Should Christians Send Their Kids to Public School? - Good Faith Debates 

Public school teacher here. I listened to the entire video. I’ve worked at 3 districts almost all grade levels. I choose home school every day more than ever…

Public school teacher here, 1st grade. This experience has definitely shown me that I do NOT want to send my children to public school. Agree 1000% with Voddie Baucham that the curriculum we often teach is not “neutral”, but truly anti-Christian, as I am having to DAILY sift out truth from error so my students will know the Truth. Let alone the anti-Christian ethics being covertly taught that are NOT curriculum based. Education in America is both explicitly taught and implicitly taught, and kids don’t always have the ability to recall the implicit teachings that take root in their heart. Kids are being discipled morally, emotionally, spiritually, as well as academically in these places, which is a LOT to deconstruct after the fact. They need a strong foundation before they are tasked to enter into and reach an anti-Christian world. Won’t be teaching in public-ed for much longer 😞 hope this helps someone.

I find it unbalanced that this debate is by two parents who are virtually empty nesters with college graduates..The state of public education has drastically changed in the last 5 years which also varies from state to state and that wasn't really addressed.

Homeschool is the safest place for your kid. Period. This woman says that if she had homeschooled, there would have been a homicide. I know she is joking, but that is exactly why it would have been good for her to homeschool. With all her Bible teaching, etc she never learned how to deal with the frustrations and pressures of being around her kids 24/7 and teaching them? That says a lot to me. When you homeschool your kids, you have to depend on God every minute for His grace to do the job. And that is one of the best reasons to homeschool--it changes us, not just our children.

Id like to see Jen and Voddie have a discussion on this topic 😊

I was a public school educator for 14 years in 2 different districts and I recently resigned to be with my young children ( 2 and 4) and I WILL NOT be sending my kids to public school. It is such a discouraging environment. Most parents don’t know what really goes on at school, because If they did they wouldn’t send them to it.

Her point about how our decisions not to put our children in public school creates a vacuum. I would just like to say I am not responsible for other children but I do have a duty to raise mine! I can't make my decision based on others but the conviction God gives me!

As a former public school teacher, I agree. There is so much wasted time in the classroom and so much that goes on that parents are unaware of and unable to parent their children through. I homeschool 9 children 5 of our own and 4 of my deceased friend’s children. This requires many financial sacrifices, but our children are worth it. We are active in our community and serve inside and outside of our church in a variety of ways. I have a dream of starting a school down the road to give other children these opportunities. Allowing the secular (at best) state to decide what’s best for children educationally seems counterintuitive.

“We cannot continue to send our children to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans” - Voddie Baucham

It's more important for our kids to get to heaven than it is to get them to Harvard. Homeschooling is the right choice for us.

I’ve been a youth pastor in 2 different cultural contexts. I’ve had public school, home school and Christian school families. Students walking with the Lord during their school years and post graduation predominantly come from home school families, some come from Christian school families and almost none come from public school families. I was a staunch public school kid when I got married. I wouldn’t even consider home school. But after a decade of being a student pastor it’s almost not even a conversation that homeschool was the best option for our family in discipling our kids.

This was not a "debate" on whether Christians "should" send their kids to public school. Thhis was a discussion of the pragmatics and personal opinions in regards to two narrowly defined forms of education. A debate over "should" Christian kids attend public education revolves solely around whether or not the education model is Biblical and whether what these children are taught is glorifying to God.

We homeschool our 3 for several reasons. 1) We know we can educate them better than public school. 2) We don't want them to be raised by their peers. 3) It's our responsibility to disciple them, and we do that as we teach, imparting a Biblical worldview into education. 4) We want the freedom to say, "we control our schedule, not a school district,' so, we go on vacation when places aren't crowded and such. 5) Socialization is much more natural in a homeschool environment. When else in life, besides school, are you surrounded by ONLY people your age? 6) We started out as the typical 8-5 family who only spent a couple of rushed hours a day with our kids. That didn't seem to be good for any of us. So, we changed it.

I graduated over 10 years ago now and I got a decent sampling of public school having attended 9 different elementary, 2 middle schools and 1 HS. Even I vowed to NEVER send my kids to public school and I was an atheist who vowed to abort my babies. I was subtly taught to challenge my parents, that Marxism was good, God was bad, motherhood was abhorrent, etc, etc. Praise God I didn't abort, but was rather saved by our Lord & Savior after becoming a mother. Took some convincing my husband, but after 2020 he got totally on board with the idea of homeschooling. Lol. Now with our 4th on the way, we are still going to homeschool all our our kids, praise God.

