Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

The media play a significant role in shaping attitudes about homeschooling. Today on Home School Heartbeat, Mike Smith discusses how homeschoolers can wisely present and promote themselves through newspapers, television, and radio.

Mike Smith:
This week we've been looking at how we as homeschoolers can promote homeschooling.


Many people receive their impressions about homeschooling through the mainstream media. Therefore, it's important for homeschoolers to be active in presenting a positive image of homeschooling in print, radio, and television.


It's well-known that the media is dominated by people who have a secular worldview. Therefore, it shouldn't be a surprise that many in the media, if they cover Christians at all, will focus on Christians who are out of the evangelical mainstream.


Fortunately, the coverage of homeschoolers is largely neutral to positive. Typically, the print media drives radio and television. Therefore, homeschoolers should write to newspapers either to identify good examples of homeschoolers in their community or to respond to articles which do not tell the full truth about homeschooling. Letters to the editor are the most widely read sections of the newspapers. If many people write in response to a story, there's a high likelihood that someone's letter will be printed.


A consistent effort in the media can slowly overturn some of the misconceptions about homeschooling and more rapidly turn homeschooling into a mainstream educational alternative. Until next time, I'm Mike Smith.