Is Your Child Ready for the 21st Century?

Ancient Tradition Helps Prepare Children for Life in the 21st Century.

What is this ancient tradition? Homeschooling! Homeschooling (minus the name) is the way this country has educated its children for all but the last 150 years. The skills that children were taught at home by their parents before the advent of compulsory education prepared children of the past for successful adult lives, and in the case of people like Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Edison and Margaret Mead--it prepared them for extraordinary lives. But does homeschooling in today's complex world prepare children for a successful future?

In an exclusive interview, Rebecca Kochenderfer, editor of The Education Source, talked with Harry Dent, one of the world's most prescient economic prognosticators and the best-selling author of The Roaring 2000s: Building the Wealth and Lifestyle You Desire in the Greatest Boom in History." In "The Roaring 2000s, Dent provides an exciting glimpse of our children's future. From how they will work in a new model business world, to how they communicate and where they will live, the world our children will walk in as adults is a world we have never seen before. For our children to lead successful and creative lives in the 21st century, Dent says that we must not only have our children develop linear, left-brain skills (that will one day pit them against computers), but also we must help them develop strong right-brain, creative, entrepreneurial and relational abilities.

Dent describes the type of education he believes will help children develop these essential skills as "customized education." In his book, Dent says, "Teachers must cultivate a relationship with each individual student. They must determine exactly where each child is in the development process and their specific strengths and weaknesses in learning. They must give each child the individual attention he or she needs to feel valued as a human being, which generates self-esteem and motivation. By establishing a personal relationship with each child, the teacher can determine which subjects and skills need emphasis at each stage of education. They can protect children from the often cruel criticism of others by not putting them into classes and learning experiences for which they aren't yet ready." Dent is describing homeschooling!

Homeschooling is the most customized education a child can receive. It is incredibly flexible, interest-led, age-appropriate, and the children are guided by the most uniquely qualified person to help them--their parents.

Does homeschooling develop the key skills Dent describes as essential to success in the 21st century? Yes! Homeschooled children have the time and freedom to develop right-brain skills through exploring art, museums, and community plays, but most importantly, they have hours of unstructured time--time to create and explore who they are and what their special gifts are.

Homeschoolers also develop strong entrepreneurial skills while working in family businesses, volunteering in the community and also starting their own small businesses. They also have strong "people skills" from years of developing relationships with people in their community and world--people of all ages and lifestyles. Their manners and interpersonal skills are modeled after adults not other children. They are keen problem-solvers and excellent research specialists.

Because homeschoolers have the freedom to investigate and follow their special interests, if a problem comes up while they are pursuing a new interest or subject, they are very good at finding ways to creatively solve the problem. If they can't solve it on their own, after years of helping their family uncover homeschooling resources, they know how to find the information they need to solve it.

All the essential 21st-century skills that Dent describes--strong right-brain, creative, entrepreneurial and interpersonal--are being fostered and encouraged in children in over 1.5 million homes today.

For centuries, homeschooling has provided children with the necessary skills for a successful adult life. Today homeschooling children are uniquely prepared for a new world!