I seriously question her discernment after watching this video.

It’s not selfish to homeschool your babies. To have an opportunity to pour into our kids on a daily basis in order to help create humans who are critical thinkers, empathic, smart, God fearing, caring people will heavily effect society in a very positive way. To choose to homeschool does not mean we neglect society. Improving society starts at home with our babies. Also: Is “homework time” considered positive family time together?

If you didn’t want to homeschool before, listening to her arguments for public school might push you that way 😊 In all seriousness, this was NOT a debate. She basically admits that she couldn’t handle homeschooling (she joked about a homicide occurring) and that her mom had a horrible experience in a christian school. So she didn’t choose to public school as much as she chose to NOT be at home with her kids or pay for them to have a bad experience at a christian school. Also, all of her arguments were about the good of other kids. The only benefit she really noted was that her kids are around kids of a diverse socio economic background and special needs kids.

So sad to hear another mom ignore the longing God placed in her heart to be with her children.

This was fantastic. My main follow-up question is whether all their children are still Christian or not? Not that we can perfectly execute a plan to "grow" Christians, but I think that's a factor I'd love to know.

Homeschool mom here (first year!) and I mentor a 5th grader at our local inner city school. I love that Jen mentions supporting our local schools while doing what is best for our family and children. To us, the benefits of homeschool outweigh public school, but that doesn't mean we step out of serving the local school. Additionally, I think Jen lives in Texas, which is a much different public school environment than here in Michigan. Additionally, I think it's important to note that Jen admits she has had a bad experience with private schools. That makes sense that she pushes public school for her own family. Lastly, we werent ALLOWED in the school for two years due to Covid- so being involved has been taken from us.

Homeschool parents still have to pay full taxes to schools even though they get absolutely no resources if their students are not enrolled. So for Jen to say that homeschooling is selfish because we’re not thinking of our community, that’s pretty ridiculous. On top of that, by homeschooling, we are also decreasing class sizes and demands on teachers (thereby bettering the education of the students enrolled), all the while sacrificing half of our family income and still giving money yearly to the public schools. Ugh, it’s just really frustrating to hear her frame homeschoolers and selfish and not “loving our neighbors.” Homeschooling is not selfish!

I definitely don’t think Jen’s experience is normal. As someone currently in BC Canada who has a school board in our town with 5/8 school board members who are trans/gay etc we are in a loosing battle. The number of poor graphic and sexual books being encouraged to be in our libraries is unreal. The fact Jen has access to what curriculum is being taught is not normal. Our school district has actually band parents from knowing whT is being taught. Again her exerpienece isn’t the normal public school experience. We pulled our kids 2 years ago after 5 years of extreme bullying in public school we opted for a Christian private school and the bullying carried over there. Our kids are not sacrifices. I whole heartedly disagree with Jen’s poi my of view that we shouldn’t be looking at what’s best for our family but the community. Again I’ll repeat, at what cost?!? Should our children’s mental health suffer and the just allow them to be bullied to the point of wanting to commit suicide? Jen’s experience is not normal for public school at all. Interesting her kids were not involved in extra curriculars. I think homeschool students absolutely have constant connect with kids of all socio and economic backgrounds - homeschool groups, extra curriculars, church, neighbors - being in contact with all of the above gives your kids access and experience with kids of all ages and backgrounds.

My question is "why does TGC want Christian parents to send their kids to be taught by a godless society?"

As a Public schooled student I gotta say I hated it there, for many reasons mainly for stifling my curiosity and boring me to death with their approach to teaching. Not to mention the teachers- most of whom were not good examples and the kids even more so. After working in public schools for 5 years, I decided to quit and become a homeschooling mom. It’s a sacrifice and we are not as well off as our peers but I would not have it another way. We love our days learning and exploring and most importantly God and the Bible are in every subject and part of every lesson.

It blows my mind that she is totally fine with the wasted time in the public school system and with the fact that her kids spent “every minute” after school doing more school work.

Another former public school teacher turned homeschooler here. We are a growing community.

Are the Christian teachers actually being vilified and maligned by their Christian friends OR is the reality of the rot of public school being talked about and the Christian teachers assume that means them too? I support Christian teachers being missionaries in the public school. I think most Christians do too. That doesn’t equate to needing to have our kids discipled for 8 hours a day by people who aren’t always Christians. Some who are actively looking to subvert parents, despite the naivety that Jen seems to have on this issue.

