Re: CA tries to eliminate homeschooling
Luz Shosie and Ned Vare
The teachers' unions and the education bureaucracies are threatened by
"regular" parents who feel competent to direct the education of their
children. Those groups want us all to feel that we need to pay them for the
"job." We know better.
In response to CA's recent attempts to eliminate homeschooling, Michelle
Malkin, a consistently fine syndicated writer, responds with the following
recent column.
August 23, 2002
Crusading to keep kids clueless
The public education monopoly can't stand the thought of "unqualified"
parents teaching their own children. That is why they are cracking down on
home schooling, even as a new study shows that thousands of public school
teachers themselves are shamefully unqualified to educate the nation's
students.
(snip of CA specific reports)
As I've said many times before, there's nothing like stiff competition to
bring out the worst in government.
Nowhere does this prove more true than in the battle between home-schooling
parents and public school bureaucrats. More than 1.2 million children now
call mom and dad their controlling educational authorities.
Their overwhelming success -- in academic competition, on national tests,
and in college -- poses a mounting threat to the government-run education
monopoly and to the public school teachers' unions.
Despite abominably low test scores, enormous waste, unsafe classrooms and
administrative incompetence, the public schools have remained a hallowed and
untouchable fixture.
How dare "uncredentialed" parents rise up in revolt? How dare they demand
excellence, discipline, and a curriculum that reflects their values and love
of country? Mocking home schoolers as fringe radicals and religious
extremists, meddling with their teaching materials, and forcing them to beg
public school officials for permission to educate their own children wasn't
enough to defeat the growing movement.
So now California's educracy has adopted a new motto: If you can't beat 'em,
criminalize 'em. These bully tactics are bound to backfire in California and
the rest of the country as the public school system's incompetence continues
to be laid bare.
As California wages its war on "unqualified" parents, a new report by the
Washington, D.C.-based Education Trust reported this week that one-fourth of
all secondary school classes are taught by public school teachers untrained
in the class subject. It's a problem that hasn't improved for nearly a
decade. The researchers examined whether classes in four core subjects --
English, math, science and social studies -- were assigned to a teacher who
lacked a college major or minor in that field or a related field.
Nationally, 24.2 percent of classes were taught by such unqualified
teachers.
In California, 27 percent of classes were taught by the untrained.
Twelve states had more than 30 percent of classes fitting that category.
Five states -- Arizona, Delaware, Louisiana, New Mexico and Tennessee --
averaged more than one-third. Among those hurt the most by this trend: poor
and minority students. In schools that serve mostly poor students, the study
found, nearly twice as many courses are taught by out-of-field teachers as
in schools with few poor students. In schools that mostly serve minority
students, 29 percent of classes were taught by unqualified teachers,
compared with 21 percent for schools that have low minority enrollments.
Our public schools are filled with substandard math teachers who never took
math in college, French teachers lecturing about biology, art teachers
masquerading as history teachers, and other instructors who have absolutely
no expert knowledge or intellectual curiosity about the subjects they've
been assigned to teach.
This is a system whose first priority is self-preservation of its
tax-subsidized employees, not academic enlightenment of its captive charges.
And they dare to accuse home-schooling parents of educational malpractice?
<A
HREF="mailto:malkin@...%3Fsubject=TownHall.com%20Reader%20Comment">C
ontact Michelle Malkin</A> | <A
HREF="http://www.townhall.com/columnists/BIOS/cbmalkin.html">Read her
biography</A>
©2002 Creators Syndicate, Inc.<
From NHENSpeakOut digest 1374
I'm sending this column in order to encourage anyone who ever doubts his/her
competence to provide (direct) a good and proper education for a child. I
believe there is no more pertinent subject for this list than the knowledge
that we have done the right thing in taking our kids out of the government's
hands.
Ned Vare
"regular" parents who feel competent to direct the education of their
children. Those groups want us all to feel that we need to pay them for the
"job." We know better.
In response to CA's recent attempts to eliminate homeschooling, Michelle
Malkin, a consistently fine syndicated writer, responds with the following
recent column.
>http://www.townhall.com/columnists/michellemalkin/mm20020823.shtmlMichelle Malkin
August 23, 2002
Crusading to keep kids clueless
The public education monopoly can't stand the thought of "unqualified"
parents teaching their own children. That is why they are cracking down on
home schooling, even as a new study shows that thousands of public school
teachers themselves are shamefully unqualified to educate the nation's
students.
(snip of CA specific reports)
As I've said many times before, there's nothing like stiff competition to
bring out the worst in government.
Nowhere does this prove more true than in the battle between home-schooling
parents and public school bureaucrats. More than 1.2 million children now
call mom and dad their controlling educational authorities.
Their overwhelming success -- in academic competition, on national tests,
and in college -- poses a mounting threat to the government-run education
monopoly and to the public school teachers' unions.
Despite abominably low test scores, enormous waste, unsafe classrooms and
administrative incompetence, the public schools have remained a hallowed and
untouchable fixture.
