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News & Commentary May 05, 2004
In this Issue:
Homeschoolers Take A Stand Against Whipping Babies
Homeschooler In the Movies
The NY Times Does It Again
College Counseling
Homeschoolers Take the Stage, Win Prizes
"Home-schoolers, in Particular, Were Targeted"
Wanted, in Washington: Homeschoolers Back in School
Why We Homeschool - Redux
A Senseless Tragedy
Australia: Too Busy to Register?
Final Words
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Homeschoolers Take A Stand Against Whipping Babies
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Ann: Today I want to acknowledge the courageous activism of a Christian homeschooling mom who saw something that horrified her and who, with her husband, has acted to make a difference. I'll let the Lawrences speak for themselves.
headline: Parenting In Jesus' Footsteps (web site)
A Resource for Gentle Christian Parents and Other Caring Adults
http://parentinginjesusfootsteps.org
Sue writes: "We are the Lawrences, a loving Christian family trying to walk in Jesus' footsteps. We practice attachment parenting and gentle discipline, and we homeschool too....It has been exactly one year today since I first saw an ad http://parentinginjesusfootsteps.org for 'The Rod' in a free sample of Home School Digest. I was incredulous that a whip to beat babies and children was in a homeschooling magazine....Thus began our campaign against 'The Rod.' Together, we have telephoned, emailed and snail mailed in order to get something done about this ghastly whip. While all the children's rights groups I contacted, including Child Protective Services, the police, and every children's advocacy group in Oklahoma, would do nothing, we DID SOMETHING, and we had some significant accomplishments as well as raising awareness of this issue."
To protest this ad, please email the publishers editor@wisgate.com To join our growing activist list, please email us contact@parentinginjesusfootsteps.org You will receive regular updates on the progress the group is making.
Ann: I am proud to stand with the Lawrences against corporal punishment. To sign their petition against corporal punishment, visit http://www.parentinginjesusfootsteps.org
Ann: The whipping of babies and children haunts me, even beyond the pain and psychological scarring of individual children. I am deeply troubled that this practice reflects terribly on homeschoolers who do not whip and homeschooling in general, especially since "The Rod" is still actively promoted to homeschooling families. In addition, homeschooling families are encouraged, by whipping and spanking advocates, to whip their children in secret, behind closed doors and drawn curtains. Whipping with this device and in this manner comes dangerously close to crossing the line between legal spanking and criminal child abuse.
Because homeschoolers are routinely stereotyped by the behaviors of a tiny minority, homeschooling freedoms for all may be endangered. Can homeschoolers who decry the whipping of children afford NOT to speak out against this antiquated child rearing practice?
And if the media comes knocking, hoping for another horror story for the Dark Side of Homeschooling Part 3 - Baby Whipping, just what are we going to say to them if we don't stand up against using this device? Visit Sue's site and sign up. And Sue, thank you for your leadership.
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Homeschooler In the Movies
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headline: Tina Fey's Next Phase
Chicago Sun Times, Illinois, By Darel Jevens djevens@suntimes.com, April 29
http://www.suntimes.com
"Lohan plays brainy Cady, who was home-schooled while growing up in Africa. When her parents take new jobs in Evanston, she's forced to enroll in high school and learn quickly about the adolescent social structure..." The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, California, says, "... It's a supremely catty comedy-of-manners starring the ubiquitous Lindsay Lohan as a home-schooled teen plunged into the social snakepit of her local high school ..."
Ann: For me, bringing a homeschooler into a movie as the protagonist is one more affirmation, that homeschooling has arrived in the mainstream, fair game for pot shots just like everyone else - like it or not.
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The NY Times Does It Again
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headline: Darwin-Free Fun for Creationists
New York Times, New York, By Abby Goodnough May 01
http://www.nytimes.com
"PENSACOLA, Fla., April 29 - Robert and Schoen Passmore took their children to Disney World last fall and left bitterly disappointed. As Christians who reject evolutionary theory, the family scoffed at the park's dinosaur attractions...this week, the Passmores sought out a lower-profile Florida attraction: Dinosaur Adventure Land, a creationist theme park and museum.... A group of about 60 parents and home-schooled children who visited Wednesday, including the Passmores, spent all afternoon trying the games, which promote religious faith more than creationist tenets...."
Ann: No mention is made of anyone other than creationist homeschoolers visiting the park - does the reporter think that only homeschoolers are creationists? I am beginning see a pattern in the New York Times reporting - homeschoolers are selectively portrayed as being of one narrow mindset, despite facts that suggest otherwise.
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College Counseling
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headline: College Corner: Homeschooled
The News Courier, Colleyville, Texas, By Dawn Blanchard dblanchard@thenews-courier.com, April 30
http://thenewscourier.com
In responding to a student question about how colleges look at students who have been home schooled this college counselor concludes, "Our firstborn is now extremely happy in her second semester at a fabulous university... And Cindy, my first home schooled applicant, was admitted by Duke's admissions committee that year with no dissension. Although she appreciated all my efforts on her behalf, she ultimately turned us down. She, instead, matriculated to Harvard. ... So you see, your family's choice to educate you at home does not have to hinder your college plans. "
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Homeschoolers Take the Stage, Win Prizes
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Ann: It is good to see so many homeschoolers names and faces making news, locally and nationally. Accolades for all!
headline: Local Roundup
Kalamazoo Gazette, Michigan, April 27
http://www.mlive.com
"Home-schoolers stage musical in Comstock. 'The Sound of Music' will be presented by local home-schooled students at 7 p.m. May 6-8 at Comstock Community Auditorium. The 41-member cast is made up of home-schoolers representing 16 communities in Southwest Michigan as far as Grandville, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph and Battle Creek."