I was so frustrated watching this. It’s like they hand-picked somebody who wouldn’t give a real robust defense against Jen Wilkin. I appreciate her. I’ve been to the Village Church. I’ve read her books. She’s a very good apologist for public education. She’s not shy about it, so why can’t they find somebody to debate her who’s not willing to be shy about it on the other side. Throw an arrow in the room of 100 homeschooling mothers who’s homeschool their children K through 12 and they could probably give a better defense. The gentleman was nice enough and nothing against him, but it wasn’t really in my opinion a true debate . She lives in (as she states ) a very good school district. Probably one of the top in Texas. She was able to be super involved and had a family member that is part of the school system. That’s something that 99% of people could not replicate in this country. So the debate seemed kind of one-sided, but also for the wrong reasons. 

Overall, Jen's statements were a stronger argument for pulling your kids out of public school than anything Jonathan said. And I must say, it's remarkable how much she knows about what isn't being taught in public schools now, with all of her kids not having been in those schools for 4 or more years, in one school in one district of a relatively conservative state.

Something we as parents must always remember is that children are not a distraction from ministry. They are the greatest ministry that God has given us. Just imagine the impact raising just one Godly child could have on the world. Society and public schools have changed drastically in just the last few years-and not for the better. This is something Jen has been privileged to avoid. Choosing to send kids to public school is gambling. You never 100% know what they are being taught, even if you’re a teacher in the next class over. Personally, I’ve seen the village and I don’t want it raising my kids.

I would love to hear from their children about their individual perspectives on their education experiences. That would be super enlightening as well. Great discussion.

I really hate it when I hear Christians joke along the lines of “there might have been a homicide” or “I’m gonna kill ___” but all the more awful to say “if I had had my kids around me all the time and tried to teach them… I might have killed them. 1st of all… no you probably wouldn’t. 2nd of all its not a joke, as anyone actually touched by homicide knows. But it shouldn’t take personal experience for this to be acknowledged.

I was a public school teacher in CA and I quit my job and rearranged my life and priorities completely, in order to stay home with my two children and raise them and train them in the Lord. I wouldn’t trade it for anything! I grew up in the immoral training of the public school system and I was thrown into a cesspool of evils that I wish I had been protected from. You do not need to be a teacher to homeschool, you have been chosen to raise your children, God will give you all you need as you depend on him. I encourage anyone considering homeschooling to ask your Heavenly Father for direction and leading, he will guide your path ❤

You never 100% know what is being taught in your public schools. What an incredibly naive statement. It doesn’t matter if you are a teacher yourself. How could you presume to always know what the teacher in the class next door is teaching? If you are not in each of the classrooms you just don’t know.

For the many parents signing the praises of homeschooling on here, I understand your hearts from from a place of love. However, few consider voices like mine (formerly homeschooled). I believe that most people, even well-meaning , good parents who homeschool do it more for themselves. It is done out of anxiety and a need for control and total influence over their kids lives. How can we be prepared for the real world if we haven’t even interacted with it daily? How can we enter a workforce full of non-Christians with wisdom and integrity if we haven’t had any practice along with parental guidance? I do not feel it’s necessarily wrong to homeschool but there is no educational hierarchy. There are pros and cons to both. Having been homeschooled (and yes, it was done fairly well) and known dozens and dozens of homeschooled families, I would never homeschool my own kids. Key point: I’ve seen the long-term outcomes, not the short-term ones. I have seen too many family relationships damaged by Homeschooling. I think it is quite prideful to assume that, as parents, we are the best/only teacher for our kids and should be the only influence. Others may have different and better perspectives than we do. Having our beliefs challenged is okay. We should give our kids some credit. Also, as for other homeschooled kids (as adults) some are Christian, some are not. Many are extremely liberal after entering the real world. Homeschooling is no guarantee for having a child grow up to be a disciple of Jesus. In society we are not meant to be just living our own lives in our own homes while sending our kids out to a group a couple times a week/month for some socialization. We are meant to be in community together. I do not mean to malign anyone but I think that homeschool families should think hard about why they are doing it and what they expect the outcome to be of being the only teacher in their child’s lives. And also looking at our own pride (including myself as well - I know I don’t have the answers!) and pray and ask God to show us His heart. As I said, there is no moral heirarchy in education. Let’s none of us assume we are at the top of one.