How dare "uncredentialed" parents rise up in revolt? How dare they demand
excellence, discipline, and a curriculum that reflects their values and love
of country? Mocking home schoolers as fringe radicals and religious
extremists, meddling with their teaching materials, and forcing them to beg
public school officials for permission to educate their own children wasn't
enough to defeat the growing movement.
So now California's educracy has adopted a new motto: If you can't beat 'em,
criminalize 'em. These bully tactics are bound to backfire in California and
the rest of the country as the public school system's incompetence continues
to be laid bare.
As California wages its war on "unqualified" parents, a new report by the
Washington, D.C.-based Education Trust reported this week that one-fourth of
all secondary school classes are taught by public school teachers untrained
in the class subject. It's a problem that hasn't improved for nearly a
decade. The researchers examined whether classes in four core subjects --
English, math, science and social studies -- were assigned to a teacher who
lacked a college major or minor in that field or a related field.
Nationally, 24.2 percent of classes were taught by such unqualified
teachers.
In California, 27 percent of classes were taught by the untrained.
Twelve states had more than 30 percent of classes fitting that category.
Five states -- Arizona, Delaware, Louisiana, New Mexico and Tennessee --
averaged more than one-third. Among those hurt the most by this trend: poor
and minority students. In schools that serve mostly poor students, the study
found, nearly twice as many courses are taught by out-of-field teachers as
in schools with few poor students. In schools that mostly serve minority
students, 29 percent of classes were taught by unqualified teachers,
compared with 21 percent for schools that have low minority enrollments.
Our public schools are filled with substandard math teachers who never took
math in college, French teachers lecturing about biology, art teachers
masquerading as history teachers, and other instructors who have absolutely
no expert knowledge or intellectual curiosity about the subjects they've
been assigned to teach.
This is a system whose first priority is self-preservation of its
tax-subsidized employees, not academic enlightenment of its captive charges.
And they dare to accuse home-schooling parents of educational malpractice?
<A
HREF="mailto:malkin@...%3Fsubject=TownHall.com%20Reader%20Comment">C
ontact Michelle Malkin</A> | <A
HREF="http://www.townhall.com/columnists/BIOS/cbmalkin.html">Read her
biography</A>
©2002 Creators Syndicate, Inc.<
From NHENSpeakOut digest 1374
I'm sending this column in order to encourage anyone who ever doubts his/her
competence to provide (direct) a good and proper education for a child. I
believe there is no more pertinent subject for this list than the knowledge
that we have done the right thing in taking our kids out of the government's
hands.
Ned Vare
Helen Hegener
At 11:50 AM -0400 8/24/02, Luz Shosie and Ned Vare wrote:
but I should add that the situation in California is actually under
control and not quite as grim as some would paint it to be. As Sandra
pointed out in sharing the letter from HSC's legal counsel, Linda
Conrad-Jansen: "...the letters received from counties in the last
month regarding the new procedures are nothing more than scare
tactics designed to get more homeschoolers into the public school
homeschooling programs."
And that topic is being thoroughly discussed on several other lists -
if anyone is interested in joining the examinations I can post the
list URLs here.
Helen
>I'm sending this column in order to encourage anyone who ever doubts his/herAnd I heartily agree with you, Ned. Thanks for sharing that column,
>competence to provide (direct) a good and proper education for a child. I
>believe there is no more pertinent subject for this list than the knowledge
>that we have done the right thing in taking our kids out of the government's
>hands.
but I should add that the situation in California is actually under
control and not quite as grim as some would paint it to be. As Sandra
pointed out in sharing the letter from HSC's legal counsel, Linda
Conrad-Jansen: "...the letters received from counties in the last
month regarding the new procedures are nothing more than scare
tactics designed to get more homeschoolers into the public school
homeschooling programs."
And that topic is being thoroughly discussed on several other lists -
if anyone is interested in joining the examinations I can post the
list URLs here.
Helen
Midas Shannon
Are they outlawing homeschooling in California?
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
> At 11:50 AM -0400 8/24/02, Luz Shosie and Ned Vare__________________________________________________
> wrote:
> >I'm sending this column in order to encourage
> anyone who ever doubts his/her
> >competence to provide (direct) a good and proper
> education for a child. I
> >believe there is no more pertinent subject for this
> list than the knowledge
> >that we have done the right thing in taking our
> kids out of the government's
> >hands.
>
> And I heartily agree with you, Ned. Thanks for
> sharing that column,
> but I should add that the situation in California is
> actually under
> control and not quite as grim as some would paint it
> to be. As Sandra
> pointed out in sharing the letter from HSC's legal
> counsel, Linda
> Conrad-Jansen: "...the letters received from
> counties in the last
> month regarding the new procedures are nothing more
> than scare
> tactics designed to get more homeschoolers into the
> public school
> homeschooling programs."
>
> And that topic is being thoroughly discussed on
> several other lists -
> if anyone is interested in joining the examinations
> I can post the
> list URLs here.
>
> Helen
>
>
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
Jane
It's my understanding that they are trying to make it were homeschool
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Midas Shannon [mailto:midasshannon@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:14 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
Are they outlawing homeschooling in California?
