After weeks of lost teaching time due to the national teacher's strike; our colleagues have engaged in a sympathy strike with those who face disciplinary action for their conduct during the strike.
Once again, the message to our students is clear: discipline is not important, not even for those who break the law. That some SADTU and NEHAWU members behaved badly is beyond question. That they need to face the consequences of their actions goes without saying. That their colleagues and comrades embark on a sympathy strike to avoid this disciplinary action is frightening to say the least.
We all send our children to public schools in good faith. If we can afford it we send our children to private schools. When an entire country's public schooling system is in chaos; an often neglected option, but a sensible one is the homeschooling choice.
One needs only to browse the Internet for a few minutes to discover just how many resources there are for those who choose to set up a home classroom and a home school. If you can afford to be a stay at home parent, it makes sense to spend the valuable early years of your child's life teaching him or her yourself.
Free resources for homeschooling are readily available. Ideas are everywhere you look. If you are a teacher trained in only one or two specialist areas, you will be more than capable of following a guided curriculum in all the required learning areas. Even if you have no training as a teacher,there are so many online resources to assist you that you will be an expert in no time at all. Start learning with your child from the pre-Kindergarten stage and move along grade by grade with your child.
Another option is to home school your child for the primary school years and then identify a suitable high school for him or her to join a mainstream classroom. Research has shown that children who have been home schooled fare far better in college and tertiary institutions as they are able to pace themselves and engage in self-study.
In the long run, home schooling can in fact be a cheaper option in monetary terms. One saves on transport costs and uniform costs to name but two savings. Obviously you will need to spend money on stationery, equipment, course materials and the like, but you will have the benefit of remaining your child's primary teacher for the years he or she is schooled at home.
The choice to home school your child cannot be taken lightly and one should do the research carefully. Speak to others who have followed this route, join a support group and weigh up your options carefully.
Visit my website at http://resourcesforteachersandschools.webs.com/ for ideas on how to go about setting up a home school classroom and obtaining teaching resources.
Can we really continue to entrust our children to teachers who teach not for the love of teaching, but for the money ?
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