world is full of books, videos, and websites on every topic. Help is available for those who honestly seek it. Bring your children home, but do it with forethought, planning, and a commitment to provide the best education possible. Homeschooling is hard work, but it is most rewarding.

There are some things that you do need to know as you begin homeschooling: Know Your State Homeschooling Laws; Know Yourself; Know Your Child; Know What you Want Your Child to Learn; Know Your Timeframe; Know That the First Two Years Will Be the Roughest; Know that Reading must be the Number One focus; Know That It Is OK To Be Flexible.

Know the homeschooling laws in your state, and learn as much as possible about homeschooling. As a first step, visit the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) website and learn the laws for your state. If you must file paperwork with the state, call the homeschooling office at your state department of education, and ask to be sent a homeschooling packet. Read it carefully for some states, like Michigan, require that you check a certain box stating that you sincerely believe that your children do not need certified teachers. Otherwise, the state expects that a certified teacher be involved in your homeschooling. Also, do not forget to tap into resources within your circle of family and friends. Maybe a relative is a retired certified teacher and would enjoy teaching some French lessons; a neighbor might be willing to act as consultant and advise on materials and lesson plans. Be innovative in finding help and support. Check for a homeschooling group in your area to join. Some of those groups are so large that they have orchestras and offer courses for the more difficult high school classes.

While at HSLDA, read a variety of articles so you can better understand the rights, and the responsibilities, of homeschooling. When you decide to homeschool, consider joining that association. The knowledge that you have immediate access to lawyers and advice is invaluable and especially reassuring to families as they begin this new venture. As protection against a day when the state might decide to interfere with our homeschooling, we keep every paper; every workbook that David completes. At the end of each school year, I bundle everything into a brown expanding file, label with grade level and year, and store. If I am ever questioned about whether I 'really' provide him with schooling, I can rent a hand truck and wheel the tall stack out for all to see.

Know yourself and your spouse. Communicate with your spouse to assess the commitment, skills and goals of your team. If the mother is strong in language and reading, but feels shaky with the math and science, plan educational schedules so that both parents can participate. No bus will pick your child up at 7:30 AM, and you don't have to run your homeschool as a typical public school day. You may choose to, as an aid to developing structure and accomplishment of goals, but you do not have to 'be in session' from 8:00–3:30. We homeschool four long days, then David has Friday off because he and his father have jobs in the meat department of a small town general store. Sometimes we have English classes on the weekends when I am more available to work with writing assignments. Flexibility is important, even in choosing or discarding materials. If you chose something that simply is not working, chuck it and find something that does; change the schedule; cut or increase the workload. YOU are the teacher, the principal, the superintendent and the school board. You make the decisions. Be flexible as you meet the needs of your children, yourselves and your household.

Know your child, and understand that you know your child better than any other educator. For example, if you know that your child hates early mornings, you adapt for that, plan schooling around it, and maintain an environment conducive to learning. David gets up just about the time that the bus he used to ride passes the house. With book in hand, he eats a leisurely breakfast while reading his literature assignment. After a relaxed beginning to his day, he feels more ready for pencil and paper assignments. You can be flexible and still complete the lessons plans that you wish to accomplish.

For the complete article, click HERE.