Home Schooling Survives Opposition as Growing Numbers Opt In

[nChrist]

Home Schooling Survives Opposition as Growing Numbers Opt In

by Jim Brown
September 2, 2005

(AgapePress) - Mike Smith, president of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA), is hailing the measurable success and growth of the home-schooling movement in America, even amid the challenges that movement has faced and still faces. Of all those challenges, he points to increasing government regulation as the largest hurdle home-schooling families will have to encounter in the coming years.

Some convincing facts in support of home schooling are available to parents weighing that option for their families. For instance, on college entrance exams like the SAT and ACT, home-school students score much higher than their public-school counterparts. And on the average standardized achievement test, home-school kids continue to score 20 to 30 percentile points higher than other students.

However, Smith points out that achievement tests are by no means the toughest thing home-school students have to confront today. He says home-educated kids and their parents are laboring under burdensome regulations in many parts of the country, often being required to file copious paperwork and lesson plan documentation according to rigorous and complicated guidelines.

Meanwhile, the HSLDA spokesman notes, home-school advocates have met with legislative stonewalling while some state officials tried to create even more obstacles for home-schooling families. "In both New York and Pennsylvania," he asserts, "we've been rejected three years running now to get some good legislation through; and this year we found that in the states of Montana and Idaho and several other states, there was some negative legislation introduced, trying to tighten up on home education."

Fortunately, Smith says, "the home schoolers turned out en masse, and that didn't happen." But he emphasizes that government oversight of home schooling has only increased over time and poses an ongoing challenge for home-educating families to remain vigilant.

According to Smith, religious and moral convictions continue to be the main reasons increasing numbers of American families are choosing to home school their children. Still, he says many home-schooling parents with gifted or special needs children also made that choice because they felt individualized instruction was the best way to go.

However, another major factor contributing to the rise of home education, the HSLDA president contends, is parents' reactions to negativity in many public school settings. "We're getting a lot more folks that are pulling kids out of public school," he says. "Our applications are showing that we're getting tons of folks who are not going to send their children back to public education. Now, they don't indicate necessarily that they're dissatisfied; but we know that if they were satisfied they'd be leaving them there in that public school setting."

For many parents, Smith says, the reason "could be academics, it could be the children are being hazed or teased, or it could be problem with a teacher. There's just a myriad of issues." But in large part, the home-education advocate adds, the phenomenal growth of the movement is due to the fact that more people are now becoming aware of and familiar with home schooling and are realizing that it is a choice available to them.
Jim Brown, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.

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[Soldier4Christ]

Homeschooling in this area is increasing due to the disatisfaction of school curriculum, violence in the school and principles/teachers thinking they have more rights in the say so over children than the parents do. Many more would homeschool than already do if they could afford the curriculum materials and the time necessary that it it takes.

There is a movement in this area to assist low income families with the necessary materials for homeschooling as well as time sharing with the children. This group is managed by parents that are currently homeschooling their own children.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

There is also a massive amount of material available for use on the Internet. AND, a growing amount of material is completely free.

If the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and like agencies get their way, huge numbers of parents will pull their children out of public schools.

Love in Christ,
Tom

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 NASB  Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.

[Soldier4Christ]

There is plenty of information as you said on the internet. Unfortunately it is primarily for the elementery grades. The information for high schoolers is very rare and most of it must be purchased at an elaborate expense. This group here has found ways around that, too. I have been helping many people in this area with homeschool information for several years now at my own expense.

If the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and like agencies get their way, huge numbers of parents will pull their children out of public schools.

..... and I'll be right there to help them all I can, too.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

I remember looking at the material, and you are completely correct. The vast majority of the material for for much younger children.

I'm thinking out loud. I'm wondering how hard it would be to ask a bunch of retired, Christian school teachers to put together a complete curriculum. I know there would be expenses involved for textbooks and other copyrighted material. However, larger numbers of students would reduce the costs. I'm wondering if some sort of large Christian organization could manage a project of this size and implement it for the entire country. If so, I think that such an organization could beat the public schools in academics, SATs, and other measurements of achievement.

In the meantime, the ACLU and like organizations are involved in court actions right now about mandatory classes that all Christians would object to. It's really a matter of the ACLU holding our children hostage.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Psalms 27:1-3 NASB  A Psalm of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell. Though a host encamp against me, My heart will not fear; Though war arise against me, In spite of this I shall be confident.

[Soldier4Christ]

There is a Christian organization that puts out high school curriculum now. It is called Landmark Baptist. I really like their curriculum. It even has many elective subjects. At the moment it is a bit expensive but as you said if enough people were to purchase it then the cost would probably be able to be brought down.

[curious]

      Hello bep and PR:


     I may be mistaken,but I think that in CA,you have to be a licensed to Homeschool your kids.I guess they want to keep the kids sheperded by the Public schools,and so they'll get more money.
      bep,and people don't know that their kids are being held hostage either,they think(mistakingly so)that the ACLU is trying to look out for their best needs.............HA !!!

                  Yours in Yeshua,
                  curious

[Soldier4Christ]

Hi curious,

The state of Tenn is the same way. There are ways to get around it though. While I was in Tenn I registered my children with a licsensed Christian school. The Christian school was set up so that my kids didn't have to go there. All I had to do was submit the kids records to that school each quarter. The school provided the record forms and would track the results.

