gtöscfdydb (PRO)Homeschooling as a form of alternative education should be banned because supervision of educational techniques and content is critical for consistently raising children in way that is in line with newest paradigm and scientific research about pedagogy. Such supervision can be better imposed through an educational system where only education from certified schools are accepted as legitimate.
Return To Top | Posted:
2018-09-19 12:30:10
| Speak Round
realdon_762 (CON)Thank you to my opponent for accepting the challenge and I look forward to a spirited debate!
First, I would like to state at the outset that in order to win this debate, my opponent not only must show that homeschooling is on balance less desirable than public or private schooling (which they cannot show), but that it is so undesirable and even harmful to the child that it warrants the State overturning the decision made by the family. In a free society, rights cannot be stripped away based on a mere cost-benefit analysis. The U.S. Supreme Court has established these principles in the cases of Wisconsin v. Yoder and Troxel v. Granville.
Now, the case for why homeschooling should not be banned:
1. The right to direct the education of one's child is a fundamental constitutional and human right. This right is not only supported by unambiguous legal precedent in the United States and across the world, it is supported by every major religion and philosophy. A parent , first and foremost, knows what is best for their particular children, and the state should only intervene in the rare cases where the parent is causing harm to the child.
2. Homeschooled students perform consistently better on every single objective measure of academic performance. One study concluded that homeschooled students perform between 15 and 30 percentile points higher than public school students, and among African-American homeschoolers, the advantage was even greater. See African American homeschool parents’ motivations for homeschooling and their Black children’s academic achievement. Ray, Brian D. (2015). Journal of School Choice, 9:71–96. A 2009 study found that homeschooled students performed as much as 40 points higher than public school-educated children in many subject areas. See Homeschool Progress Report, 2009.
My opponent's entire argument rests on conjecture, and cites no sources. The only reason that they have cited for banning homeschooling is that homeschooling neglects "the latest paradigm and scientific research about pedagogy." Again, no sources, and in fact, I can just as easily make an argument that homeschoolers, without having to face the bureaucracy that public school educators have to interact with in order to update their "paradigm" and teaching methods, can actually adopt these supposed new methods quicker. This argument is actually more plausible. Even if what my opponent claimed was true, it obviously hasn't shown as statistics prove that homeschooled students perform substantially better than public school students. Apparently, whatever new methods of pedagogy they have aren't working.
For these reasons, and for reasons to be brought up later in the debate, I strongly urge a CON ballot.
Return To Top | Posted:
2018-09-19 13:22:50
| Speak Roundgtöscfdydb (PRO)Round Forfeited
Return To Top | Posted:
2018-09-24 13:24:03
| Speak Round