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News & Commentary January 26, 2004
In this Issue:
Federal Legislation Update
New Jersey Antihomeschooling Law - "A Bloody Wrong Cure"
South Carolina Group Seeks Tax Credits
Ohio's Kenmore Child Abuse Case
Texas Abuse Case
CBS's Stories, Old and New
Pro-Active in Indiana
One Mom Makes a Difference in Washington
Homeschoolers In the News
High Profile Homeschoolers
Why We Homeschool, Reason 426 - "A Brief Constructed Response"
PROM Time
Final Words
Ann: It looks like we are in for an interesting year for legislation.
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Federal Legislation Update
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headline: CT Legislators Against Federalization of Homeschooling
http://www.nheld.com
Bulletin #23 is now available. A brief quote: "You can speak with your state legislators regarding federal legislation. They can speak to congressional representatives on your behalf.
If you cannot get in touch with a congressional representative, or if all you are receiving back from them are form letters, then it might be time to speak with your state representatives. This is what we have done in CT." To read a letter written by a state legislator, write Attorney Deborah Stevenson info@nheld.com or Judy Aron aronhome@att.net and ask for Bulletin #23.
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New Jersey Antihomeschooling Law - "A Bloody Wrong Cure"
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headline: New Jersey's Bill Reappears
New Jersey Homeschool Association, By Tim Haas, January 22
www.geocities.com/jerseyhome
http://www.nhen.org
Tim has announced that the bill to regulate homeschooling has been reintroduced as A1918. The New Jersey State Homeschool Task Force (a coalition of groups) notes "We do not seek compromise, and we will accept nothing less than the total defeat of this legislative travesty. Whatever your family's methods and beliefs, please prepare to join the fight with, and for, all New Jersey homeschoolers."
Ann: We are pulling for you, New Jersey. Read on.
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headline: New Jersey Politician Targets Homeschoolers
Human Events, By Michelle Malkin, January 21
http://www.humaneventsonline.com
Michelle Malkin's scathing editorial, in which she attacks NJ politicos' attempts to blame homeschooling for the failures of the Department of Human Services, appeared in many newspapers and online services. "The Weinberg proposal is a shameless smokescreen for government social workers who botched the Jackson case." She closed on the same note: " A crackdown on innocent homeschooling families to cure the incompetence of government child welfare agencies is like a smoker lopping off his ear to treat metastatic lung cancer. It's a bloody wrong cure conceived by a fool who caused his own disease."
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South Carolina Group Seeks Tax Credits
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headline: Community Leaders Promote Education Reform Following Governor's Address
South Carolinians for Responsible Government, Press Release, January 22
http://biz.yahoo.com
This group wants legislation that includes "a tax credit program that will allow for a credit against income or property taxes to help offset education costs" Homeschooling families would be included. "Kathy Carper, president of the South Carolina Association of Independent Home Schools, said, 'I understand that this bill includes home school families and parents considering home-schooling their children. For a long time these parents have been paying for education twice, once through property taxes that go to local schools and again for the cost of home school materials and association fees. This growing number of families should be part of school choice.'"
Ann: I've seen two sides to this debate - the one above and the one that wants nothing to do with taxpayer money, credits, or the inevitable strings attached. Should be an interesting debate.
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Ohio's Kenmore Child Abuse Case
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headline: Review of Kenmore Child Abuse Case Defends CSB
Akron Beacon-Journal, Ohio, By John Higgins jhiggins@thebeaconjournal.com January 22
http://www.ohio.com
You may remember this child abuse case in which the couple claimed to be homeschooling. "Rowles and her live-in partner, Alice Jenkins, were sentenced to 30 years each last week in Summit County Common Pleas Court after pleading guilty to 55 charges that included kidnapping and felonious assault...." While the review found that there was no indication of social services mishandling the case, homeschooling laws are questioned. "The board also is concerned that Ohio does not screen potential home school teachers to ensure that the applicant does not have a history of allegations or convictions for child abuse. Authorities said the children weren't missed at school because they weren't enrolled; the mother had filed paperwork to home-school at least three of the children in 2003."
The Review Board's recommendations can be read at
http://www.ohio.com
The recommendation relating to homeschooling: "Ohio law should be examined to prevent child abusers from using home schooling to hide abuse."
Ann: One message does not appear to penetrate official thinking in these cases. Child abusers are criminals. CRIMINALS DO NOT COMPLY WITH LAWS that expose their crimes. Revising homeschooling laws to catch child abuse will result in child abusing criminals hiding elsewhere. Refocusing homeschooling laws on child abuse prevention will result in one thing only: a bureaucratic nightmare and the invasion of the privacy of the 99.9+% of homeschooling citizens who are not criminals.
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Texas Abuse Case
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headline: Couple Arrested On Child Abuse Charges
KXAN-36, Texas, January 24
http://www.kxan.com
This is another grim abuse scenario, in which the parents are charged with participating in the sexual abuse of their children. The father is quoted by a neighbor as having told her, "'My kids don't go to public school because we don't believe in public school. We home school them....Our religion don't believe in immunizations [either].'"
