A California court ruling on February 28, 2008, took the case of one homeschooling family and changed the law for the whole state of California. According to this new ruling, no family can homeschool its children unless at least one parent is a certified teacher.
This ruling directly affects 166,000 children in California, and indirectly affects a whole lot more. (about 4 million kids in the USA)
As a homeschool parent who used to hold a teaching certificate, I know from both the education standpoint and the mother's standpoint that my ability to educate has nothing to do with my college degree. It has more to do with knowing and loving my kids as individuals and wanting what is best for them. In our family, that means diving in deeper with history with one, geology with another, reading together several times a day with the third.
I'm not one of those homeschoolers who thinks everyone should choose this route. Honestly, I don't know many homeschoolers who feel that way. But I do believe that I have a right to educate my own children. And I believe they're better people for not having been exposed to some of the influences that come through our public education system.
Not that I think public education is terrible or that I haven't had days when I've been tempted to enroll them, but I think the choice should be mine and my husband's. This should not lie in the hands of one judge who (probably) doesn't have a clear picture of what home education looks like.
If you think this was a bad ruling and would like to see it depublished, sign a petition at hslda.org which will be presented to the CA Supreme Court. You don't have to be a homeschooler, a citizen of California, or a member of HSLDA to sign the petition.
No comments:
Post a Comment