What's up with this new "home schooling" law where the parent needs a degree?

Question

How does home schooling possibly affect the government and other students who aren't home schooled? Home schooling only affects the parents/students being taught at home, and they aren't complaining about their education. So what's this need for a degree?

Ron Paul has expressed his views about public education. He thinks that the system is very messed up. In reality, it is. He believes that kids who are home schooled are more intelligent in that they do not have a biased view on subjects. They do not waste their time being taught according to a standardized curriculum. People who go to public schools are taught according to what the government wants it to. If the government doesn't want the school teaching something, they have control over it. Apparently, now the government wants to limit home schooling.

Answer 1

Remeber, it's not actually a law.  It's just one appeals court judge who doesn't like homeschooling.

It will be appealed to the Supreme Court.   Gov. Arnold has vowed to make sure that homeschooling stays legal.

Answer 2

There actually isn't a new law, only a california judge who chose to interpret existing law in a new way.  As of right now, most homeschoolers in california are still homeschooling without concern for this, but are watching carefully to see if there are efforts to apply this ruling to more than just one family.

There is a petition to depublish the ruling so it cannot be used as legal precedent, right now depublishing would be the best thing to hope for if the decision cannot actually be overturned.

Here is a link to sign the petition, anyone can sign, you don't have to be a homeschooler or a member of hslda.

https://www2.hslda.org/Registrations/Dep...

Answer 3

My mom doesn't need a degree because she's not the one teaching me. I do Independent Study through a University for high school credit. I am guessing they just want to make sure that a student is getting taught. That is just my guess. I agree with the post though. The government gets involved in too many things these days. I do believe that public school does have its advantages. But I like homeschooling better. Most teachers in public schools take a side for certain things when they aren't supposed to. An example of that is..whether they like or dislike the president. They shouldn't speak out their opinion..but just let the students debate about it. There is so many things wrong with the public school I went to, I just wanted to get an education. I couldn't get one there, so I chose Independent Study.

Answer 4

Actually, it's not a new law - "homeschooling" doesn't really exist under CA law.  Private tutoring does, and private schools do - homeschooling is legal under either of these two options.  Kind of like in TX, where homeschools are automatically considered private schools and treated as such.

There have always been two options for homeschooling in CA - have the child tutored by a certified teacher (parent or otherwise) or have the child enrolled in a private school - either an umbrella school or your home registered as a private school.

What has changed is this judge's *interpretation* of the law - that parents can't use the private school option.  This is what has people in an uproar; that, and the completely socialist wording of the ruling that states that homeschooling is detrimental because the children are not monitored by a state-certified teacher who can verify that parenting is being done correctly.  Sorry, but I don't need a state-certified chaperone to monitor how I raise my child.

It is still legal to homeschool under these options in CA - the governor has even passed a statement saying so.  This will either be depublished or overturned - or both - and hopefully people will pay more attention to who they elect to the bench in the future.

d_x_pcm - wow, rude much?  It's kind of evident that "real life" outside your individual little bubble hasn't hit yet; once it does, you'll see beyond your own narrow little view.  Until then, please stick to things you know about.  Trust me, I've had plenty of experience in public schooling (my parents are National Board Certified public school teachers, I grew up working and tutoring in their classrooms, and my dad is a lobbyist for the NEA), parenting (I actually *am* one) and homeschooling.  

Where you get the fictional notion that homeschooled kids spend all day, every day in the house, never have outside instructors or additional points of view, and end up being robotic little "mini-me's" is beyond me.  Apparently, that would be the lack of "real life experience" speaking up.

And if you actually bothered to *read* my response, you'd notice that I never called public schools socialist.  I called the wording in the ruling socialist, which it is.  Have you bothered to read said ruling, or did your own incredible education not teach you to research?  

I have nothing against public schools.  The ones in my area are mediocre, and are not willing or able to meet my son's academic or health needs, so I homeschool him.  I am college educated, I've grown up in the teaching field, and I have plenty of experienced educators to lean on when I hit a roadblock. Guess what?  This is what certified teachers do as well.  They work with each other, rather than thinking that they have all the answers.  (Well, at least the good ones do.)  I don't teach my son every single subject, I teach him the ones I'm qualified to teach.  For the rest, I locate outside instructors (half of his are college professors, he's in the 5th grade) that can meet his needs.

I personally chose not to pursue my certification because I decided I didn't want to teach in public schools.  I know exactly what goes into it, and it's not what I'm wired for.  I respect those who do it, and do it well.  However, the fact that I didn't take a certification test (which honestly isn't that difficult) doesn't make me "not qualified" to teach my own child.  And quite frankly, not being certified wouldn't keep me from teaching in public schools (even in the great state of CA) - thousands of public school teachers all over the country today are not certified, yet they're trusted with 120+ kids every day.

