Interview with Kinza Academy founder and home school advocate Nabila Hanson - Part I

June 15, 6:08 AMBaltimore Muslim ExaminerJ. Samia Mair

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Home school is becoming increasingly popular in the United States. According to the U.S. government census in 2007, 1.5 million children are home schooled in the United States. Other estimates put the number much higher.

What is home schooling and why is it so popular? Nabila Hanson, founder of Kinza Academy, answers these and other questions in an interview with examiner.com.

In Part I, Nabila discusses home schooling in general. In Part II, she answers questions about Kinza Academy and its approach to educating children at home.

1. What is home schooling (or home education)?

Home-schooling and home-education literally mean teaching or having your children taught in the home. In contrast to public and most private schools, home-schooled children are taught individually, and to some degree the education is tailored for each child so the child's natural love of learning is allowed to blossom.

2. How has home schooling evolved over the years?

Home-education has always existed, making a name for itself in this country during the past thirty-plus years. There was a general dissatisfaction with state schooling that culminated with its revised “dumbed-down” curriculum in the 60’s. I think this was the turning point when some parents just said, “Enough! If you aren’t going to educate my child, I’ll do it myself!” And they did.

3. Why do you think it is becoming so popular?

I think it became popular because a few people were brave enough to reclaim the right to educate their children, and in so doing produced educated, self-governed, and moral people that made other parents stop and ask, “What’s going on here?” I think it continues to increase in popularity for different reasons.

Some families are concerned about protecting the family’s religious beliefs and don’t want their children secularized in public school; other families are concerned about the total failure of government schooling to produce educated citizens; and safety is also a huge concern now with children becoming the frequent victims of violent crimes and sexual abuse in public and private schools.

Amongst Muslims, I think the first concern is the child’s deen and the second concern is the quality of education.

4. What are the benefits of home schooling?

From a religious perspective, I don’t have to worry about my children’s self-esteem being damaged or their deen being hurt because they are teased about their religion in school. I don’t have to worry they are being taught things that contradict our religious belief, and I don’t have to worry that I will lose them to peer pressure. The Christian home-school studies have shown three out of four children that graduate from public school will no longer share the same faith or beliefs as their family. This is alarming.

From a mother’s perspective, every day I am amazed by my children. They are creative; they march to their own beat; they are eager to learn and interested in so many things, and they are self-motivated. My son memorized all of the US presidents' first, middle, and last names one day without being asked. My daughter memorized all of the states and capitals one day on her own. I am often times astounded by the things they have taught themselves and teach each other in their free time.

I would add that children need down-time, too. Because children educated at home are taught individually, they learn more quickly, and the school day is much shorter, permitting them time to explore their own interests and take part in family life. There is also no homework!

5. How do children who are educated at home compare academically with children enrolled in school?

Most home-educated children are superior in their academic levels to public schooled children. This has been studied, and it is no secret that top universities in this country, like Harvard and Yale, recruit home-educated children.

6. Is there a downside to home schooling?

Giving your children a home-education requires a lot of support. The Christian home-educators are well-established and have endless groups, conferences, publications, etc., so one feels very much supported as a Christian home-educator.

As Muslims, we are still in the beginning stages of our own movement, and it requires a lot of patience for those of us who don’t have much support. We need to have a vision and understand that we are laying the foundation for future Muslim families to educate their children at home. Someone has to be the one to begin, and each of us home-educating today is that person.

The socialization concern, which is often perceived as a downside to home-education, is a myth. There is more about this on our website.

7. Do you have to be a teacher or have a background in education to home school?

This is another area that has been studied, and it is known that the educational level of the parent has little impact on his or her ability to teach her own children. I would say that you have to honestly want to teach your own children, and you have to have an interest in learning. It is that enthusiasm for learning that you must nurture in your child. A good teacher enjoys teaching and passes on the love of the subject.

As a home-educator, there will always be your favorite and least favorite subject to teach, but as long as you sincerely want to teach your children, you should do fine. If there really is a subject you can’t teach, you can swap teaching with a friend or hire a tutor.

8. If someone is interested in learning more about home school, what are the first things he/she should do?

The first thing parents should do is really try to understand why schools are not the best place for their children. I know so many people who don’t want to think about it, and ignoring the problem is a luxury we just can’t afford. Shaykh Abdullah Bin Bayyah said years ago in reference to some home-schooling mothers he knew that teaching the children was a mother’s jihad, and if all parents took this as seriously, we could change the world. I firmly believe this.

The book to begin with is by John Taylor Gatto: Weapons of Mass Instruction. If and when they decide to home-school, then the parents need to consider the best way for their family to establish a home-school.

Our website has a lot of valuable information on education and home-schooling, and we also have an Amazon linked bookstore, with a good selection of books on the subject. Your readers are welcome to visit us at: www.kinzaacademy.com.

For more info: Home Schooling by State, John Taylor Gatto's website