Jen's experience sounds much like mine. The problem comes with the generational slide. Parents assume that school now can't be that much different than their experience. This world and it's beliefs are marching ever onward toward Godlessness unless guarded or, when needed, reformed. Remember that at a time in these United States nearly all major educational institutions were Christian in orthodoxy and orthopraxy. What public education in the US once was, was a blessing from it's founding. Where it still flourishes is a testament to inherited blessing from submission to God and His law. There is a time to abandon it. There is a time where we're throwing our kids in the deep end... often times assuming they'll learn to swim or the water isn't so deep as it actually is. Where I live it tends to be the case often that our kids in the public educational institutions are abandoning their faith. They are catechized into the secular world view faster than we can raise the flag of caution.

They talk about people who can't homeschool, single moms etc, and Jen's concern about ALL the kids getting a good education and loving our neighbor through being active in the public schools...but what if we as neighbors and friends of these people opened our homes to homeschooling those kids? Formed neighborhood co-ops, so to speak. We would be actively involved in helping our neighbor and being active members of our community. I think it's a myth that homeschooled kids don't socialize and aren't involved in the community. On another note, in our small town, our church is not homogeneous...our kids interact with plenty of kids from different backgrounds. Because I will say as a former public school teacher that education has been turned into a business...it's all about money. It's not about great teachers or bad teachers, it's about kids in seats so the school gets money.

“Give me four years to teach the children and the seed I have sown will never be uprooted.” -Vladimir Lenin

There are many ways to care for your neighbor and city than throw your children into the lion's den.

I worked in the public schools and I will never send my kids there Lord willing 🙏

I challenge everyone who thinks this is a “nice” debate: does it actually, honestly reflect the real dilemmas in today’s education, or is it just one side completely validating itself with another side weakly pushing back?

I'm surprised at the volume of comments lambasting public school. Whether you choose to attend or not, these are YOUR schools. You have a civic duty to see that they are properly stewarded and should seek to improve them. What about the millions of children who do not even have a choice? Do Christians vacate the institution out of fear of the lion's den or do we put on the whole armor of God and go do our duty!! I have experienced homeschooling, private school (Baptist), and public school. They all have pros and cons, but at the end of the day I find it hard to honor the call to "go out and make disciples of all nations" if we shrink back from the public sphere.

I wish they would have not just talked about the moral issue in the public school but also the TIME waster issues. Endless performances, dress up days, parties, sooo many things that WASTE teachers time rather than just being able to do what they love…teach. Oh and underpaid. The common parent has NO idea how many ridiculous HOOPs teachers have to jump through. The school system is broken. As much as I love Jen (currently walking through Abide) I wish they would have addressed schedules, and how they rob the children of simple things like PLAY and being outside.

Wilkins personal experience doesn’t make an argument. Its irrelevant to what the majority of public schools are teaching. Secondly, public school by its nature is anti-Christian since it doesn’t teach from a Christian worldview or use the Bible as an ultimate source of authority. In the words of Van Til, there is no neutrality. Our presuppositions about the world, reason, etc are totally different than the non christian.

Imagine if these good faith debates actually tackled these issues biblically…

This wasn't a debate. This was a nice mediated conversation. No cross examination? That's the best part of a debate!

Blessed is the parent who puts his child in the counsel of the wicked, in the way of sinners, and in the seat of scoffers; - Psalm 1:1 Jen Wilkin Version

I am not seeing a "debate" here, good faith or otherwise. This seems like we are just saying, homeschoolers stop shaming Christian teachers / parents who utilize public school. Shouldn't debate be making a case for and against a thing? I only came away with the its ok to send your kids to public school. It seems like they don't actually get into the issues, just "for us, this worked." Really frustrated when the guy says "we would not be comfortable sending our kids to the local public school for a number of reasons.." Then not articulating the reasons! comfort is the primary argument?

Well, this sealed it for me. TGC is as useful as a chocolate teapot.

I would like to know if Jen Wilkin still is involved in her local school in any way. She stated that it was so important for Christians to do this but seemed to imply that it’s while you are raising your own children. I would think that when your children are grown it’s an ideal time to volunteer, attend school board meetings, tutor children who need extra help, etc.

I love her Bible studies and book Women of the Word. However, Jen gets it very wrong in this debate. Former PS teacher here--failing schools failing our students while inundated with humanist propaganda-one would expect better discernment from her.

I must firmly disagree with the idea that we shouldn't want/seek for our public schools to become Christian schools. We should! That would be the power of Christ and the furtherance of the Gospel if that did happen.

The main argument for not sending our kids to public schools should NOT be to just protect them from woke ideology (thought that is still a great reason!). Instead, we should strive to give them a CHRISTIAN education and Biblical worldview, which you're not going to get in a secular institution.

