These statistics, along with the accompanying Wall Street Journal article, show that home-schooled students do exceptionally well. “They excel in (and win) spelling bees, score high on tests like the SAT, and go on to be accepted into many colleges.” Now, the National Educational Association in their 2007-2008 Resolutions has adopted a rigid stand against homeschooling with sad and punitive consequences for the kids should their local school districts fall in line. Please take a moment to tell the NEA that homeschooling is a real option that does produce wonderfully rounded and productive members of society… Read their unbelievable resolution below, which even goes so far as to restrict teaching by adults other than parents, presumably outlawing the social centers within homeschooling known as co-ops!
The resolution reads, “The National Education Association believes that homeschooling programs based on parental choice cannot provide the student with a comprehensive education experience. When home schooling occurs, students enrolled must meet all state curricular requirements, including the taking and passing of assessments to ensure adequate academic progress. Home schooling should be limited to the children of the immediate family, with all expenses being borne by the parents/guardians. Instruction should be by persons who are licensed by the appropriate state education licensure agency, and a curriculum approved by the state department of education should be used.
The Association also believes that home-schooled students should not participate in any extracurricular activities in the public schools. The Association further believes that local public school systems should have the authority to determine grade placement and/or credits earned toward graduation for students entering or re-entering the public school setting from a home school setting.”
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Our three children left public schools when we all realized that the arbitrary forcing of facts down the throats of third graders in an effort to score higher on state achievement tests (Thanks in part to the Bush administration’s No Child Left Behind policy), does nothing but pummel the love of learning right out of children — and the love of teaching right out of teachers.
In our fifth year at home we couldn’t be happier. And, when I go to the local elementary school to work at the polling place every November, I use the teachers’ bathrooms and still see the heartbreaking cartoons taped to the inside of the stalls — revealing the saddest development in education today: Children, as square pegs, being asked to fit themselves into round holes.
Our kids are involved in unschooling, also known as natural learning. We do not believe that forcing kids into round holes at arbitrary ages is the best path to a productive and happy life. Humans were born-learners, and, if left to our own devices — especially given the rich resources found in our homes today, will find our passions and strengths while turning into self-motivated livelong learners.
Child-led learning is gaining momentum. Approximately 100,000 kids in the U.S. are in families that practice this philosophy.
I just read some posts on my homeschool lists and apparently, this is not surprising, and very similar to resolutions against homeschooling since 2001….
I want them to advocate FOR teachers, not AGAINST homeschoolers… it’s the good news philosophy, I guess…
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An unschooling friend sent me this:
This was originally passed in 1998 and has been included in the NEA
platform ever since. NHEN (National Home Education Network) wrote to
the NEA in 2002, and we got this response:
February 26, 2002
Thank you for your recent comments about my speech at the National
Press Club. I also appreciate the information on homeschooling and
the National Home Education Network.
The Association is very concerned about the education and well-being
of all children, and works to ensure that they are taught in an
environment conducive to effective learning. The NEA Representative
Assembly, made up of 9,000 delegates who represent the 2.6 million
members throughout the country, is the Association’s primary policy-
making body. This body thoroughly discusses and debates every
proposed policy before voting to approve or reject it.
During the 1998 RA, delegates approved the policy on homeschooling.
They were concerned that homeschooled students were not provided a
comprehensive education experience because they did not have an
opportunity to interact with students of different cultures, economic
status, or learning styles. They felt homeschooled students learned
in a setting primarily made up [of] family members and friends.
We know that parental involvement is imperative for school
achievement, but delegates were concerned that home schools were not
required to use state-approved curricula. They agreed that
homeschooled students have done well on national tests and were the
top spellers in the National Spelling Bee two years ago, but felt
home school instruction should meet certain state education standards.
These are some of the reasons delegates approved the 1998 resolution
on homeschooling, and reconfirmed their position at the 2000 annual
meeting. Members who want this policy reviewed may submit a proposal
to the Resolutions Committee for presentation at the RA.
Thank you again for your comments and the materials on homeschooling.
Sincerely,
Bob Chase
President
Now that NCLB has reduced public education to a cramfest for standardized high-stakes tests, public schools should be grateful that parents who are willing and able to take the time to individualize their children’s education are homeschooling their gifted/talented, learning-challenged, and medically diverse kids, so that they don’t distract from the required rote memorization, stock-still inactivity, and homogenization of thought.
exactly.