Petty dictators, homeschooling and human rights

Discussion in 'Homeschooling in the News' started by Elisabeth, Dec 19, 2009.

  1. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    I'm new, so I couldn't link this to our blog and have to just post the whole thing. I felt it was so important to get the word out about this NOW, while there's still any chance for the British homeschoolers to bring this (loudly!!) in front of non homeschooling neighbors. If they let this sit, it will lead to new policies that give the UN rights that exceed the country's own citizen rights. For more info you can check out the HSLDA because they've posted a response. Here's my article.

    Thanks to a flawed report by a UN "rights of the child" backer, interestingly named Graham Badman, Britain will now force homeschooling parents to allow entrance of government agents into their homes -which is against the laws of the country- to supposedly oversee the quality of the education of the parent's own children and interview the children without a parent present, though their report uncovered no evidence of abuse or neglect. The general public is so used to the benefit (and now regulation) of government schools that they are cheerfully allowing incredible oversteppings of the basic human rights of their homeschooling neighbors, not realizing what this means for themselves.

    This is a stripping of a basic freedom in a bow to UN policy. Understand the goal in this British decision isn't truly "quality of education" because the statistics don't come close to bearing that out. Homeschoolers are generally ahead of their public schooled counterparts. This is license to harass families who tend to oppose supposedly progressive things like, say, the "rights of the child" anti-parental rights UN legislation.

    The British public schooling families-and populace in general- if they are wise- will immediately be very vocal in opposition of this forced, illegal entrance of government officials- because the rights and protections they are entitled to as citizens are being trampled on. While it may just be the homeschoolers today, tomorrow it will be another people group the UN doesn't care for. If the general public doesn't IMMEDIATELY stand up and assert the authority of their country's citizen protections it's just a matter of time before they are in a people group targeted for whatever reason, and they will have allowed too much twisted policymaking to flow under the bridge. This is a very ugly precedent to allow to pass- ugly for the future of all Britain, and it isn't about learning or test scores. Nothing will be gained.


    This decision isn't about educational quality. You know how this kind of thing starts? It's pride. Here's a little story. There are many many petty dictators in the world, and one of them worked as assistant principal in an elementary school in a little county. When a mother sent a withdrawal letter to this school, stating her intent to home school, the assistant principal- we'll call her Susan- was incensed. Now this mother had been a hassle for the school from the beginning, as she was very involved in her precious coddled son's education, and insisted that testing showed he needed a teaching style the school refused to allow his teacher to provide. The child was a discipline problem in his class, distracting other children with his fidgeting and talking.

    The assistant principal met with the mother several times and listened to her concerns, but felt the current curriculum would be fine if only the child would apply himself instead of being excused by his permissive mother. Worse, when the children were making spirit animals based on Native American traditional beliefs this mother pulled her child from the class, which clearly showed she was a conservative religious crazy. Now she was pulling her child from the school without even bothering to come in, and it was an insult- a slap in the face. It said, "You aren't good enough, and I can do better." Maybe some parents were qualified to home school, but this mom clearly wasn't since she didn't know a good education when she got one.

    So, the assistant principal shot a letter off, demanding the mother come in to sign withdrawal papers, but really so she could make mom squirm a little and grill her on how she would be teaching. She would just blast whatever curriculum mom was using and shame her into returning. Unfortunately there was no response to this letter, so the assistant principal called a truant officer and went to the home of the child involved. The mother denied them entrance, insisting she had done all she was required by law to do to withdraw the child.

    The assistant principal then sent a letter to CPS about the situation, but got a response stating CPS did not investigate homeschooling, as it wasn't abuse and was a parent's right. Susan refused to withdraw the child based on only a letter and then filed a lawsuit for truancy. Before the court date arrived she received a letter from a large homeschool organization, demanding she immediately withdraw the child as required by law and drop the charges against the parents, or she would face a large countersuit.

    Susan looked it up, and the parent was right. All that was required in her state was a letter. She hated to think about the mom's smug face gloating over getting out of the court date and was sure she got a copy of the letter from the organization. It made her so mad and there was nothing she could do!

