by Meet Sandhya Viswan, a mum who has been actively involved in the education sector, runs the Bangalore School group on Facebook along with two other members, a homeschooling parent and a go-to advisor for parents on education in the country.
She talks to Mums and Stories on the various dilemmas parents are facing right from selecting which school to curriculum board to homeschooling to sending the child to school or not during emerging new variants.
When the pandemic began and schools were trying to grapple with the situation, parents decided to take the action in their hands and thought homeschooling was the answer.
Having home-schooled her own kids in phases, Sandhya shares, “Homeschooling is not a solution for all parents and kids. One must however realize that not everyone requires a structured educational approach and that is definitely not a bad approach.
With my own younger child, he was largely left to be free rather than taking the route of attending a regular school like most kids. Today, when he is 15 years old, he is preparing on his own for the Board exams and he has been more task-oriented rather than structure oriented unlike his older sibling. So it does depend on the child’s interest and where they are likely to do well.
Now that we are well into two years into the pandemic, many parents are exploring varied schooling options. The biggest change for parents since 2020 has been the option of online schooling in our lives.
The advantage is that there are alternatives available especially, when we are passing through this transition phase of pandemic. Also there are experts available for schools when it comes to online schooling, when compared to homeschooling. Whereas under homeschooling and under the umbrella of digital education, there are no commute hours being wasted and probably the child’s hobbies can be explored.
Many parents also are quite unsure of the virus in the world; its impact on children and are of course waiting for kids to be vaccinated before sending them to the normal world. So a plethora of options in terms of schooling for different parents who have different needs and concerns”
Sandhya as professional, who works with schools, interacts with teachers, Principals, parent community among others, shares, “There is a no fool-proof approach or method that works for all children and parents. There are many children across the country who are very happy with the structured approach or a regular schooling method. If at all they will be put into alternative schools or tried to be home-schooled, probably they might not do well in their schooling life.
The bottom line being, it is however important to listen to the child, assess and analyze where they might do well and choose what is best for him or her as they grow older.”
