Where to begin?
An interesting debate has exploded into the mainstream as a California appellate ruling that bans homeschooling by uncredentialed parents. My own criticism of homeschooling has alwas [sic] been in line with the ruling by the court: it is a form of child abuse to subject children to an education at the hands of a person who is manifestly unable to provide it. Stephen’s Web
I’m sorry, Stephen, but your opinion is not in line with what the court ruled. The court ruled thus (emphasis added):
It is clear that the education of the children at their home, whatever the quality of that education, does not qualify for the private full-time day school or credentialed tutor exemptions from compulsory education in a public full-time day school. re. Rachel L., p. 12-13
In other words, it does not matter how excellent that education may have been, the Long family were not following California law in the way they educated their children. Nowhere did the court equate homeschooling with abuse. That notion is Stephen’s and Stephen’s alone.
The very idea of homeschooling being by its nature abusive is an interesting one that I have not quite come to grips with. And here Stephen stretches exceptionally far into the bizarre by not reaching for the tired connections between Christians “controlling” their children or unschoolers denying their children a standard curriculum. Instead, he asserts it is abusive merely to teach a child without a proper teaching credential.
Because parents are “manifestly unable to provide” an education for their own children without one. Manifestly, clearly revealed.
Oh my. There are a lot of abused children in this nation.
- There are, of course, the homeschoolers, an estimated two to four million.
- Then there are the private school. I can’t begin to count that high.
- Then there are the public schools, where in New York alone 34% of the teachers hired between 1999 and 2005 were uncertified.
This is a child welfare crisis of epic proportions. Or Stephen is overstating his case just a teency bit.
Even in the school system, where certification is the modus operandi, it gives administrators little information regarding such important considerations as longevity of the teacher and eventual impact on student achievement. In March 2006, a study was released which found that certification was of negligible benefit (pdf).
“These are people who have no prior experience in teaching and they go into the lowest performing schools, and they do just as well,” a Columbia University Business School professor, Jonah Rockoff, who co-authored the study, said. “Where you went to college and what your GPA was doesn’t seem to tell you how good you’re going to be in the classroom.” New York Sun
Nor does certification say a thing about how you will do as a parent or, since it is a natural extension of parenting, as a home educator.
One thing that does predict a teacher’s ability, however, is experience. Something I have nine years of with my oldest. I think that may be just enough to get through third grade.
And I find this hyperbolic positioning against homeschooling ironic considering who Stephen is and what he says he believes. Working for the National Research Council, he specializes in online learning, content syndication and new media and says this of his goals for education:
I want and visualize and aspire toward a system of society and learning where each person is able to rise to his or her fullest potential without social or financial encumberance, where they may express themselves fully and without reservation through art, writing, athletics, invention, or even through their avocations or lifestyle. Stephen’s Web
Online learning…I wonder if he realizes how much this particular case affects virtual charters in California?
[tags]homeschool, homeschooling, home school[/tags]
Principled Discovery is a place to stop and discuss news and information related to faith, family and particularly education. Pour yourself a cup of tea and join the conversation! 
IMO folks who employ such sad and tired rhetoric reinforce the argument for home educate. Obviously Stephen himself has been indoctrinated, or why does his position contradict all the available evidence?
Considering how much real abuse takes places in the public school system, with rampant bullying, sexual molestation, and zero tolerance policies, you’d think someone who supported the concept of a quality education in a safe environment would be defending home education.
You know, it is funny, but as a certificate holding homeschooling mama I have to deal with the constant possibility, here in Pennsylvania, that once again the tutor law will be challenged as a viable means to home-educate. Here in PA certified teachers are often told that though they could teach a class full of children or tutor someone else’s children privately but am challenged as soon as I suggest that I might possibly be able to teach my own. I find this interesting while I sit back and watch this whole case and the arguments that ensue. It is also funny because here in PA the majority of teachers in the private school sector do NOT hold a teacher’s certification. In the end anti-homeschool people are going to automatically respond with negativity (I have run into fellow certificate holding teachers here who also feel that homeschooling is a form of child abuse regardless of who is teaching it. The teacher’s union, back when I was keeping up with what they said, had a LOT to say on that and the teachers who read it believed it.)