Our Children attended a publically funded Charter School that was excellent. They were openly attacked for their faith as early as 2nd grade by peers who were atheist and Jewish. One boy in third grade attended school in a dress. My daughter persuaded him to use attire otherwise and remained his friend for years. She had one if her peers believe that she was neither male or female smd this delusion was re-inforced by openly atheist parents. We are very glad they attend a Classicsl Christian education today. Glad for this multi-natiional, multi-ehnic socially amd economically diverse Christiam educational setting in Princeton, NJ. So glad, no regrets.

I think as parents, we clearly need to know, “is my child feeling socially disconnected, emotionally discouraged, or in a cycle of academic failure” in their current educational setting? If the answers to these questions fall in the negative categories, then prayer needs to be covering the situations that may lead to a change for the next school year. One firstborn, extroverted child with no neurodivergence may thrive in public school- whereas an introverted, free-spirited second born with ADHD (🙋‍♀️) may need a more structured learning environment. Bottom line- prayer works! God will lead you to the answer and the providence for each kid. See the Old Testament story of Ishmael for proof of this.

Jen has older children. Her youngest is 22 years old.. I also come from a very large family of public school teachers/principals and I beg to differ. Public school is NOT what it was even 5-10 years ago. I think this woman would have a different point of view if she had children currently in the public school system……

@The Gospel Coalition Thank you for this conversation. This question/comment is for Jen. Firstly, my wife and I deeply appreciate your work and incredible Bible teaching. We just finished up your Genesis study and the first half of Exodus and are constantly blown away at the depths of study you provide. Thank you for what you do! We live in more of a politically progressive part of the country. Our own school district has very actively implemented a number of pretty radical policies/pedagogical approaches. I have a number of friends and acquaintances who are teachers and administrators in the local public school system (both Christians and non-Christians) that have clearly communicated serious concerns about what is happening on-the-ground in our own local schools and that the environment is becoming increasingly hostile to Christianity as a whole. This includes very specific examples such as gender transitions (without parental knowledge) in 1st grade and an in-school drag queen story hour, during school hours, in a 4th grade classroom, to name a few. When I hear fellow Christians describe parental concerns as "fear mongering" it hurts because our experience has been one of wrestling deeply with these very real concerns. We really struggled with the idea of keeping our children in the local public schools as a way to seek the flourishing of our city, but there came a time when we felt as though the social pressures and secular worldview being foisted on our children on a daily basis were deeply unhealthy in their spiritual and educational development, thus we made the financial sacrifice and began sending our three young girls to a private Christian school. Our family does not want to flee, or use the public school as a punching bag by any means, but we also have seen some really gnarly and unnecessary pressures being placed on our young girls by those deemed authority figures in their lives. In a situation like ours, when we have seen first-hand some of the more extreme examples, how does a Christian healthily engage a system that has become quite hostile to a Christian worldview? Would you please consider not using the phrase "fear mongering" in these conversations? While it may be so for some in certain locations and cultural contexts, there are parents being aggressively confronted with these issues on a daily basis, and many of us feel entirely written off by this particular framing. Personally, when I hear this phrase used, it creates a hurdle for me to hear much else about what you are saying, since it demonstrates that you are clearly speaking into a very different context than what we are experiencing. Again, thank you for what you do! Your brother in Christ!

Shouldn’t we be prioritizing our family?? I understand that it’s important to consider your community as well but it shouldn’t be at the expense of your children

For me it’s not just the secular culture of the school, the pedagogy, the method that public education approaches education is counter to how I want my kids to be educated. One cannot look at all the data and believe that a public school education even meets the bare minimum in most cases.

11:25 Every parent needs to do what is best for their family. That is called being a parent. Nobody would turn their own into a homeless shelter endangering their children and claim, Oh well, I don't need to do what is best for my family but the community by in large. Worst still, what is best for your family is what is best for the society by in large. It is a false dichotomy.

I’m a second generation public school teacher who taught 7th grade language arts. I quit because I felt like a social worker and not an educator. (Every teacher complained about it yet was powerless to do anything meaningful.) After becoming a mom and experiencing the infamous lockdown, I saw the social emotional learning (SEL) was actually in every district, not just my former one. Then the Marxist brainwashing that spanned over two generations wore off. Either homeschool or try a Classical Christian school (or both depending on your child) as alternatives. It won’t be easy; however, nothing worth doing typically is... 😊

We are definitely in the minority but we are sending our kids to our neighborhood school at least for elementary. Private school is not a financial option for us and we do not want to homeschool. I think Jen makes a lot of good points. -- Everyone wants their kid to have a good education. - not just christians.

