what if you were never accountable to anyone in your hsing?

I wouldn't change a thing! I love the fact that the only Person I have to answer to for my kids schooling is Jesus! One of the two reasons why we haven't left TX is the fact that this is such a homeschool friendly state.

 

I would not change a thing. No matter what, I am accountable to Him, myself and to my boys for giving them the best education I could possibly provide.

 

I don't think I would change anything, but it sure would lift a burden off of me emotionally. We have to turn in test scores and my oldest has a learning disability, so she never does well and gets very stressed out. If we didn't have to do that life would be perfect. So far we haven't had too much trouble but I do fear that if she continues to struggle our district will want more control over her.

 

Personally, if all of that were true, we'd probably be living back in the 19th century and we'd be teaching our children a trade or homemaking skills. With the onset of the industrial revolution, many of the things you mention followed. Sometimes I feel I need to add the word "unfortunately", but then I think of how many children died in infancy or as toddlers and how many diseases wiped out whole families and even whole towns. Then I'm glad I live in the here and now.

However, to answer your question, like many of the others, I live in a state with minimal regulation. The one area I still feel regulates HSers a lot are college entrance requirements. And they are getting to be more and more demanding about them. We've finally overcome, pretty much, the "diploma" dilemma, which took a lot of years and a lot of people working very hard to overcome.

I think mainly, having homeschooled for over 20 years now, that the main thing I think of is gratitude for those who have gone before and those now who fight to keep our rights as home schoolers. As the gov't takes over more and more, those rights are very precious, dear, and hard won. I am ever so grateful for people who have supported our cause in any way over the years - whether it was fighting to get curriculum mftrs to sell to HSers, to get HSers accepted into colleges and the military, to establish and safeguard our state laws, to lobby for us at all levels of government. Even gratitude to those who, like me, were the earlier "pioneers" and fought family and friends, felt like outcasts, and kept at it to bring homeschooling to the acceptable practice it is today!

What if we could do it totally free of all regulation and accountability? Well, I'm a big believer in accountability, but not the type you are speaking of...lol. I have always had an accountability group for my HS. But if I could be totally free of all regulation, that'd be great! Don't think it'll ever happen, but it'd be great!

 

Mommy2thegang and Jackie,

My house is up for sale and that is ONE of the things I am seriously considering doing!

It's nice to hear from others on here that it is actually a possibility!

 

Ditto. I have been amazed at some of the ways my kids have been able to use their education. I wouldn't want to limit that.

 

ABSOLUTELY!!! All the freedom we have to homeschool is the result of those who did so illegally, who defied authorities, and continued doing what they felt was right. Thanks to ALL of them!

 

If I was accountable to no one? Huh, good question. I know kids have to learn and I truly believe that deep down that they are naturally curious. I doubt though that they would want to learn alot of the stuff we want them to. If I was truly accountable to no one. I probably wouldn't do much different. We unschool anyway so I would still do that, I probably would not keep any records and not do any testing whatsoever. We are lucky here that we only have to test every 3 years.

 

I think I would still do things pretty much the same way I did them when we were hs'ing ds back in the day. Of course, nowadays, I'm not so much accountable to the state or district but to the kids' parents who pay me to school their kids. So we do quizzes and tests and report cards and annual achievement tests and schedules and curriculum and all the stuff they expect - with the exception of putting the kids in curriculum at the levels they're actually functioning, and letting them pretty much choose which subject they want to do when during a school day, and trying to actually meet their educational needs instead of rushing them through stuff they don't understand, or insisting a kid be all on the same level in every subject...

 

I couldn't say as I believe I am constantly accountable to my Lord for educating this one child He has placed in my care.

 

I agree that we are accountable to the Lord for the education of our children. But.....

I guess it's like school teachers right now. Many of them know how they would LIKE to teach. They are absolutely EXCELLENT teachers. But, because of all the crap brought on by NCLB and other regulations, they spend too much time doing paperwork right now. They HAVE to concentrate so much on the tests. If the kids don't "get it", they CAN'T stay on it another week, but have to move on. And it frustrates them to no end.

