2008 Presidential Campaign: Education Reform & the Impact of Homeschooling

As the Presidential Election of 2008 approaches, many American families are looking to the educational platforms of the candidates who are running for President. Because the education system in the United States is deteriorating in many parts of the country, frustrated parents are turning to homeschooling as a viable alternative.

As each candidate's platform is reviewed for educational information, parents who once considered homeschooling but, ultimately, delayed the decision, are now turning back to homeschooling in hopes of providing a quality education to their own children.

One area of concern for many American families it the cost associated with homeschooling. As if the purchase of school supplies wasn't already difficult in the regular public and private school systems, parents who homeschool face a greater financial burden.

Compounded to this burden are the individual state requirements that children who are educated in the home must meet, or exceed, the state standardized testing requirements. For many parents, and their children, the administration of these tests, in testing centers around the state, often do not mimic the environment in which the child was taught at home and, as a result, parents face great anxiety over the success of the child in passing these state required assessment tests.

And, of course, the disadvantages to homeschooling just continue to amount. While parents may view the lack of socialization with peers as positive aspect of homeschooling, most child development and child psychology experts would state otherwise. To ensure your child is not only achieving milestones in academic platforms, but also in social area, socialization with peer groups is important. To remedy this issue, many homeschooling parents have created support groups and play dates for their children to ensure they are interacting with other homeschooling children of the same age group.