I’m an English education major. My friends cast odd glances when they see that I am typically reading young adult literature such as Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak and Barry Lyga's I Hunt Killers instead of devouring Frankenstein and Moby Dick. Bloom’s Taxonomy, Piaget’s stages of cognitive development—these theories are a part of my everyday language in college. I student teach at marvelous schools and learn from amazing peers, mentors, and education professionals. My lifelong dream is to become a teacher. I adore teaching and English; English gives me energy, and when I teach my two passions combine, making me often unrecognizable from the introverted character most people know. I breathe public education as I take classes learning how it works and how to function within the system while using my creativity.

Also, I fully support and promote homeschooling.

Every time those words spill out of my mouth, I find myself faced with confused expressions. Why would someone who is pouring four years of life into a teaching degree and who plans to devote time, energy, and even money into the public school promote homeschooling? Contrary to what many people often guess, I do not support homeschooling because of a bitter distaste for public education. I have not made this choice as a boycott against the many plights of educators.

There are countless reasons for why people choose to home school—religious beliefs, health issues, disabilities, student exceptionalities, political reasons, the list goes on. As someone who was home schooled my entire K-12 education, I know the benefits of homeschooling. I know the struggles, the pitfalls, and the thrilling discoveries. Waking up and doing school in your pajamas (yes, I actually did fulfill that stereotype) is hard when your bed is only twenty steps away. I definitely did social studies at 11 PM some days because I chose to read Nancy Drew all day. I didn't finish dissecting my frog in high school because I was too grossed out and there was no lab partner to help me.

Despite the wonderfully horrible freedoms of homeschooling, one of the biggest home school moments for me that impacted my life was an afternoon in elementary school when I cheated on one of my math tests by writing some notes on a piece of paper. I eventually felt so guilty that I admitted the culprit behind my questionably good grade, and I got a big fat zero on the test. That's right. My own mom unapologetically gave me a zero, and it brought my already low math average down even lower into the pits of math despair. I was mortified. Guess how many times I have cheated since? I am convinced that without the personal connection to my mother, receiving a zero would not have been such a blow. If I did not have to live with the person who gave it and know that she fully knew the person who earned it, I might have never learned the value of learning material myself and admitting what I do not know. This is just one example of how homeschooling has impacted me in a life changing way.

In opposition to the benefits of homeschooling one major query that people pose when I reveal my support is the following: “Won’t students struggle socially if they are homeschooled?” Actually, yes—quite possibly. There is a good chance that if you keep young people at home 24/7 that they will struggle socially. These home schoolers do exist; I’ve met them. While this stereotype is based in reality, it is not the only reality. In my personal homeschooling experience, I attended a home school academy where I had teachers who poured into my life and peers who took the same classes and tests. We met once a week and did all our work at home under the supervision of our parents and older siblings. This version of homeschooling paired with my constant involvement in volleyball and church activities provided a healthy social life for me. Homeschooling simply presents a dynamic incomparable with public education.

However, in my experience, the difference is not negative. In college I have witnessed peers who placed social interactions above education. I love spending time with my friends, but at the same time, I am paying for college. It is not a four year party. My years of being home schooled taught me time management and the lesson to work hard and play hard, but always work hard first.

Unsocialized, over-socialized, perfectly socialized—I hate these ideas because, while every person is built for relationships, not every person has the exact same needs when it comes to interactions with others. Assuming that daily interactions with hundreds of students is positive is just as presumptive as assuming that limited interactions with peers is detrimental. Every person has different needs and those needs must be taken into account when considering the educational path to follow.

I know that homeschooling molded me into an inquisitive, thoughtful, passionate learner, and I also know that it is a horrible choice for some people. Although I unquestionably believe homeschooling was the best educational choice my parents could have made for me, I know that homeschooling can be detrimental to some students when not taken seriously. Homeschooling requires—demands—an intense degree of dedication, persistence, planning, and compromise. It cannot be taken lightly because homeschooling often steps outside of the intentionally designed structure of the state's curriculum and standards and provides a huge amount of freedom for what is taught and how it is taught. Because my parents understood this undertaking, my homeschooling experience was successful. However, not everyone is in this position to successfully home school, and this is why I want to become an education professional. I want to make a difference and bring my unique perspectives to the unique community of public education.

Perhaps I will one day have children and decide that homeschooling is not a good fit for them. Perhaps I will find that financially I need to be a working mother and send my students to a public or private school. Perhaps I will have the opportunity that I hope for to stay at home and teach my children. These options must be carefully weighed for every person. For my education, the scales fell heavily on the side of homeschooling, and that was the right decision for me. However, countless others have blossomed in the public school environment. At the same time, I have witnessed students miserable in the home school setting and equally miserable in public school. Ultimately, it comes down to understanding that each student is different. Students do not fit into a mold, and people must open up to the many alternative forms of education that have developed throughout the passing years. One size does not fit all, but there are enough educational choices to choose from that an appropriate path can be developed for every student if people—parents, siblings, teachers, administrators, politicians—take the time to acknowledge the harm of forcing students to fit into a mold--whether that mold is public school, private school, or home school-- and work for the benefit of our future generations.