Before you go spouting off at a total stranger, spewing complete ignorance, bother to read back through your submission.  That's what that nifty little "Preview" button is for at the bottom of the page.  

"Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt." - Abraham Lincoln (who, by the way, was homeschooled.)

Answer 5

Okay so firstly, I never heard of that new law.  But I really would not agree with that at all if it were/is true.

  Secondly, Ron Paul is absolutely right when he says that the system is very messed up. The government is sticking its hands into everything, not just schools, and messing EVERYTHING up.  

  I wish Ron Paul was still in the race, it was so good to know there was a guy in politics that was honest and knew what he was doing...

I also hope that the law you speak of his not true!!!

-Jenni

Answer 6

First, make sure you are getting your information on the CA case from the source closest to it - the CA homeschool association  - http://www.hsc.org/Appellatedecision  

"Home schooling only affects the parents/students being taught at home, and they aren't complaining about their education."

I'd have to disagree with this statement.  Of course how members of society are educated affects others, none of us lives in a bubble. Having a well educated population is of great value to society.  That being said, i don't feel that means we have to educate all our children in the public schools or under the governments close watch. That would imply the government is the best "parent" and I STRONGLY disagree with that.  

"So what's this need for a degree?"

LOL - who knows!  I went thru three years of teacher education and so I know first hand what a joke it is.  At the same time I was completing three years of a science degree - THAT was a real education.  I eventually decided to pursue only the science degree which I did, with honors and a 3.75 GPA.

NJ has the highest teacher certification standards in the nation - want to know what that means?  A 2.75 GPA for your college degree and a "passing" score on a watered down test.  Oh, and that GPA can be overlooked in certain circumstances.

Also, at least in NJ, private schools are not required to have teacher certification. So all those expensive places with names like Delbarton and Princeton Day School? THEY don't have to have teacher degrees, and their students seem to turn out pretty darn well.  Gee, maybe that is because the parents are involved in their education and stress how important it is to their offspring?

I truly believe homeschooling produces large numbers of well educated students not because the kids are inherently smarter, but because the parents are interested and involved in their kids' lives. That is also why (in my opinion) some public and private schooled kids do so well. It all comes down to having a good family and parents who care about education.  So why not "mandate" that? LOL

Answer 7

i am homeschooled and i went to college 2 years early i have a 4.8 gpa and my parents didnt have a degree.so yes i think that this law is stupid.the  homeshcoole legal defense assosiation is going to the califronia suprem court to argue it.

Answer 8

Okay, it isn't a law.  It is a faulty interpretation of an existing law.

I am amazed at the ridiculous notion that home-schooling parents are unqualified and ignorant.  Many of us graduated from public institutions.  Some of us even had high GPA's and graduated with honors.  Some of us had low grades but also had high IQ's.  Others had low grades and were seemingly "mentally challenged", or hyperactive and raised on robotifying drugs.  Everyone in my classes received the same material from the teacher.  We all processed it differently.

But, the point is this: If the teacher taught everything that needed to be learned AND the student learned it all how does this leave the student uninformed and ignorant?  Do the students suddenly lose all of their developed brain cells the moment they become parents.  I think NOT!

Golly, if this is what we deem a good education then do you see the point?  

Home-schooling is a far better option.

Every child does not learn the same way as the next kid.  Some children are actually thriving in a variety of educational settings.  Unschoolers are actually becoming college scholars -- some do this without any formal academic studies from K-12.  I applaude them for their success.  But even tho' I don't advocate that method I respect them for their choice.

I prefer a different balance between self-directed study, formal training, and casual learning.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to teach phonics to a 5 yr old.  My then 6 yr old taught his 4 yr old sister how to read and he didn't have a degree and actually could not read very well for himself.  And yet... amazingly she learned from him!  And it doesn't take a master of language arts to teach grammar to a child.  My children are now 25, 22, 19 and 17.   They can read, write and compute as well as the next person over -- and the often do it better!

My college-daughter (always home-schooled)  is appalled at the ignorance of some of her professors.  One math teacher could not accurately complete his own equations on the chalk board -  he was thankful when she would correct his mistakes.   Her current biology teacher teaches one thing one day and then the following week has to explain that she had it wrong without time to correct it prior to the student testing.  My daughter no longer listens in class.  She studies the BOOK and passes the tests with high scores.

Webster's Dictionary was compiled with the mindset that a person could learn everything they need to know with the aid of the dictionary.  No teacher required.