Ann: What is wrong with this picture? What are these nuts doing loose in society? Whatever the problem is, it is not a homeschooling problem.
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CBS's Stories, Old and New
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headline: Dereliction of Duty: Mainstream Media Ignore Both the Facts and Their Journalistic Task
World Magazine, By Joel Belz, January 31
http://www.worldmag.com
"In what has to be The most reprehensible pieces of journalism in the last year, CBS did a prominent report on what it headlined as "the dark side of the home-schooling movement." In its report, CBS highlighted a murky story based in rural North Carolina in which a sometime home-schooling family had been charged with child abuse. CBS was happy to pass on the implication…based on that tiny sample of one…that home-schooling and child abuse were obviously joined at the hip."
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headline: CBS News Spends a Day with Christian Homeschool Sports Network
http://www.hspn.net
Chris Davis reports that The Early Show of CBS sent a news team to spend the day with his varsity girls team (Lady Flames) in Front Royal, Virginia. The news team filmed and interviewed through the nail-biter game and into the postgame fast food junket. The coach feels hopeful that the story will be positive. It is scheduled to air on January 30 between 7 and 9 am.
Ann: Is CBS tossing homeschoolers a bone?
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Pro-Active in Indiana
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headline: People's Agenda 2004
The Indianapolis Star, Indiana, Edited Transcript, January 24
http://www.indystar.com
"More than 200 Hoosiers met in the chambers of the Indiana House of Representatives on Tuesday night in the fourth annual People's Agenda Town Hall, sponsored by The Indianapolis Star and its news-gathering partner, WTHR (Channel 13). The speakers -- ordinary citizens who took the time to tell their elected representatives what was on their minds -- touched on a wide range of topics..."
A homeschooling parent, Susan Risker, spoke eloquently: "I want to come before you tonight and thank you that Indiana remains a responsible yet nonrestrictive state in which to home school, and I thank you and your colleagues not only for your concern that each child receive a quality education, but also for your understanding that there are several paths for a quality education, one of which is home schooling."
Ann: Some may want to glean ideas from Susan's speech as they develop comments for their own legislators.
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One Mom Makes a Difference in Washington
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In a recent News & Commentary, I complained about poor journalistic practices. As an example, I noted a confused and misleading interpretation of Washington homeschooling laws at a Seattle Times website. Cynically, I concluded that if homeschoolers have to sort out the complexities of the law, we should expect no less of reporters.
DiAnna Brannan was not cynical. Instead, she called the Times. On a Washington e-mail list, she writes: "...I contacted the editor and had a very long conversation as to the errors and misrepresentation of the home-based instruction law, and the difference with home-based instruction and alternative learning programs....they actually MADE SOME CHANGES (to the on-line version)! It is not as I would have written it but is a step in the right direction."
Read the corrected version here.
http://schoolguide.seattletimes.nwsource.com
Ann: Way to go, DiAnna! Thank you for not being cynical and for making that phone call. Thanks too for reminding us again that each of us can make a difference.
(DiAnna and her husband are the founders of Christian Homeschool Network in Washington http://www.chnow.org)
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Homeschoolers In the News
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Ann: A homeschooler discovers acting; families of color embrace homeschooling; group activities for homeschoolers; homeschoolers learn healthy lifestyles; homeschoolers go to college - this is the side of homeschooling we love to see in the news. Enjoy.
headline: Living a Rustic Lifestyle and Home-schooled, Monica Rasmussen Sees Acting in Her Future
The Citizen Patriot, Michigan, By Paul Fletcher, January 20
http://www.mlive.com/
"Monica Rasmussen, 18, started acting only last year and is now appearing in the Croswell Opera House's production of 'The Importance of Being Earnest.'.... 'Our parents let us guide our education,' Rasmussen said.... Although Rasmussen has barely been out of Michigan, she's right at home in the middle of a political debate or a discussion of European history. She feels as comfortable on stage as she does chopping wood or carrying a newborn calf to the barn."
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headline: A Homemade Education
The Boston Globe, Massachusetts, By Vanessa E. Jones, January 21
http://www.boston.com
"Unhappy with traditional schools, more families of color are teaching their children themselves" In an excellent story about the homeschooling approaches of three unique families, Jones summarizes the motivations of homeschoolers this way: "These families... are part of an influx of mainstream families who in the past 10 years have decided that their homes provide a better alternative to a litany of educational ills. They rail against what they consider overcrowded schools staffed with underqualified teachers who turn their children into expert test takers but not much else."
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headline: Kids at Home in the Fields of Play
Knight Ridder Newspapers, By Mary Ellen Flannery, January 22
http://www.azcentral.com
MIAMI - "One problem with home schooling: There usually are not enough kids in the house to field two teams for kickball." The article then highlights the many sports and other activities that the homeschooled students in this group are involved in, and closes with this. "All of those activities allow their children to socialize, which is usually what critics of home education say theyäre missing. At the high school level, home-school students also can try out for athletic teams at regular schools, although parents say most donät. 'If we wanted that, we wouldnät be home schooling,' Cynthia Bivens said."
