Homeschooling vs. Homebubblewrapping

In the spirit of pointing out the elephant in the room, it's time to notice that there are two vastly different approaches to homeschooling, and only one of these is concerned with education.

I was introduced to the non-educational version of homeschooling, rather rudely, at a homeschool conference in Illinois. I'd been invited to teach about worldviews and apologetics, and I'd been give a booth to promote Worldview Academy. The keynote speaker quickly made it clear, however, that none of his children would ever attend our camp--or any camp, for that matter. He cited Proverbs 22:15, which says that the heart of a child is foolish, and then drew the sweeping conclusion that this meant he should prevent his children from associating with any other children!

I'm not exaggerating. The speaker went on to say that he did not allow his children to attend camp, participate in his church's youth group, or spend the night at a friend's house. The reason he homeschooled, quite simply, was to prevent his children from encountering any aspect of the world. I left with the impression that he kept his children in separate cells, under lock and key.

Everyone knows homeschool families with this mentality. For them, homeschooling is not really about putting on the mind of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5); instead, it's about bubble-wrapping their children, so that they're "protected" from any number of villains: public school teachers, popular culture, mainstream media, etc.

In contrast, some homeschool families actually homeschool because they believe they can provide the best education for their children. These families may still sound like the bubble-wrapping families when they talk about the public schools or the media, and they certainly don't want to expose their children to everything that an average twelve year-old has already seen on cable television. But their motive for homeschooling is actually quite different.

No one would send their five year-old to evangelize a rabidly atheistic teacher. So far, all homeschoolers agree. But five year-olds grow up. Is it appropriate for a sixteen year-old to discuss his faith with a vehement atheist? How about a twenty-six year-old?

The right approach to homeschooling is more about equipping than protecting. Yes, students need to be immersed in the Christian worldview before they can successfully defend their faith in the public square. But they need to be looking forward to a time when they really will be salt and light in the public square (Matthew 5:13-16)! The ultimate goal of homeschooling is NOT to keep your children safe--it is to train them to own their faith, so that they may die to themselves, pick up their cross and follow Christ. Even when He leads them into a world filled with foolishness and sin.