They would also provide curriculum requirements for each grade level. The kids had to take an assessment test once a year at the school and would be assigned a grade level by them according to the test results. I could buy the books through them if I wanted or could buy them elsewhere. I purchased many through a yard sale.

This was legal because the school was registered with the state.

I really appreciated it when I moved to Illinois. The schools here tried to make me register as a homeschool. They even tried to bring charges against me because I didn't. The local school lost these charges as the state deemed it illegal to force me to register.

I now help others that want to home school but are not sure how to go about it. I also provide tests and will supervise the kids progress if they want me to.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

Brother, I find out something new about you fairly often, and it simply makes me love you more as a Brother in Christ. May God richly bless you in your efforts to help others to raise their children in the LORD. More and more it seems that public schools are being taken over by evil influences. Not only has God been shoved out of public schools, but folks like the ACLU are forcing the teaching of evil material. It's almost to the point that parents are sending their children "through the fire" by sending them to public schools.

My wife has been an elementary school teacher for almost 30 years now, and she is shocked with the changes that have taken place during that short time. So far, she has not been forced to teach anything evil, but she has been forced to take God out of her classroom completely.

Love In Christ,
Tom

1 Corinthians 1:9 NASB  God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

[Soldier4Christ]

but she has been forced to take God out of her classroom completely.

That is the sad state of our schools today. I would not be able to function as a teacher or principle in public schools today without putting myself in a position of being sent to jail. I would not be able to resist teaching them about God.

I started with the homeschool networks in 1994 with my own children when I ran into a situation with a school that believed I had no rights over my own children, how they were treated and what they were being taught. I couldn't afford a private school at the time so I dug into all the state and federal laws and every bit of information that I could find on homeschooling.

Many parents are afraid to undertake such a task thinking themselves inadequately trained. I know of one mother that never finished high school herself and of average intelligence  that homeschooled her children succesfully enough to pass the SAT college entrance exam.

I was uncertain myself as I have a daughter that is educationally handicapped and wasn't sure that my wife and I were up to the task. The local school had kept her in the first grade for three years. Within one year we managed to bring her up to the grade level she should have been in.

It is not as hard as some people think it is. It takes the love of the Lord and the desire to bring your children up the right way, not the way of the world.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger Said:

It is not as hard as some people think it is. It takes the love of the Lord and the desire to bring your children up the right way, not the way of the world.

AMEN BROTHER!

The LORD is the foundation and the key to success for all learning. It makes me very sad to know that many children are never taught about JESUS now. There are fewer Godly parents now than when we grew up. It's also true that there are many parents who lack the will and discipline to teach their children. I give thanks that I had Godly parents who started teaching me about JESUS before I could even talk. I still have my precious mother with me, and she continues to teach the entire family about JESUS.

Silver and gold are nothing compared to the RICHES IN CHRIST!

Love In Christ,
Tom

Ephesians 6:1-4 NASB  Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise), SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH. Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

[walkinthelight]

We are home schoolers here in West Virginia. Things have actually lightened up here for us for now. Used to be you had to have 4 more years education than the oldest child that you was teaching but that's all been changed within the last couple of years.
 Brother Tom, I noticed that you said that there were fewer godly parents now than their were when you was growing up, I'm not all that old, but it surprises me the younger people that I talk to that really know nothing about Jesus and very little about church (yeah, that seems back-wards but most really know more about church than they do God!). I just hope I can lead my children the right way so they won't stray when they leave home. It's scary.

[nChrist]

Hello WalkInTheLight,

Brother, if you are serving God in the homeschooling of your children, God will give you the wisdom and strength to do it. NOW, I don't know of any other motive in home schooling except to serve God and bring children up in the LORD. I know that's a lot of work and effort, but it's worth it. God will bless your efforts.

I that many young people think that people like me are over the hill, not in the groove , not with it , not cool , etc., but I really don't care. I realize that I am severely biased toward older ways, values, and morals, and I don't plan to change. I give thanks that I've met many wonderful, Godly young people, but I would be less than honest if I stopped with that statement. I do think that fewer and fewer people spend great amounts of time and effort studying the Bible. The same would be true for spending great amounts of time and effort for God.

Please don't take this as a condemnation of young people or younger generations. I don't mean it that way at all. I would prefer to say there has been a great erosion of morals, values, and ethics, and several generations have paid a price, maybe small or maybe large. I give thanks for the parents who have done everything in their power to raise their children in the LORD.  Those children aren't just lucky, they are being blessed by God. They will understand your labor and sacrifice one day, and they will thank you for it. They will also benefit from your labor for the rest of their lives.

I think you are completely correct when you say that many people know about church, but not God. Some people claim to be Christians because they go to church, yet they don't have a clue what it means to have JESUS in their hearts. And, NOW, we have churches in the news every day doing the things of the world and worse. More and more, I think this is either a preview of the end of this age or the actual unfolding of Bible prophecy before our very eyes. Teaching children about JESUS should be the heaviest burden of every Christian parent, regardless of whether this is the end of this age or not.

Brother, may God give you the wisdom and strength to keep teaching your children. May God richly bless you and your family.

Love in Christ,
Tom

Colossians 1:13-14 NASB  For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.