“My own criticism of homeschooling has alwas [sic] been in line with the ruling by the court: it is a form of child abuse to subject children to an education at the hands of a person who is manifestly unable to provide it.”
I feel exactly this way…about failing schools in the public school system. It is abuse to force a child to attend said school and not give the parents the right to choose to send him or her elsewhere or to educate them at home. It is state sponsored child abuse. I think Stephen just got confused in his choice of words for a second. I’m sure he meant to say just that. (Maybe he needs to proofread his work. Proofread, Stephen, there’s a good lad.)
Especially someone who is into building online communities where he envisions something that seems antithetical to the credentialing craze:
This to me is a society where knowledge and learning are public goods, freely created and shared, not hoarded or withheld in order to extract wealth or influence. This is what I aspire toward, this is what I work toward.
But we are to hoard knowledge and the sharing thereof by something as arbitrary as a certificate? Strange.
That is interesting. But you are right, you don’t really need a reason to be against homeschooling. Most people haven’t thought about it that much. That makes it easy to fall for simplistic arguments that seem more sophisticated than they are because they rely on our own stereotypes and limited knowledge, making our “instincts” seem proven.
Ah…I bet you’re right, LOTP.
I am sad that the first blog I ever read on Stephen’s site was that one. How will I ever take him seriously now?
His assertion is insane.
Your certification for life experience makes me smile! I am going to make one and hang it on the wall. Special recognition is given for learning patience and multi-task management.
And I really haven’t been sitting here for two hours. ;)I opened this window and then a neighbor stopped by, my children needed juice, the dog ran away, and my son started lessons. Talk about multi-tasking!
I agree with you both that subjecting a child to a poor quality education constitutes neglect- whether that’s in a traditional school or a homeschool. Unfortunately, I don’t know how we as a society can effectively monitor the quality of the education a child receives without crossing the line into a nanny state government. There are too many pitfalls. For starters, who gets to define what exactly is a “high quality” education? Ask 100 people and you’re likely to get 100 different answers to that…
Amazing - almost breathtaking in its stupidity - almost too easy to rebutt. Does anyone take this person seriously?
What is crazy is that if you read the guy’s website, you’ll find yourself agreeing with much of what he says about education. Maybe some evil alien has taken over his body and is blogging to accomplish some nefarious other-worldly scheme!
Hey - it’s a thought. :p
I want that certificate - very crafty of you! Can you make me one??
Commentary like Stephen’s is pretty off-the-wall and incredibly hard to take seriously. The problem is, it’s becoming a more common line of thinking in America.
I’m telling you, Sunniemom, it’s just like I stated above. He needs to work on his proofreading. I’m certain he’s an otherwise intelligent fellow!
Well Renae, at least when you say, do and are awarded a certificate for your life experience, at least you have life experience in said category and proof thereof:
Unlike certain presidential candidate with so called 35 years presidential experience.
I guess like Stephen, said candidate can jabber it out and it has to be true.
….The problem is, it’s becoming a more common line of thinking in America.
“This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.” Jas 3:15
I can just hear Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz skipping along and singing, “If I only had a credential…”
I wonder if motivation is as important than experience.
Rose, you win the “Best analysis in twenty words or less” category. Thanks for the chuckle. : )
I should have included the link, but all you do is fill out the form here:
http://www.senteacher.org/wk/certificates.php
Crimson Wife, I agree. I almost included that aspect…someone who is “manifestly unable” to provide an education shouldn’t be teaching a child, regardless of the setting.
But in the original entry it was pretty clear that “manifestly unable” was equated to lack of an official credential.
In the home, the burden of proof is on the state. It shouldn’t be easier to force a family to send their children to an accredited school than it is to get a bad teacher out of the classroom.
I have posted a video explaining my position.
http://halfanhour.blogspot.com/2008/03/on-home-schooling.html
Just a side note…If he wants children to be able to express themselves through art, then shouldn’t there still be art AND music in the public schools? Hasn’t that been pretty much cut from every public school due to “funding”? Just saying…
Quite true. : )