Context
Many new terms about education and schooling have been tossed around during the past five years: micro schools, pods, charter school at home, online schooling, and virtual schooling, and the list continues to grow. Some advocates of these terms imply or argue that there is so much variation and ambiguity between the various pedagogical approaches and arrangements that it is really too difficult to carefully define the terms.
Let us, however, hearken to this truism:
'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? It is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself.
– Juliet, Act II, Scene II, Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare
In well-planned and rightly executed research and scholarly writing, definitions are critical, and fundamental. Scholars often create operational
definitions for their single study or research program. If, for example, private homeschooling is not distinguished from tax-funded school at home, then findings and their implications mean something different than if they were defined as mutually exclusive. Definitions are also critical and impactful regarding the effects they have in and by popular media, policymaking, and law. Definitions and related findings affect public attitude. Definitions and related findings encourage parents to
homeschool or create barriers to homeschooling. Consider a recent example.
A Case in Point
Just two weeks ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared, “New data reveal inequalities in homeschooling and mental health of Slovenian adolescents.” Further, the first paragraph presented the following findings:
‘Slovenian adolescents from lower income households faced significant barriers to homeschooling in 2020, finds WHO/Europe’s collaborative Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. These adolescents also experienced greater feelings of loneliness than those from more affluent families.
And then the first sub-heading reads, “Poor homeschooling conditions for adolescents from less affluent families.” Various negative implications appear to be associated with homeschooling by the time the reader gets to that sub-heading. But one must immediately ask, how does WHO define homeschooling?
Findings
. . . . . [new study continues here] And please see comments below.
--Brian D. Ray, Ph.D.
National Home Education Research Institute
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Keywords, Categories, Tags:
Homeschooling, home education, definition, definitions, pods, micro-schools, hybrid
homeschooling, policy, policymaking
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