    So, finally she wrote a letter to her Senator, decrying the sad lack of oversight homeschool families had, and demanding something be done. She talked with all of her friends, telling them how sad it was that the sweet boy was forced into seclusion with his arrogant, unqualified mother and her crazy ideas. She later wrote an article about it and it was published in an educational journal.

    Meanwhile the child was thriving- he made more progress in the first two months he'd been home than he had the whole last year. His mother was able to take him to special reading workshops that met in the mornings, and twice a week he had the pottery classes that were his special joy. He had more time to play with friends, and his test scores at the end of the year were improved by two grade levels in most subjects.

    This didn't matter to the Senator who received Susan's letter- in it she heard only about a poor educationally neglected child, dragged away from school by a crazy mother who was sure to ruin him, and the school had no recourse. She began making plans to promote legislation regulating homeschools so this sort of thing couldn't continue.

    The backlash against homeschoolers is often caused by petty dictators who don't feel their regulation-based authority is respected by the homeschooling parents. So, they make a lot of noise and hurt a lot of people-especially the children who are finally making progress with the use of an alternative education. The parents are just trying to do what they need to do to help their children move forward, but they're branded overprotective child-coddling nuts and this leads to harassment.

    I can tell you the people who will be most affected by this new British restriction are the many, many families with mildly special needs homeschoolers who weren't being well handled in public school. The untrained agents they will be forced to allow into their homes (who do not know the child and will apply much stricter standards than an evaluation of a public schooled child) will insist the child is "behind" due to homeschooling instead of by nature.

    This whole thing really is a striking example of rights violation- and is so backwards for a progressive place like Britain!
     
    Last edited: Dec 19, 2009
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  3. Ava Rose

    Ava Rose New Member

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    Thanks for sharing this. We live in scary times. (oh and welcome!)
     
  4. Cornish Steve

    Cornish Steve Active Member

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    This reveals one of the big differences between the US and Europe. In Europe, the government has a lot more say in how children are raised and how adults live their lives. In the US, this would be viewed as unwarranted intrusion by the government. When commentators refer to the current US administration as trying to Europeanize this country, this example reveals what it means in practice. Personally, I can't see the government getting very far with it. There's already uproar about big government policies.
     
  5. goodnsimple

    goodnsimple New Member

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    Steve...I wish that were true.
    But while I think it is less likely here. I don't think for a second it is impossible.
    Take for example the people who are surprised to learn that I can control my childs education with NO input from the state or federal government. They are SHOCKED that I can decide what to teach and how to evaluate it.
    So they would NOT be shocked if the government decided that I did have to explain....
     
  6. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    The difference in part is that all of Europe has signed off on the UN's "rights of the child" mess, that really should be called "rights TO the child" because it gives the government say in so many areas. They acted like it wasn't going to effect child rearing, but it has. The only other country who didn't sign was Somalia. It's pitiful. And let me tell you, a lot of this has to do with public opinion. If homeschoolers are thought of as backwoods preachy bad dressing overbreeding idiots, then don't be surprised when no one stands up against it happening here. All it's going to take is one or two abuse cases discovered due to this legislation (since abuse is everywhere- and the investigators are going to be trying to justify the unlawful intrusion and public outcry with some spectacular cases) and we're going to be hearing a lottttt more about this. The US stands alone against taking such incredible liberties with people's children. And don't assume everyone in the US is pro homeschool.
     
  7. Jackie

    Jackie Active Member

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    Steve, I'm afraid I have to agree with Goodnsimple. Even on here we are divided between who feel the government has the RIGHT and RESPONSIBILITY to regulate homeschoolers, and those who feel it is totally the parents' responsibility without ANY interference. And the health bill that, barring a miracle, will be passed in the senate has provisions for home invasions (uh, excuse me! I met "visitations") as part of health care.
     
  8. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    I think any homeschooler who feels the government should "regulate" homeschooling really doesn't realize what it entails- which is giving authority to the government (which they do not have- that every parent has) to decide on the proper education/upbringing/clothing/test scores/parenting/days at school/times of school/proper and improper field trips/spankings or not/sex ed of a particular child. And don't assume the "interviewer" will share your views on any one of those things.

