Dubai, UAE: Mother of two, Gina Robbins, has been doing it for five years. Samia Imam has been doing it for four years, and Huda Farid has been doing it for three years.
But what is it that all these women have in common? They homeschool their children.
Say the word homeschool to anybody and you’re likely to get two reactions. The first is of people recoiling in horror, and the second, a look of bemusement.
Although many believe it’s the lure of affordability that draws parents to play the role of teachers, that’s not the only driving force behind making such a decision.
For these parents, their reasons for doing so differ.
Spending just Dh3,000 a year to educate her boys at home, US expatriate Gina Robbins said the low costs are a bonus – especially in a country where tuition fees are high – but the quality of teaching was her driving force.
“I realised that I could give my children just as good an education, if not better, than if they were in a public school.”
Although other factors played a role in her decision-making, she said she enjoys having the option “to teach at a higher level” when her boys are excelling.
Initially, Robbins did have reservations about the process, questioning whether her boys would have the opportunity to get into a good college after being homeschooled, but those feelings have been dispelled.
“I am confident now that when the time comes to really address these questions, we will have met the mainstream expectations.”
Teaching from a US curriculum online, Robbins sets all her learning techniques.
Her schedule starts at about 10am and concludes by 4.30pm.
In a typical day, her boys -aged five and eight- will take about 45 minutes for lunch, with the remaining hours filled teaching subjects such as science, social studies, and reading.
But when asked if homeschooled children run the risk of being isolated from their peers, she refuted the claims.
“This is a misconception. I can only speak for my family, but my boys do great in social situations.”
Canadian expatriate Imam has three boys aged 11, eight and six.
Annually, she spends about Dh60,000 homeschooling her children, including academy registration, classes, textbooks and educational field trips.
Spending more than the average parent, Imam took the decision to teach at home because her son did not enjoy school.
“I was upset at this despite the high tuition fees and his young age. He enjoyed doing his own craft and learning projects later in the evening.”
She said the tight schedule that school life imposed on her child was “very restrictive” and she found that homeschooling was more amenable to exploring legitimate academic interests.
Taking on the role of teaching guide, Imam does not follow one particular curriculum, instead she chooses a more “eclectic approach”.
Registered with an American accredited homeschooling academy, she said as part of the program, her boys are assigned a licensed teacher as an advisor too, who helps develop Individual Learning Plans (ILPs).
Speaking to many homeschooling parents, they were of the consensus that reforms should be made in today’s education system, as it is no more just about learning information.
And for mother of two, Farid, it was this learning approach which put her off school.
“Traditional school didn’t factor as a priority in our family,” she told Khaleej Times.
When her oldest daughter turned four, the family was transitioning between Doha and Dubai and that created an obstacle when it came to a permanent schooling option too.
Although Farid has not ruled out traditional school later down the line, she said the long hours and rigid structure does not suit children so young.
Spending just Dh5,000 a year on her daughter’s education, she does not follow a specific curriculum.
“This year, I purchased some books to use as a benchmark to see where Zainab is according to her age. Our focus is for our kids to learn manners, be conscious of the world around them, life skills and whatever else interests them.”
© Khaleej Times
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