Comments for sursumcorda.salemsattic.com/post/the-brainy-bunch

Comment #3457

2014-09-18T14:26:43Z

Brenda and Janet, that's a tough issue. As I see it, there are two parts to it. One, as Janet pointed out, if there are too many bad apples there's the risk of a backlash that will endanger the very right to homeschool. That's not an insignificant concern. Two, we've already acknowledged the legitimacy of some government oversight to minimize abuses, from regulation of the meat industry to laws against assault, even of your wife or child in your own home.

The danger comes when that oversight gets out of hand—and how to define "out of hand." We make it illegal to starve a child, but not to force on him a vegan diet, or to allow him to drink soda for breakfast (though there are those who would make that illegal if they could). I welcome government inspection of meat that comes from industrial agriculture and large, chain stores, but think it's wrong to apply the one-size-fits-all regulations to small, local farmers and stores. I'd like to see government certification of raw milk (voluntary participation would be fine), because I don't have my own cow and don't know any dairy farmers. But I resent like crazy that the state of Florida has decided that raw milk should be illegal across the board.

I'm not against reasonable governmental oversight of homeschooling, but I'd rather an innocent-until-proven guilty approach, like Connecticut's. We don't schedule regular Department of Social Services inspections of everyone's home just to make sure the children aren't being beaten and are getting enough to eat. (At least not directly. Public schools, among other institutions, have become the eyes and arms of the DSS, which is one reason I think homeschooling is sometimes opposed.) So why should we require parents to prove to us that they are educating their children to our satisfaction? Especially when, despite all the fuss about standardized testing these days, there is no decent way for parents to hold schools accountable for satisfactorily educating their children.

I agree that it breaks my heart to see educational neglect, whether by schools or by parents. There are a lot of things that parents (and schools) allow that break my heart. But I wouldn't force my standards on them. One of my favorite Thomas Jefferson quotes is The care of every man’s soul belongs to himself. But what if he neglect the care of it? Well what if he neglect the care of his health or his estate, which would more nearly relate to the state. Will the magistrate make a law that he not be poor or sick? Laws provide against injury from others; but not from ourselves. God himself will not save men against their wills. And the care of children belongs to their parents. We can befriend, we can encourage, we can educate, we can show by example, we can provide resources ... but except in the most egregious situations, to assume that an impersonal, outside state knows better than parents how to raise their children is dangerous hubris.

That said, it is indeed appalling the number of people (parents, students, even educators) who don't value education enough to challenge each child to the height of his academic potential.

Full disclosure: I went to public schools exclusively until college (good ones, in two different states), and my parents were very much involved and valued education highly. Yet I didn't come close to my academic potential, and "retain very little knowledge" from my school experiences. Some, yes. But most of the knowledge that has stuck with me I learned from my parents, from books independently read, or from post-college experiences. There must be a better way.

Comment #3456

2014-09-18T11:35:54Z

It makes me sad to hear of homeschoolers who don't value education. It's one reason I see the value in some sort of state check that homeschoolers are actually homeschooling. Mom, do you still believe the state should stay out of it? Too much oversight is a bad thing, but I'm afraid no oversight might mean the loss of the right to homeschool because some abuse it. Of course, I know Texas has the least oversight, and homeschoolers are doing well there . . .

Comment #3455

2014-09-17T19:08:32Z

I don't think enough praise and gratitude can be given for the parents' value of education. What I see consistently today (in both homeschooled and public schooled children) is a lack of respect for both learning and the people who work to teach. There's a "we vs. they" mentality that does a lot of damage, that I've seen. I know a surprising number of homeschooled children who retain very little knowledge, because it's not valued or respected by their parents. As a child who loved being homeschooled, this continues to horrify me, so it's sometimes difficult for me to separate good practices from good parenting.

Comment #3454

2014-09-17T00:59:10Z

You're welcome, Sarah. Janet, your idea's a great one, but as another option, I think that what's available online will only become better and more useful by the time your kids are ready for college material. Even Joseph. :)

Comment #3453

2014-09-17T00:51:21Z

Thanks for reviewing this. I was made aware of them some time ago by my father-in-law and tried to "research" more details than were in the article he forwarded, but couldn't find much at the time. I hadn't stopped wondering about them, though; I was so fascinated by what little I did read about them! I didn't realize they had a book - great to know. Thanks again!

Comment #3452

2014-09-15T11:30:44Z

Thanks for doing the legwork! Sadly, almost none of the college advice applies to life in Switzerland, but maybe we could send our kids to a college near their Florida grandparents when they are 12? Sounds like an interesting read, at least.