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headline: Healthy Habits Big Part of Home Schooling
HealthDayNews.com, Norwalk, Connecticut, By Robert Preidt editors@healthday.com January 23
http://www.healthday.com
(Health Day News is a three year old news feed. This article has been picked up by several media outlets this week.)
Survey finds many parents who teach at home skip sexual health, however
"Health education is an important topic for home-schooled students, says a Ball State University survey of Indiana parents who instruct their children at home. The survey of 74 home educators who teach children in kindergarten to Grade 12 found that 87 percent of them teach health education, and 88 percent felt it was 'very important' to include that topic in their curriculum."
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headline: Home-schoolers More Likely to Attend College, Study Finds
The Press-Enterprise, Inland Southern California, By Melissa Eiselein, January 24
http://www.pe.com
"Juliet Davis, who was home schooled since she was 5, started taking college courses at Riverside Community College when she was 15. By the time she was 18, she had earned associate's degrees in arts and science. Now, Davis, 19, of Moreno Valley is a full-time student at Cal Poly Pomona's College of Agriculture, where she is working toward a bachelor's degree in animal science."
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headline: Strong Academic Track Records Help Ease Path to College for Home Schooled Students
San Diego Union-Tribune, By Steve Giegerich, Associated Press, January 25
http://www.signonsandiego.com
"Such young people have grown up academically with a greater emphasis on learning - rather than testing - compared with conventionally educated students, said Laura Derrick of the Home Education Network....Beyond academics, the uptick in home schooled students on college campuses has helped them overcome the stereotype that they're socially maladjusted, said Mark Hegener, the publisher of Home Education Magazine."
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High Profile Homeschoolers
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Ann: When high profile homeschoolers make news stories, it can be warmly satisfying or it can sting. Here is one of each.
headline: Choose Boss With Care, Bush Adviser Says
Indianapolis Star, By Ellen Miller, January 19
http://www.indystar.com
"'Choose your bosses carefully,' she advised.... her boss has always supported her efforts to stay connected to kin. She home-schooled son Robert, taking him on the campaign trail in 2000."
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headline: 'Unfit Father' Jacko in for a Court Rowe With Ex For Kids
NY Post, By Clemente Lisi, January 24
http://www.nypost.com
According to the Sun of London, "Rowe is worried the children, who are home-schooled, don't have a normal childhood because they see few other children, and spend virtually all their time with their father."
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Why We Homeschool, Reason 426 - "A Brief Constructed Response"
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headline: Talking the Edutalk, Jargon Becoming Prevalent in the Classroom
Washington Post, District of Columbia, By Linda Perlstein, January 18
http://www.washingtonpost.com
"Jargon has been a mainstay of bureaucracy for centuries, satirized in the works of Jonathan Swift and George Orwell. Education is particularly fertile ground... Teachers learn to vertically articulate and differentiate instruction and give authentic, outcome-based assessments."
Perlstein allows a high school Senior and a school Superintendent to build her argument. The Senior [Silver Spring HS Robert Maeder, 17] said, 'Tests should be called tests. "Brief constructed response" -- you just wonder why they don't say "paragraph." It doesn't really serve any purpose renaming them.'"
The counterpoint comes from the Superintendent: "...'From 'paragraph' to 'brief constructed response': 'We want them to be very brief and right to the point with something they are going to construct.' But isn't it implicit that an essay is constructed? (asks Perlstein, a consummate writer and clearly a natural-born classroom troublemaker)
'You and I know that, but I'm not so sure that young little people know that,' [Steve Gibson, a Montgomery County community superintendent (de-jargoned for us by Perlstein: he oversees a group of schools)] said. 'My hope is that we're creating language for kids that is more explicit and to the point than it is confusing.'"
Ann: Thanks for a fascinating report, Ms. Perlstein. My 'brief constructed response' is for Superintendent Gibson.
Is it your goal, sir, to discourage independent learning and independent thinking? Why do you dismiss a child's native intelligence? Your community's best teachers help children learn the skills to unlock knowledge for themselves. Except in highly specialized fields, jargon hides the keys to independence. Your best teachers know that vague verbosity obscures the path to knowledge. A kid - her parent, too - can open any dictionary and look up the word 'paragraph.' Where is she going to look up 'brief constructed response?'
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PROM Time
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Ann: Dust off the dancing shoes and get ready for the Prom.
Ohio: The First Ohio Christian Homeschooling Prom is on Friday, April 23rd, of 2004. For complete information on the event, including how to purchase tickets, visit http://www.ohiochristianhomeschoolingprom.com
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New Jersey: The 2nd Annual NJ Spring Prom is on Friday, April 30th, 2004. This prom is open to all teen homeschoolers and their guests. ("Out-of-state" teen homeschoolers are welcome, too)
For more information on purchasing tickets, go to the NJ SpringProm website:
http://www.angelfire.com
or send an email to: njspringprom@yahoo.com
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Final Words
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E-mail addresses of reporters are now included with their stories when available. Please send feedback to reporters who make you think, who tell a great story, or who have wrong information. A pat on the back or a respectful correction is usually appreciated. As always, keep me in mind as you find and make the news. Thanks to all who contributed to this and past issues.
Ann Lahrson Fisher
News and Commentary Email
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