Homeschooling and Socialization

I was reading a post called "The Results of Homeschool Mis-Socialization" on Libby Anne's blog called Love, Joy, and Feminism. Libby Anne was homeschooled under a fairly standard Christian homeschool method: lots of interaction with the church, lessons at home, great "extra-curricular" opportunities, and a fairly large social group. But Libby Anne reports that, upon starting college, she was terrified of the kids on campus. She felt unprepared to feel a part of the group of students and, further, she felt that she performed poorly in school as a result of that.

I know that many homeschoolers would bristle at the idea that homeschooling played a part in her claim of having not been adequately socialized and prepared for college. But Libby Anne feels she was "well-socialized in homeschool circles but not beyond them." With an acknowledgement that this is Libby Anne's story and, therefore, her prerogative and right to make sense of her life in her own way, it does seem that homeschooling parents have something to learn from her.

I have seen my children roll their eyes and say "BUSES!" when we pull into a parking lot of a museum or zoo or other public place that has a group of public schoolers in attendance. My kids have often criticized public schoolers for rudeness and overall disruptive behavior in public places and prefer to not have to deal with that. Still, does this mean that my kids wouldn't know how to interact with groups of public schoolers?

And, just as a thought I am having at this moment, 

how do public schoolers generally do 

in a room full of homeschoolers?  

I can recall co op events  back home

that public schoolers attended...

I wonder how they perceived the event...?

ANYWAY, my point in bringing this up on my blog is that I am completely willing to find ways for my daughter and son to hang out with non-homeschool kids if they would need this for some reason. At the moment, though, Elizabeth is in an acting group in which she is the only homeschooler. In the group, she tends to stand out for being a homeschooler, as well standing out as an American as well. She enjoys her "stand out" status, and more to the point, she feels very comfortable and confident in that setting.  She doesn't feel the slightest bit frightened or uncomfortable. Or unprepared... 

In the past, though, Lizzie has gone to a public school and she was treated unkindly and oddly and not pleasantly. So her expectations do tend to be that a group of public-schooled kids can be difficult to "break into". This is not because she doesn't have the skills to engage with the children, but because of the struggle of public-schooled individuals to make their own decisions in groups. Individually, Elizabeth reports, it is usually a matter of personality when making friends or not making friends, rather than any perceived different from schooling choices.

Today, as "going to community college" nears for my daughter, Libby Anne's blog post gave me an idea. Elizabeth might prefer going to school for a visit or three with friends who are already on campus, maybe learn the ropes, find her way around...

In any case, I appreciate Libby Anne's honestly and openness with her struggles and I wish her well!

What do you think?

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If you like this post, you might try this one:
Nine Disadvantages of Homeschooling
How I Planned to be as a Parent