Questions For Homeschooling Families

[JimR-OCDS]

[quote name='cmotherofpirl' date='11 November 2009 - 01:09 PM' timestamp='1257959395' post='2000677']
The duty doesn't change just because the school and your child had issues.
[/quote]



The duty is not binding and Catholic School education is a far cry from when it was almost sinful, for parents not to send their children to Catholic School, as in my day.

However, when I went to Catholic School, we had only nuns as teachers. No child in the parish was turned away, because of the parents inability to pay. Of course having nuns for teachers, meant that the tuition was peanuts compared to today.

Today in my area and , especially at the high-school level, Catholic education is an economic status symbol. They are all college-prep schools with tuition's between $6000 to $10,000 per year. Some students who are gifted athletes, get to go to these schools on scholarships.

Don't get me wrong, a kid gets a good education at these schools, but as far as Catholic education goes, they're not much better than CCD classes in the parish.

Fact is, when it comes to preparation for Confirmation, kids attending Catholic High-schools, still have to attend the parish CCD preparation program.

Jim

[brightsadness]

I was homeschooled except for a few high school classes I took at community college. I'm grateful my family made that choice.

[CatherineM]

It seemed like we were always on the brink of getting kicked out of parochial school. My mom worked off our sins (and sometimes our tuition) rebinding books in the library and running the school's hand cranked mimeograph machine. When it was really bad, my dad drove the school bus for field trips, and there was the incident where my mom had to make the principal a new habit. She wandered into an active firing line in cafeteria, and there was mustard involved. Even with a new wardrobe she hung that permanently stained scapular in her office like a flag of honor or something. I thought for sure I was a goner after the broken stained glass window, but they always forgave me, after appropriate penance of course.

[add]

[quote name='brightsadness' date='12 November 2009 - 11:21 AM' timestamp='1258039269' post='2001281']
I was homeschooled except for a few high school classes I took at community college. I'm grateful my family made that choice.
[/quote]

My wife was able to handle most all of the high school curriculum for Latin. Instead of (expensive) college she took everybody, along with a couple of (homeschooler) military families to our local priest (St. Peter's) and arranged classes. It was a learning experience for the whole family.

Who better that a catholic priest to learn Latin from. It was fantastic!

remember Nay

Edited November 12, 2009 by apparently

[IcePrincessKRS]

[quote name='nunsense' date='12 November 2009 - 07:03 AM' timestamp='1258023791' post='2001225']

So, there is room for the atheists and agmostics, but not the Catholics??


[/quote]

That's another huge problem in Catholic schools. Everyone else is using them as "private school education" instead of sending their kids to a public school so all too often there isn't room for the parishioners of the "host" parish to send their kids there. Sometimes the teachers aren't even Catholic so you know that they aren't really going to be teaching religion the way we want our kids to learn it.

[Archaeology cat]

[quote name='IcePrincessKRS' date='12 November 2009 - 05:03 PM' timestamp='1258045414' post='2001318']
That's another huge problem in Catholic schools. Everyone else is using them as "private school education" instead of sending their kids to a public school so all too often there isn't room for the parishioners of the "host" parish to send their kids there. Sometimes the teachers aren't even Catholic so you know that they aren't really going to be teaching religion the way we want our kids to learn it.
[/quote]
Yes, I've noticed that, too. I read an article not too long ago about the problems with Catholic education in the US, and the author spoke of how some of the Catholic schools have lost their Catholic identity by no longer having nuns & priests (or at least faithful Catholics) as teachers. My husband went to an excellent Catholic school, but his experience seems to be the minority from what I hear.

[tinytherese]

I went to Catholic schools from preschool up through high school. Academically, for the most part it sure was challenging and I'm grateful for that. Catechesis wise, ick. Since I converted from luke-warm Catholicism by way of channel flippin to EWTN (and watched a heck of a lot of its programs) I knew the faith sooooo much better than my peers. A lot of the time, I could snuff out when my teachers told us stuff that was flat out wrong. There was even this one theology teacher with a p.h.d. in biblical theology from Notre Dame who told us stuff in our old testament survey class that was heresy or just plain irrational at times. So guess why I didn't stick up? He would have been taken far more seriously. Not that he never taught us anything orthodox, but there may have been material that was heresy that I just didn't pick up on since I don't have a theology degree (at least not yet.)