We don't have it to that extreme, but the "accountable to God" stuff is often BEYOND what we're doing for the State. I believe I could unschool and still follow through on what God has called me to do. God has NOT told me to record 900 hours per year, nor has He told me I need x-hours in "core classes". He has told me to "raise them in the fear and admonision of the Lord". Does he want my kids to be well-educated? Yes, I do think He does. But He would understand the necessity of putting aside academics for the week while we cared for a sick grandparent. And He wouldn't necesarrily expect us to "make it up". I think He would also want us to put aside academics more often to deal with the hearts of our children.

 

Jackie, I like your thinking. If only the world was different. Someone else brought up that if it were truly free we might be doing it like they did in the 19th century. I wish that were so, without the other things they had to deal with. I wish we could have some of that time period mixed in with the advantages of this time period. I wish life were much simpler, even if that meant more physical labor. If that makes any sense.

 

Jackie, great post!

 

I am like what Autumnleavz said in the first post. I need to have some type of rules so I don't fall off the wagon. Our current state is just yearly portfolio or test but when we move, there are no rules, not even a yearly test or portfolio from what I have been told via emails.

 

I think it is good to have guidelines to follow, I know several homeschoolers who would not be able to make it with out them. For those who need them I am glad there are such things, some of us need ruled to keep us honest and clean. This is a good thing I see!
Some people seem to be able to set up and teach kids with out regulating when or what and they have really done it! I applaud them! One reason we are eclectic is because sometimes I follow my plans and then some days I toss them out the window cause they are not working anymore and start up new ones!
Today I am writing up a Holiday Schedule for ds so he will know what to do from now to Christmas and see what must be done each day and what he can double up on other days. We are starting on our School Play in the drama class at our Church school so this will be the second play my kids and I are involved in at the same time. One is run by someone else and I just to put in my ideas and suggestions , which is cool!
The other I am in charge of this means a lot of our time goes into it.. so I do not want to loose how I do my schooling with ds, hands on and in his face works super! but we are trying to teach him to independanly do work as well so that will be a lot of my schedule.. I may start a thread this afternoon after Church to see if anyone has ideas of how to make things work... but what I am glad this thread here was started for is that I have seen so many different ideas and plans that it supports me in what I do! Thanks folks!

 

There basically are no state laws here regarding homeschooling. I think I do a better job for it. I am not stressing over someone else's standards, which in all likelihood would be way below my own and/or interfere with what I am doing.

For example, the public schools in Texas have a TAKs test. There are a lot of nonsense type things on these TAKs test that do not lend to a good education. One example is the 4th grade writing TAKs. That test requires a 2 page paper. If a child gets 2 pages down, they pass, if not, they get a lowered grade. Spelling, handwriting, and grammar are not grades. So the point is to just scribbling a bunch of, for a lack of better word "crap." The kids stress out over this big time. How can I follow proper steps to teach good writing skills to my children if I have them take time out for such a stupid huge and inappropriate test at that age? I definitely do not want my children writing papers where volume matters and quality does not. I feel that is destructive to the teaching of the writing process.

 

BTW, for the record, the ONLY accountability for the local public schools is that TAKs test. Now, who is accountable to make sure that test means anything? I think the test is nonsense. Since they do not regulate the teaching, they do not require the teachers to be certified, they do not require the schools to be accredited, then who regulates the public schools? And I have to pay to support them through taxes.

 

wow mom good points there! That is one reason I decided to continue homeschooling and or private school, the teachers that are not certified, when we sent oldest ds to private school we went to a certified BA requirement for Teaching Staff school. They boasted of that teh first year! I was excited, but it did not stay that way by the third year it weakend .... So homeschool is best for me cause I get to decide what they learn!
Weee hoooo!

 

I do not have any "state" laws that I abide by. The only person that I am accountable to concerning the children's education is the Lord (and my DH). Being accountable to the Lord is far more important than any state. My children do not belong to the state in any way shape or form. They belong to the Lord and us.

 

I do understand what you are saying. I can't stand thinking about we have to do this test to show and attendance and portfolio to show the county. It is a lot of pressure. I don't understand why other people that it doesn't even affect seem to always have something to say. Yes, that can include family. I am much calmer, more relaxed and don't worry so much when I don't feel like some one is watching everything we do. Sorry, to go off on a rant.

Renee