Homeschoolers make mark in science

People who are unfamiliar with homeschooling often have a long list of assumptions, most of them negative, about families who choose to educate their children at home. Among these is a belief that homeschoolers can never achieve in something as complicated as any sort of science. While science is probably one of the harder subjects for a parent to teach without school facilities, such as technical equipment and a dedicated lab space, it's doable, and some homeschoolers have gone on to make their marks in the sciences. Take two homeschoolers as cases in point: Francis Collins and Erik Demaine. The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief Collins is the former director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, which mapped out the human genome--the genetic structure of human DNA--and provided groundbreaking and crucial information for medical researchers worldwide. An evangelical Christian, Collins wrote an influential book called The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief. He was appointed by President Obama in 2009 to be director of the National Institutes of Health. (Source: NHGRI, Genome.gov.) Demaine became the youngest professor ever at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology when he joined the staff at the age of 20. Demaine's youth was spent traveling the country with his father, who was a goldsmith and glassblower. Not only is Demaine a genius in mathematics, he has used his artistic talents to create an entirely new way of teaching. He is considered the leading theoretician in origami mathematics, which is now being used as a way to present complex mathematical concepts in architecture, molecular biology, robotics and other disciplines. In 2008, he had a show of his creations at the Museum of Modern Art, and many of his pieces are now part of the permanent display. (Source: ErikDemaine.org.) There's no telling for sure where these two men would be if they had been forced into public schooling. Through no ill intention (usually) of the teachers, public education seems designed to thwart exactly the kind of imagination that makes for leaders in science and other fields. As homeschooling parents, we need to always remember to be encouraging and never be afraid to let our children explore new ideas, because you never know where they might lead.