Authors not to read: Jen Wilkin Sending your children to public school reflects loving your neighbor? Where did she come up with that. Your kids are gone from your home for 8 hours a day and you believe world views will come from home? Oh child. Homeschool your kids. I promis you, Christian or not, your children will be much better off. Signed a homeschool mom of three.

I love how most of the comments are so pro-homeschool! I agree with many commenters that her arguments for the public school are not compelling and instead sound like excuses for her decision to not homeschool her children. I am disappointed by the supposed advocate for homeschooling; he seemed rather apologetic for being there to promote homeschool. Although not a Protestant Christian, Matt Walsh makes a great case for homeschooling and would probably dismantle her arguments in short order. As for me and for my house… we will train up our children in the ways of God. We will bear the burden of their education and more importantly, their spiritual formation. My children have been entrusted to me and my wife by God, and it is our responsibility to protect them from evil, and to train them up in righteousness. We firmly believe that homeschooling is the best way to do this. Public schools on the other hand, have no interest in teaching my children any of the values I uphold and would actively try to undo everything I teach for 40 hours a week.

This discussion needs to be founded upon the clear commands that god places upon his people. Eph 6:4b; Deu 6:4-9; Lev 18:3; etc. Also we need to take into consideration the historic emphasis of the church on providing Christian education for our children. I spent many years working in public schools and the woke ideology and secular humanism is pervasive. To add to the problem pastors have failed to teach what the Bible clearly teaches on this subject, which has allowed for confusion on this topic.

52:00 I went to public school. There is no question that there is a lot of wasted time. We have to be honest. No kid left behind means no kid left behind i.e. everyone waits for the slowest kid to finish.

Start making christian school affordable, I would love for my child to go to a private christian school.

Plain and simple what does the Bible say? Who is supposed to be a child’s educator? Is public school biblical? How can you send your children to a government school to teach subjects apart from God? You can’t.

I can tell by a lot of these comments that people did not actually pay attention or listen to all sides of the debate discussion. I thought this was a very good conversation with good thought provoking statements. What works for one family may not work for another. Nobody should be telling anybody that only one way is best because of their own biased opinions.

If she wants them exposed to different views, why not a Catholic school? Or Muslim? Or Buddhist?

Apparently, a “Good Faith Debate” is one in which two people who basically agree with each other either argue for or conciliate to the more liberal position, all in the name of niceness.

"Well- rounded people can come out of home-schooling" - Jen Wilkin - Does she realise how many weirdos come out of public school? Sorry, but that's such a condescending statement from her.

No one answered or asked, "Where are your kids with the Lord now." What good is it to gain the whole world and forfeit your soul? This idea in relation to your own kids is totally missing in this conversation and it's not a good thing. The proof is in the pudding folks, and the pudding is getting worse every passing year (more kids raised in the church and public school are walking away).

This woman is making me NOT SUPPORT PUBLIC SCHOOL! Her stance is too "allow" my child exposed to violent children and those struggling academically! My son is slowed down daily by these children. I had to make a stance and put my child first.

I have always wondered how you could believe that a "State" school would be better than a Christian based type of education. I am not sorry that I did without some things that enabled my children to go to mostly Christian schools. When I went to public schools, it was in the Bible Belt and many of my teachers were Christian and even Pastor's wives. It was a different time. But I will say, being a teen in the 1960's in public school was very influential in my life and like many others, I had to come back to what I believed and renew my Faith as an adult. Surround your vulnerable children with as much of God as you can.

As a graduate of Pennington's school and someone who chose homeschooling and private school for my own kids, I still have to admit that Wilkins had more and stronger reasons for her position in this particular discussion. You can tell that's the case by the closing statements - Wilkins concedes the practical schedule benefits of homeschooling, but Pennington actually conceded the spiritual and social benefit of public school as often the main way families connect with their communities. From personal experience, my family does feel less connected to my community because we don't attend the school of our neighbors. I'm otherwise impressed with the spirit of this video, as this models the freedom and conviction each unique family should practice in their unique circumstance, and how to celebrate and support other families who choose other options. My church has every education method represented, and i think that's a net positive.

