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Home Schooling

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Mince:
Some time ago I read a Guardian article about someone who home schools (or unschools) her children. In the comment sections was a lively disagreement between two people, one who home educates his children and another who believes such home educators should agree to regular visits from the Local Education Authorities. Though I copied only the responses from the home educator, they are enough to give an idea of the disagreement. I am putting them here because they made me chuckle on reading them again.


Because for me to home educate my child is my right, not the Local Authority's gift. I set the hours, the content, the style, the curriculum and everything else; all enshrined in Law. If the Local Authority have a problem with home education then they should seek to get the Law changed. If they, or anyone else, have concerns about a child's welfare then they should express them through the correct channels.

In response to 'If schools are inspected then it seems perfectly reasonable for home schooling to be inspected too. Or do these people consider themselves too elite to be part of the system?": If restaurant kitchens are inspected then it seems perfectly reasonable for your kitchen to be inspected too. Or do you consider yourself too elite to be part of the system?

For you to conflate the idea of home education with 'keeping a child from wider society' demonstrates that you have no idea what you're talking about. Do you seriously, seriously believe that I'd lock my kids in the house 24/7? It's every bit as likely that home educated children have more contact with 'wider society' than those attending a local school.

When someone in Authority exceeds their authority then the virtuous thing to do is to tell them to fuck off, not pander to them or walk on eggshells. You have totally failed to realise that Local Education officials attempting to involve themselves in home education are not 'doing their job' because they have no Legal right to do so (except, of course, in cases where there is evidence that a child is not, in fact, receiving education, and rightly so). I don't know what you do for a living, and I agree that if someone spoke to you that way for merely doing it you'd be right to feel aggrieved, but if you exceeded the boundaries then you'd get what you deserved.

When you exceed your authority as a teacher it's not for you pick and choose how the person you've offended against responds to you; I can readily believe that you'd prefer them to offer 'constructive advice and suggestions' but it's their prerogative to do otherwise if they so choose. Including telling you to fuck off.

Your argument that a visit (one hour a year) would somehow pick up on cases of abuse of the system beggars belief. And, for the n'th time, the LEA have no right whatsoever to visit homes where children are receiving home education; can you please, please stop referring to this as 'people doing their job'.

Tarquin Thunderthighs lll:
These are all yours. aren't they?

Mince:
I wish they were.

Why is there an errant full stop in your sentence?

Tarquin Thunderthighs lll:
The boring reason is that I typed it on my phone in haste, without my glasses, and of course it should have been a comma. But I’d rather it was because I’m an outrageous rebel.

I also think the kitchen analogy is completely bogus.

Mince:

--- Quote from: Tarquin Thunderthighs lll on February 25, 2019, 12:16:09 AM ---I also think the kitchen analogy is completely bogus.

--- End quote ---

I believe the point being made is that there is no law giving anyone the right to inspect either your kitchen or your home education, and so any reasons anyone might have for either kind of inspection are irrelevant opinion. It's okay to hold the opinion that parents who home educate should be inspected, but keep in mind that their right to do so without inspection is enshrined in law.

That some people consider that cartoonists work places should be inspected on a regular basis after having caused offence by drawing Mohammed as a terrorist and Serena Williams in a racist ape-like pose still does not give anyone the right to overstep their authority and attempt to do so, and I'm sure you would feel equally disposed to tell anyone attempting to do so to fuck off.

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