The Fallacy of Equal Results for Unequal Efforts

I think of this often; how so many homeschoolers want equal results for unequal efforts. But God did not create the world this way and He is not mocked. We know that unequal efforts will turn out unequal results.

We are fooled when we think that keeping our children out of a public school is enough. We rip them out of public school but don't replace it with something better. The end result is usually far worse and the education of the child is limited to a reaction to godlessness. We somehow think that keeping them away from 'bad' kids is the main point of their education. We couldn't be more wrong.

Contrary to our lazy belief, a good education doesn't just happen by itself. Sitting a stack of workbooks in front of our children and walking away does not come close to what real education is about. Children need to be taught. They need to be lead into understanding. They need discussion.

Doug Wilson, in his small book, Classical Education and the Homeschool states that the ability to learn on one's own is normally the RESULT of a good education and not normally the CAUSE of it. How often do we hear homeschoolers proudly state that their child is a self learner and what they mean by that is as a parent they are uninvolved in their child's educational learning. Is this a quality education? Something we should brag about as a homeschooler?

A quality education comes out of hard work and the first bit of hard work is reading, and reading, and then reading yet some more. Not quantity reading but rather quality reading. Having a child who reads is only half way to the goal. Having a child who reads quality books and is able to appreciate them is the other half. To hit this bulls eye a child needs a parent who reads.

A child may read and enjoy books that their parent's haven't read but this is not the same as being TAUGHT literature. This is the second area of hard work. To teach literature a parent must first read the student's book and even study the student's book. Matthew 10:24 says that a 'disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.'

Yes, this is hard work and it takes our time. But remember the fallacy of equal results for unequal efforts. There is no shortcut. This hard work is not in vain.

For any homeschooler this should be at the top or our priority lists. It should be our quest to sell our children on books and to engage them in the 'great conversations.'

From page 47:

The education of children for God is the most important business done on earth. It is the one business for which the earth exists. To it all politics, all war, all literature, all money-making, ought to be subordinated; and ever parent especially ought to feel, every hour of the day, that, next to making his own calling and election sure, this is the end for which he is kept alive by God-this is his task on earth.

I feel better now. Isn't this what a blog is really for? A cleansing of the soul, a rambling of twirling thoughts and emotions spilled out in black and white? I will have 5 children 'at the table' next month. I want nothing less than the best for them. I am tired. I have been working hard. But I realize that there is just no other way. The computer won't teach my child as I am able to. The best curriculum in the world doesn't replace a private tutoring of my children by me. God is not mocked and so we will continue on with the hard work of learning and educating.