Pretty impressive how Jen can have such thick blinders on. She made a whole lot of claims that were never supported (and are refutable): -That opposition to public schools is fear based (people aren't scared, they're trying to be biblically faithful) -That it's world class (in many jurisdictions, public schools perform worse than private, Christian, catholic or charter). -That public school incorporates kids with disabilities (so does private and Christian) -That you ought not make decisions that are beat for your family (because somehow that harms the greater good?) -That because people point out the evil and sin being promoted by the public system, that it's somehow an attack on individual Christian teachers in the public system (it's not). The public college education that is being taught to students who want to become teachers - has been almost entirely taken over influenced by critical theory over the last decade. So it's not surprising that the vast majority of public school educators are now pushing much of the woke nonsense in society and are full-time activists. Jen's kids are all adults now, so how is she so certain who district isn't corrupted? She also lives in a Conservative state, not indicative of the rest of the country or world. I'm not sure if this is an incredible naiveté or she's being submersive to advance more of a Marxist worldview.

It’s hard to take her seriously when I know the school district she is talking about. Jen, if you are going to preach to us about sending our kids to PS for the funding then you should have sent your kids to an inner city school instead of the plush suburban school so that they could have received the funding instead.

God also put Christian teachers at my school too (public school). It gave me the impetus to seriously consider Christianity as a worldview. EDIT: I had leftist teachers, Republican teachers, and everything in between. Today, however, I think, non-woke educators (I hate the word "woke," because those who describe themselves this way are not woke, but soiritually asleep) wouldnt feel the same freedom to openly share their worldviews in a public school setting. Today we have trans-affirming policies in the name of anti-bullying.

My kids go to public school. I have 4 But when then the youngest two get out of preschool we would be interested on homeschooling with a Christian based curriculum. Like classical conversions. But no matters what happens I know that if Gods draws them to himself that there is nothing that can separate them from him. It’s about the world view that they push. I can’t guarantee that saints of old would send their children to secular schools. You make good argument. But everyone has their own preferences. I have to answer to a holy God at some point.

Moral of the story: the type of parent you are matters more than the type of education your kids receive.

I have many issues with this video, but my biggest issue is she seems to be too prideful in her statements? Almost like she’s against homeschooling? She stated fear mongering other parents? All you have to do is open social media and see our country is going away from Christ more and more. Public schools don’t want Christ in the schools and public schools are allowing so many things that are anti-Christ. Our children need to be protected from the worldly view and the pure pressures of public schools. I grew up in public schools and it wasn’t the best education. We as Christians should definitely question government public schools. We’re set apart and we’re not the same. Not being at a public school isn’t leaving behind other Christian kids or trying to show other kids Christ. It’s called using your brain and knowing that public schools aren’t the answer.

We had our children in public school but changed after: 1. I personally witnessed a child hurl a desk across the room. Because he has an IEP, he was back the next day 2. A child on our school bus route brought a gun on the bus. The parents did not know about it but I learned from those in leadership. 3. I personally witnessed a child fall asleep and play video games in class. I was warned by teacher not to wake him or he would become aggressive. 4. As a substitute teacher I was hit, kicked, and nearly bitten by a child. When the office arrived they did not remove the child, they removed the class and myself so we could finish class while they "reasoned" with the violent student for more than 45 minutes. 5. The curriculum has changed to make parent assistance difficult. Having tutored honors math, I am quite competent in mathematics. My third grade daughter came home with common core math that required Google searches to figure out what they were asking. Imagine my shock when typing in the question proved it was a very popular search. Other parents were in the same boat. This is part of the equity push that says children should not have homework since parent assistance is inequitable. The social studies curriculum is also very biased. The answer to problems was government. Immigration was always presented as positive without considering that illegal entry and large influxes can cause hardships for natives and immigrants alike. Rather than presenting facts and timelines, there was a constant theme of oppressor/oppressed (critical theory). Now I wonder why it took so long to pull them out. I think we feel like Jen Wilkinson that we could be light in school. But as we hardly had time with them at home, it became apparent that they spent more of their waking time in darkness than sitting with us pouring in the light of truth, God's love, and Scripture. And I have yet to meet someone in the homeschool community opposed to Christian's teaching in public school so I wonder where Mrs. Wilkinson got this perspective.

Would love to see a good faith debate between 2 parents of elementary school aged children

I didn't like that 6-year-olds spent so much time on computers. Not just for learning, but screen time was a reward, too.

This wasn't a debate at all. It was more of a dialogue; a conversation. No opening statements, no rebuttals, no cross examination, no closing statements.

Jen's take on extracurricular is interesting to me not because I disagree, but because I agree, however, she doesn't view the public education piece through the same lens.

Public school is a wicked place to send you believing child. Why send them to the devils playground when we are to be protecting them from this. Kids are easily molded.