    For the parents who are homeschooling because they finally had it with the school district teaching for the test- like ours- even regulated state-run testing (always with the threat of being forced into public schools if the tests are not at the "right" level) would invalidate the use of alternate curriculums that teach everything conceptually instead of in the same way the school district teaches. For instance, the match curriculums that spend a year on addition, until the children can do huge problems before moving on to subtraction, and spending a year on that, and then moving to multiplication, etc- these kids would not test well on say, multiplication during their subtraction year. But this curriculum works wonders for kids who have math difficulty, and they really get it.

    Regulation would mean putting decisions into the hands of people who don't know the child as well and we can just watch the UK to see how well that pans out, right?
     
  9. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    “The Youth of today is ever the people of tomorrow. For this reason we have set before ourselves the task of innoculating our youth with the spirit of this community of the people at a very early age, at an age when human beings are still unperverted and therefore unspoiled. This Reich stands, and it is building itself up for the future, upon its youth. And this new Reich will give its youth to no one, but will itself take youth and give to youth its own education and its own upbringing.”
    -Hitler
     
  10. Cornish Steve

    Cornish Steve Active Member

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    One reason I don't believe it will happen is because setting education policy is the role of the states, not the federal government (correct me if I'm wrong). If the federal government tried to impose, the states would challenge it in the courts (which is probably what's going to happen with health care as well).
     
  11. Jackie

    Jackie Active Member

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    Yes, Steve, but before it was the responsibility of the states, it was the responsibility of community, and before that the responsibility of the parents. So I can easily see it going to the federal government. As long as the schools get FEDERAL money, the federal government will have some say.
     
  12. mamaof3peas

    mamaof3peas New Member

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    Yep, Jackie said what i was thinking!
     
  13. BarbD

    BarbD New Member

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    It is a proven fact that any treaty signed supersedes federal and state law. So if the UN Rights of the Child is ratified it would replace all of our current laws in those areas.
     
  14. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    man, the uk stuff just had a response from the government on the 11th, and even though people protested (check out the graph at the bottom- it's something like 230 FOR and 4497 AGAINST in places) they're disregarding it except for a few small changes. They still will invade homes, they still consider the State has more of a right/responsibility to determine the definition of a "suitable" education than the parents- still will force parents to allow government agents to analyze their teaching AND HOME.
    In fact, one reason a child might be forced to register in a gov school is "overcrowding." I know even here in the states many families don't buy the "each child needs to have a room alone- or at least only share it with one sibling" philosophy so dear to CPS- especially since the latest studies on that show multiple children per room results in happier adults.
    The government is now saying ". We have undertaken to commission further work on what constitutes a “suitable” education " (since they are now claiming they have the ultimate RIGHT to decide this). Homeschoolers in the US- don't sit still. Writers, start writing and selling GOOD articles that explain your non-religious reasons for homeschooling. Unschoolers with grown children, tell how they're doing jobwise. Understand the philosophy that stabbed the UK parents is "children are entitled to a good education and must be considered individuals outside of their parent's ideas of what they want" so homeschooled teens- WRITE. The government is assuming the children are being forced to leave public school and is acting as if the parents are guilty of forcing homeschooling on poor defenseless children. I know for me, homeschooling was a rescue from a horrible situation and gave me the happiest 2 years of my school career- I only wish my parents had started sooner.
     
  15. kmogusar

    kmogusar New Member

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    Amendment to Executive Order No. 12425
    look it up, study it, ignore any news about it first and just look at the bare legislation and everything mentioned in it (the sections, the international organization immunities act, etc.) and see what you think. i won't say anything else so that you don't develop any kind of unconscious bias... just study up and see what you think.
     
    Last edited: Jan 26, 2010
  16. Elisabeth

    Elisabeth New Member

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    whoa- I somehow missed that. that's incredible!
     
  17. kmogusar

    kmogusar New Member

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    if you're talking about my post then i wouldn't say incredible would be the word for it :eek:
     

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