Here's an article published in the Manila Bulletin's "Moms & Babies" Section last June 15, 2008, written by Ivy P. Goze.  I hope this helps those of you out there who are thinking about homeschooling.  My inputs are bold, italicized & in green.

More and more families are becoming interested in homeschooling as tuition gets more exorbitant and the values espoused by popular culture become more questionable.

There is so much to learn about homeschooling.  Those who are interested will find many homeschooling families that extol the merits of this choice and even more inspiring stories about the homeschool experience.  It certainly seems like the idyllic way to learn.

Some of the commonly known advantages of homeschooling are the following:

GENERAL FREEDOM

Homeschoolers recognize the fact that they have a choice as to what to study and learn.  They are not confined to their seats and they are not inhibited by somebody else's schedule.  They have the liberty to express themselves and are not pressured to conform or to belong.  They are free to practice their religion and fortify their belief system.  Flexibility is the operative word.  They are not cowed into meshing themselves into a certain structure.  They know that they can look for ways that will work for them.  Learning can be tailor-fitted to the child's pace, capacity, and learning style.  Exploration is boundless.

Lani Sala, a homeschool mom, explains, "You can make a curriculum suited for your children and this way, you get to clearly see their gifts and talents.  You also have the chance to address whatever weakness they may have.  In a regular school setting, there are more students to deal with and a schedule to follow.  Homeschooling allows you to work on a certain area as long as you need to."

I love the freedom homeschool gives children.  Education is really all about helping an individual learn to learn & love to learn.  No human being will be able to gain all knowledge.  Furthermore, it's not what you know, but what you do with what you know that matters.  You may have gained a lot of knowledge, but if you don't use it for the betterment of others & society, and most importantly, for God's glory, then it would be useless.  As homeschoolers, my children are "free" from the "tyrrany" of a grading system and testing.  It is unfortunate that grades commonly seem to be the objective of most children in formal schooling nowadays, when in truth, grades and tests are just tools for both students & teachers to find out if, indeed, students have achieved the objectives set out by their teacher.  If a child scores high, then it simply means that he has achieved the objectives.  If he scores low, then it means that he still needs help to learn the lesson.  Low scores of students, in my opinion, mean that their respective teachers haven't done their job to the best of their ability.

CHANCE FOR FURTHER BONDING

Lani points out, "Homeschooling is a family experience."  It fosters stronger and more loving ties between family members.  It also makes it easier to adapt to changes or major events in the family.  Stressful occasions such as deaths, births, moves, etc. are easier to cope with sans having to deal with the unbending demands of regular school.  Carmela Santos, another homeschool parent, details, "The parent-child bonding is reinforced and the values (including eating habits and healthy diet) you wish to impart to your children are not contradicted by what 'teacher said' or what 'classmates do'.  The preschool kid is very impressionable, and peer/group pressure and authority figure of teachers are considerable at this tender age."  Another plus point is that homeschooling allows students to get a hug anytime they want one.

NATURAL AND RELAXED LEARNING

Parents should never underestimate children's capacity to learn on their own or the authenticity of their thirst for knowledge.  This is why a homeschool parent's teaching credentials are not really such a major issue.  Homeschooling ingrains a habit of self-teaching.  If nothing upsets this natural inclination for learning, the child will continue to love acquiring knowledge and will study for the sake of learning and not for approval or an ego boost.  Carmela narrates how her family got into homeschooling.  "It came naturally for me as a I was home-based (doing consultancy work and online jobs) and a full-time mom."

"A lot of learning activities were incorporated in playtime, and when the time came to consider formal schooling, I realized that our child knew the 'basics' that are supposed to be taught in school.  I am a breastfeeding mother too, so the interaction with the children was constant and 24/7.  Children are natural learners, they are curious about a lot of things, and you just find yourself engaging them in music and books, and the outside world from which they soak up in learning."

Natural & relaxed learning can only come from a "generally free" environment - freedom from stifling schedules, unreasonable work loads, & the demoralizing stigma of not being able to "keep up" with the other members of a class.  Learning needs to be a positive experience, for it to be effective & maximized.

MONEY FOR SPECIAL LESSONS

Here in the Philippines, if parents can afford to, they prefer to send their kids to private schools.  Education is definitely something they have to finance and it doesn't come cheap at all.  Homeschooling, depending on your game plan and how resourceful you are, may cost next to nothing.  You have to purchase supplies too every now and then, but you can recycle as much as you can without having to worry about other people's reaction to your economizing.  Money intended for tuition can then end up for trips, special lessons, equipment, etc.

I am of the opinion that nothing in this life comes for free, including homeschooling.  When it is free, my suspicious nature automatically starts thinking:  "Wait a minute...there's got to be a catch to this!"  In addition, since at least one parent needs to stay home full-time to homeschool (again, that's my opinion!) means that the family has to forego potential income from the teaching parent, so that makes homeschooling THE best, but most expensive, education one can give their children.
What I will say, though, is that it is possible to homeschool without having to pay for tuition fees, text books or other curriculum materials.  It can give you more control over how your education budget will be spent, instead of having to content yourself with the hired teachers & required textbooks of schools you'd be interested in.

HEALTHIER OPTION FOR THE KIDS

While homeschooling is especially suitable for those who opt not to vaccinate their children, learning at home is simply generally better for the kids' health.  Carmela expounds on this point:  "Their daytime [naps] (one in the morning, and one in the early afternoon) [are] not interrupted.  The value of sleep for preschool-age kids cannot be underestimated as they achieve growth and brain and immune development at this time.  Not to mention that in this time of climate change, the children are spared...epidemics of flu and virulent colds that [breed well] in the classroom environment."