[daedalus_j]

The community I live in has a decent number of homeschooling families. The kids socialize just fine with each other, and also with the regular school kids in the afternoons.

In fact, I'd venture that the homeschooled kids are better at socialization, because they're often out doing things and meeting new people. They're certainly far better at interacting with adults. The public school kids who live right on my block are rarely ever seen outside the house after their bus arrives home.

The socialization thing is one of those things everyone believes because at one time, in one circumstance, it was true, and that became the stereotype. It is very much not automatically the way it always works out though.

Admittedly, my experience is entirely US based. Your mention of "division of labor and specialization of trade" makes me think perhaps you're not from the US, so perhaps schools are much better and different where you are, in which case the situation could indeed be quite different. But please be aware that it's not like that everywhere. :-)