Children are capable of learning so much on their own.  Of course it is important that they have supervision and encouragement.  We give them the tools of learning and show them how to use them.  We are there to make suggestions and corrections as needed but over all we try to teach them how to teach themselves.  We want them to learn to identify and correct their own errors.  We don't have to do their thinking for them.  They have amazing minds that can absorb and process everything that comes their way.  We are here to discuss it with them and to give them guidance and direction.  We do not learn for them -- they have to do that for themselves.

The home-school community is very large -- we are widespread around the world and will not go away just because the NEA, state ed. organizations, some judges and legislatures are backward in their thinking.

We do not become stupid when we become parents.  And our children are not stupid either.

Home-schooling is open to anyone that wants to learn.  Studying in the privacy and safety of our own homes is by far better than being in a messed up public system.  My husband works in a public education facility and we know first hand what goes on in the schools.

Answer 9

I'm sure plenty of homeschooled kids are being taught by intelligent and normal parents, but many other homeschooling advocates are ignorant parents who just want to keep their children from having any friends or social development, or force them to adhere to radical religious doctrine they don't believe in, by never letting them out of their sight!

How is it okay that you just allow with a blanket statement, ANYONE can just homeschool their kids! Of COURSE there should be someone educated involved, and if that can't be the parent because the parent is uneducated and not qualified to EDUCATE then yes there should be a licensed tutor that comes by to make sure things are being TAUGHT, not just spending 6 hours a day reading the Koran and praying. I'm sorry, but parents have the other 18 hours a day to be filling their kid's head with whatever they want. Don't the children deserve the chance to learn based on accepted facts and a standard curriculum just a few hours a day so they can make up their own minds?

And doesn't anyone else see anything wrong with this whole "never letting your kids out of your sight" thing? How on earth can it be healthy for a child to basically spend 24/7 with his parents for 18+ years without any exposure to the outside world? You NEED time away from your parents to develop your own views of yourself and the world. Otherwise you are not a person, you're a copy. Like a "Mini-Me," simply molded in your parent's image and a duplicate of all their beliefs and attitudes (and possibly ignorance depending on the quality of education that went on). School is there for two reasons: 1. to educate children about the world they live in, and 2. to help them learn to socialize in a HEALTHY, NORMAL way.

Homeschooling sometimes accomplishes #1. I am confident that even some unqualified parents manage to help their kids learn just as much as they would in real school with the help of books and a sincere intention to help them learn.

However, homeschool almost always PREVENTS #2 from happening. Sure, a few parents might make sure their kids have as much time with their peers as school gives them. But most homeschooled kids are severely sheltered and deprived of social contact, making them awkward, overly shy, and unable to relate to others when they are older. I would also hazard a guess that homeschooled kids are more likely to not move out when they reach adulthood than kids who go to real schools.

I attended and graduated from public school (Class of '02). I know what it's like to be there and let me tell you, if it is so bad, then how come I turned out fine? How come all my friends there graduated and are intelligent, contributing members of society now? Because we actually cared to learn. Anyone who actually wants to learn can and will learn, even in public schools. I find it awesome that parents who hate the public schools make no sense. One minute it's "d**n worthless underqualified teachers--they shouldn't let just anyone teach! You really need to know what you're doing. d**n worthless public schools!"

But now that someone's pointed out all the home-"school" parents who have no business teaching because they're far less qualified than even the least-qualified public school teacher it's "d**n socialists in the gub'mint! Trying to enforce their socialist ways on our children! You don't NEED any qualifications to teach children if you share genetic material with them! That makes being an ignorant teacher okay!"

How do those two views match up? Unqualified teachers are okay as long as they're you, then? Is that it?

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quote from hsmomlov: "because the children are not monitored by a state-certified teacher who can verify that parenting is being done correctly"

OH please, you know this has NOTHING to do with parenting and everything to do with EDUCATION. Do you know the difference between those two words? You can raise your child to know right from wrong all day long and you don't need any academic qualifications to do that, but that has NOTHING to do with educating them. It does NOT mean that you have any insight in history, any skills or understanding in math, any ability to write on a college level, or the ability to impart all these things to your son or daughter! That's what teachers are for. Schools are not there to tell your children what's right and what's wrong or to indoctrinate them into a "socialist" system (give me a freaking break, public school is not socialist). Neither is the licensed tutor that you don't want involved in your kid's education. They're just there to help parents who don't have any qualifications make sure their kids actually learn the material they will be expected to know in college.

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Answer 10

We don't need a degree and we have achieved an excellent education and safety record here.

The principal in Los Angeles that kidnapped and tried to rape a 13 year old female student, he has a degree. Take a look at all of the teachers raping and molesting children, they also have degrees.

I would much rather see an unaccredited parent home schooling a child than an accredited pervert doing it.