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Midas Shannon [mailto:midasshannon@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:14 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
Are they outlawing homeschooling in California?
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
> At 11:50 AM -0400 8/24/02, Luz Shosie and Ned Vare__________________________________________________
> wrote:
> >I'm sending this column in order to encourage
> anyone who ever doubts his/her
> >competence to provide (direct) a good and proper
> education for a child. I
> >believe there is no more pertinent subject for this
> list than the knowledge
> >that we have done the right thing in taking our
> kids out of the government's
> >hands.
>
> And I heartily agree with you, Ned. Thanks for
> sharing that column,
> but I should add that the situation in California is
> actually under
> control and not quite as grim as some would paint it
> to be. As Sandra
> pointed out in sharing the letter from HSC's legal
> counsel, Linda
> Conrad-Jansen: "...the letters received from
> counties in the last
> month regarding the new procedures are nothing more
> than scare
> tactics designed to get more homeschoolers into the
> public school
> homeschooling programs."
>
> And that topic is being thoroughly discussed on
> several other lists -
> if anyone is interested in joining the examinations
> I can post the
> list URLs here.
>
> Helen
>
>
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Jane
I wish they made a computer that would stop sending when you say "no
don't email!" as you see that you have misspelled something that the
spell check didn't catch. Oh well, were or where. LOL Jane
-----Original Message-----
From: Jane [mailto:jane@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:28 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
It's my understanding that they are trying to make it were homeschool
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Midas Shannon [mailto:midasshannon@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:14 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
Are they outlawing homeschooling in California?
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
don't email!" as you see that you have misspelled something that the
spell check didn't catch. Oh well, were or where. LOL Jane
-----Original Message-----
From: Jane [mailto:jane@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:28 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
It's my understanding that they are trying to make it were homeschool
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Midas Shannon [mailto:midasshannon@...]
Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 2:14 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Re: CA tries to eliminate
homeschooling
Are they outlawing homeschooling in California?
Imissed what the conversation was about.
shannon
--- Helen Hegener <HEM-Editor@...>
wrote:
> At 11:50 AM -0400 8/24/02, Luz Shosie and Ned Vare__________________________________________________
> wrote:
> >I'm sending this column in order to encourage
> anyone who ever doubts his/her
> >competence to provide (direct) a good and proper
> education for a child. I
> >believe there is no more pertinent subject for this
> list than the knowledge
> >that we have done the right thing in taking our
> kids out of the government's
> >hands.
>
> And I heartily agree with you, Ned. Thanks for
> sharing that column,
> but I should add that the situation in California is
> actually under
> control and not quite as grim as some would paint it
> to be. As Sandra
> pointed out in sharing the letter from HSC's legal
> counsel, Linda
> Conrad-Jansen: "...the letters received from
> counties in the last
> month regarding the new procedures are nothing more
> than scare
> tactics designed to get more homeschoolers into the
> public school
> homeschooling programs."
>
> And that topic is being thoroughly discussed on
> several other lists -
> if anyone is interested in joining the examinations
> I can post the
> list URLs here.
>
> Helen
>
>
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
http://finance.yahoo.com
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
~~~~ Don't forget! If you change topics, change the subject line! ~~~~
If you have questions, concerns or problems with this list, please email
the moderator, Joyce Fetteroll (fetteroll@...), or the list
owner, Helen Hegener (HEM-Editor@...).
To unsubscribe from this group, click on the following link or address
an email to:
[email protected]
Visit the Unschooling website: http://www.unschooling.com
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo!
<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Betsy
**
It's my understanding that they are trying to make it were homeschool
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm **
Hi,
The situation in California is not as scary as it sounds. People who
want more information can find all the details at the HSC website
http://www.hsc.org
There have been no changes in the California laws. Most independent
homeschoolers in California establish small private schools in their own
homes. The educational laws regulating private schools in this state
are very vague -- there is nothing that prohibits a private school being
in a home and having only one student, like my school does.
The only thing that is new in California this year is that private
school affadavits (R-4 forms) are being distributed by the state online,
instead of being sent out as paper forms by each county.
This is probably only of interest to people who live in California.
Hope the rest of you hit the delete button pretty fast. ;-)
Betsy
It's my understanding that they are trying to make it were homeschool
parents have to be certified teachers. Here is an article a friend sent
me. :-) Jane http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020821-30752887.htm **
Hi,
The situation in California is not as scary as it sounds. People who
want more information can find all the details at the HSC website
http://www.hsc.org
There have been no changes in the California laws. Most independent
homeschoolers in California establish small private schools in their own
homes. The educational laws regulating private schools in this state
are very vague -- there is nothing that prohibits a private school being
in a home and having only one student, like my school does.
The only thing that is new in California this year is that private
school affadavits (R-4 forms) are being distributed by the state online,
instead of being sent out as paper forms by each county.
This is probably only of interest to people who live in California.
Hope the rest of you hit the delete button pretty fast. ;-)
Betsy