Honestly, this is just as bad as a “debate” on Vice. Both debaters are advocates for public education and the supposed only positive comments concerning homeschooling are in the formative years because one is not beholden to the public school’s schedule. So many opportunities wasted to advocate for a better education for your child.

I’ve taught in the public school system and can guarantee you that I will never send my boy there. I teach in a “conservative” rural district and we still see all kinds of weird things parents just wouldn’t even know about unless they asked.

I appreciated this debate. I just hope that Jonathan Pennington takes this as an opportunity to learn his childrens’ ages 😂

She confessed he belief at the beginning. She believes in the public school ideal period. That's it. She doesn't believe in the biblical ideal.

When I was 18 years old, my church experienced a shooting where my pastor was killed. I lived in a small community that was known as "safe." I mention this because I feel like a lot of my parents friends are choosing home school or private school for safety. I really appreciate what Jen said regarding this. You cannot control your kids safety. I WISH I could. I really appreciate this discussion and can see positives and negatives from both sides. Ultimately we are choosing public school for now. My husband and I are on the same page and feel confident about our decision.

How can any Christian support sending their child to a public school?! By definition they are not teaching from a Bible based perspective; why would you want your child exposed to that?

This lady here can not be taken serious in claiming that most of what people hear about public education is fear mongering...

I honestly don’t know how I feel completely about this “debate”. I know Jen’s experience is somewhat special and not normal due to family members roles/positions w/in the public school system. Someone also brought up the question in the comments about how their children’s current walk with the Lord as adults is not mentioned. This would be nice to know. The following is just me sharing my experience… Being raised in public school 1-12, I can say the “social” aspect sucked. As an adult I often use to tell my mom if you took out the social part of growing up in public school, I really enjoyed my teachers and most of what I learned. The time left over after school (I got involved with extracurriculars so I could stay away from home longer for "independence") even while being in a Christian home was not spent training and teaching me God’s Word outside of church (Sundays & Wednesdays) unless I was in trouble for something. No one sat down and taught me how to read and study the Bible, etc. I didn’t start doing this until almost 10yrs ago. I just knew I didn’t believe in evolution, and I would always tell my mom that was a horrible lesson and a test was coming up for it. I knew nothing else was wrong in what I was taught honestly in regards to worldview. I just had a conversation last week with my oldest after watching the KKK episode of Dr Quinn Medicine Woman, that I remember a boy coming to school who happily boasted about a KKK group in the next county who was trying to recruit him. My son was surprised to hear that. Not to mention the influences around me from peers--only cared about what we wore & clicks, drugs (thankfully I was convicted enough to not try any), sex, alcohol, sneaking around, lying to my parents, etc. We also have personal reasons and convictions. I originally started homeschooling to “get a year back” where I sent my oldest to school full time in pre-k, while I worked full time at a private school. Plus I knew we would move eventually and I didn’t want to go to multiple different schools in the meantime. My husband's work schedule only allowed him to be home in the evenings 1 hr or less before it was bedtime M-Sat. That was a rough year emotionally for all of us and that wasn’t even at public school. I have grown the most as a believer in the years I have been homeschooling. I can’t imagine all of that energy and effort being applied somewhere else after so many years into this. My children are flourishing. My oldest still can’t believe how little I knew about what the Bible says until the past decade. I tell him, “That’s why I’m teaching you guys now because I want you to know. I want you to make decisions based on what God’s Word says.” Plus I noticed Biblical and secular worldviews in what’s being taught wasn’t addressed really. Jen just mentioned having access to what’s being taught in their “great” schools, etc and a “world class education” from the public school system. I’m glad the 15,000 hrs children are away from their homes was brought up. The messages and phone calls I have received since 2020 is very sad pertaining to what parents are finding out from their children or faculty in our local public schools and libraries. I love being home with my family and so do my children. They can’t imagine being away from home as long as other children are. They often see the bus go by our home, and each time are grateful to be home. My oldest, most importantly, is grateful to be learning about God throughout his courses. He said it would be very difficult to learn in an environment w/o God in it. I could say more, but this is already pretty long.

I enjoyed this. The moderator asked great questions, too. My husband and I were both raised in non-Christian homes and went to public schools and very liberal universities exposed to everything you can imagine and came to faith. The Lord is sovereign and will supply wisdom in each unique situation. I appreciate that there is Christian liberty in these decisions. Thanks TGC for putting this on.

"My perspective is highly autobiographical" And I'm already against Jen's position.

I love the positives that you are pointing out. My kids are in public school and I’ve taught in public school for years. And we fully believe and are devoted to Christ.

The idea that home educated children do not have access to a diverse group of people is disingenuous.