I'd really hate not being able to homeschool the kids. Then again, I've been drawn to the idea of being a catechist. I've wondered, "Well maybe if I send them to a public school and become a director of religious education then the kids would be well formed in the faith." Then again, I hate the idea of having the kids being taught sex ed, how homosexuality should just be accepted, be taught relativism, skepticism, and anti-Catholicism. It might make it difficult even with a solid orthodox and intelligent CCD system. There's also the exposure at public schools to all kinds of peers from very different backgrounds and beliefs that might really challenge them and perhaps not for the better. I also don't like how bad public schools are known to be academically. I don't want them to go to college and be behind. During my freshman year of college I was the only one in my english composition class who had written not one, but several research papers and my classmates who had gone to public schools had never written any.

I've also got to thinking that well, I'll do my best by being a very well prepared catechist and giving it all I've got, pray for help to be a good Catholic parent, for whoever my husband will be and I to live virtuous and holy lives ourselves, having us all pray together even when they are little so that a truly Catholic atmosphere will be in the home, encouraging them to ask questions about the faith to us and point them to solid age appropriate resources (including phatmass,) having the humility to acknowledge that sometimes we won't have the all of the answers, giving them as much academic help as we can even when they're little and not having their brains rot in the summer (yet still letting them have time for fun,) getting them tutors or sending them to something like Sylvan Learning Center or something, and being watchful about their interactions with peers, being firm yet loving in our discipline, and having EWTN in the background at home may go a really long way. (Wow that was long!)
I've read this little book called "The Mother of the Little Flower" and there's a "The Father of the Little Flower" that whoever my man could read for inspiration. Just look at how wonderful the parents of St. Therese were in bringing up their children in the faith! Blds. Louis and Zelie Martin please pray for us. There's also other books that I'll get to reading at some point about them. One of them is "The Story of a Family" and another more recent one about her parents that I've seen on amazon.

I'm feeling better now.

[CatherineM]

[quote name='IcePrincessKRS' date='12 November 2009 - 11:03 AM' timestamp='1258045414' post='2001318']
That's another huge problem in Catholic schools. Everyone else is using them as "private school education" instead of sending their kids to a public school so all too often there isn't room for the parishioners of the "host" parish to send their kids there. Sometimes the teachers aren't even Catholic so you know that they aren't really going to be teaching religion the way we want our kids to learn it.
[/quote]
That was us in a nutshell. Our parish's school was mostly wealthy non-Catholics who didn't want their kids going to school with minorities. All the kids at church went to public school. The catholic schools here are state supported, and if we had kids, they could go there, but there is little religion being taught. Again because there are many non-Catholics who go there, and when they are stretched for time in the school curriculum religion and art get booted.

[Aloysius]

i think the duty to pick Catholic schools over public schools was envisioned in a time when Catholic schools were affordable to all (and nuns were still visible in the Church) and were still good at teaching the Catholic faith. these two things no longer being true in most cases, it's not a binding duty... however, I think that if one is sending their children to school and as affordable access to a good orthodox trustworthy Catholic institution, then the duty does apply.

mind you, it was never envisioned as a duty to send your children to Catholic school over homeschooling them, only a duty of Catholic school over public school

[Thy Geekdom Come]

[quote name='IcePrincessKRS' date='12 November 2009 - 12:03 PM' timestamp='1258045414' post='2001318']
That's another huge problem in Catholic schools. Everyone else is using them as "private school education" instead of sending their kids to a public school so all too often there isn't room for the parishioners of the "host" parish to send their kids there. Sometimes the teachers aren't even Catholic so you know that they aren't really going to be teaching religion the way we want our kids to learn it.
[/quote]

In the enrollment process at most of the Catholic schools in our area, it says that priority will be given to members of that particular parish first. Most of the Protestant schools here do the same.

[Archaeology cat]

[quote name='Raphael' date='14 November 2009 - 12:01 AM' timestamp='1258156897' post='2002388']
In the enrollment process at most of the Catholic schools in our area, it says that priority will be given to members of that particular parish first. Most of the Protestant schools here do the same.
[/quote]
I know that's how it is where I am now, though I don't know with the private Catholic schools. I'd have to look. My parish in JAX said priority was given to parishoners first as well. I'm sure there's variation. My comment earlier, to clarify, was agreeing with the part about some Catholic schools no longer having Catholic teachers and thus losing some of their identity.