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headline: Maryland, South Dakota and Texas Students Win $25,000 Scholarships in AAA Travel High School Challenge
Business Wire, Orlando, Florida, April 26
http://home.businesswire.com
"In an intense competition of travel and geography knowledge, students from Maryland, South Dakota and Texas topped more than 10,000 of their peers to take the national title in the AAA Travel High School Challenge. Each winner took home a $25,000 scholarship for placing first... The winning, three-member team consisted of Joshua Baumgartner of San Antonio, Texas, a home-schooled sophomore... The second-place team, consisting of Thomas Beihl, of Saluda, S.C., a home-schooled junior..."
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headline: Out and About
South Bend Tribune, Indiana, April 30
http://www.southbendtribune.com
"The Homeschool Pioneer Troupe, a group of Elkhart County Homeschoolers, is presenting 'The Five Little Peppers,' based on the classic book by Margaret Sidney...The program is a warm-hearted comedy set to music that centers around five poor children and their mother in the 1920s."
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headline: Home-school Team, Central Gwinnett to Compete at Odyssey of the Mind
Gwinnett Daily Post, Georgia, May 02
http://www.gwinnettdailyonline.com
"The P.E.A.C.H (Parent Educators Association for Children at Home) home-school team from Gwinnett County and students from Central Gwinnett High School this month will travel to College Park, Md., for the Odyssey of the Mind 2004 World Finals, an international problem-solving competition for students from kindergarten through college. The teams earned a place at World Finals by coming in second and first, respectively, at the Georgia Odyssey of the Mind Association Finals on April 17 in Milledgeville."
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headline: Home-schooled Students Tackle Futuristic Problems
Iowa City Press-Citizen, By Rob Daniel, May 03
http://www.press-citizen.com
"Solving a problem is one thing. Solving a problem that could take place 20 to 30 years in the future is another. But that is the task 12 home-schooled students from the Iowa City and Kalona areas work on in contests. The students, who won state titles April 16 and 17 in Pella, comprise three of the six teams from Iowa to move on and the only home-schooled teams to move on to the Future Problem Solving International Competition June 3 to 6 at the University of Kentucky."
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"Home-schoolers, in Particular, Were Targeted"
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headline: Virtual Schools, Real Concerns
The Christian Science Monitor, By Amanda Paulson http://www.csmonitor.com, May 04
http://www.csmonitor.com
BROOKFIELD, WIS. - "At first glance, the Magnor family look like typical home schoolers...Technically, however, the four children are enrolled in the Northern Ozaukee School District. They're taught by certified teachers and the district gets state funds to support their education.... [according to] Daniel Allen, a researcher at Arizona State University, 'Where people are starting to raise eyebrows is with [for-profit] schools.'...Each student they attract brings $5,400 in state money to the district running the virtual school. Competition for those funds led to a marketing blitz earlier this year, as the state's three largest virtual schools competed for students. Home-schoolers, in particular, were targeted."
Ann: Homeschoolers are targeted in Wisconsin, Ohio, Washington, Pennsylvania - who's next?
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Wanted, in Washington: Homeschoolers Back in School
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headline: Vancouver District to Offer Support to Home-schoolers
The Columbian, Vancouver, Washington, By Amy McFall Prince amy.prince@columbian.com, May 03
http://www.columbian.com
"The Vancouver School District will follow suit with its neighboring districts, Evergreen and Battle Ground, as it opens a program next year geared toward parents who want to home school their children with a district's help....All students enrolled in Vancouver Home Connection will be considered full-time district students. They will be required to take district and state standardized tests, including the Washington Assessment of Student Learning, commonly called the WASL... Some home-school proponents don't agree with district-sponsored programs because children must fulfill the same state requirements as children enrolled in public schools."
Ann: What a headline! The district "offers support to homeschoolers?" The difference between a public school parent-partnered program and independent homeschooling is huge, much bigger than the issue of state assessments. I smell the old bait-and-switch sales routine! How about this headline instead - "Vancouver District Wants Homeschoolers Back in School" - honest, direct, truthful. Homeschoolers might not sign up, but they would surely appreciate the honesty.
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Why We Homeschool - Redux
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headline: Researcher Blasts No Child Left Behind and Vouchers
Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Washington, By Deborah Bach deborahbach@seattlepi.com, April 27
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com
"Educational writer and public schools advocate Gerald Bracey is well-known in some circles as an outspoken critic of charter schools, vouchers and President Bush's sweeping educational reform bill, the No Child Left Behind Act." In a recent presentation to the Seattle School Board, Bracey offered his thoughts on a few issues.
On No Child Left Behind:
"This is a way of making people assume that good schools fail, and that's happening all over the country. It's going to get worse...."
The dangers of high stakes testing:
"As soon as you make test scores important, then you introduce all kinds of corrupting influences. People start teaching to the test and gaming the system. You retain kids in the grade before they're tested so they'll do better the next year, but you greatly increase the probability that they'll drop out, too."
On charter schools:
"So to say that charter school kids are keeping pace in California means they're keeping pace with the lowest-scoring kids in the country.... [In Washington] The schools will be public, but they get some percentage of per- pupil expenditures for running the schools. They'll be run for profit and what that does, unless they're home-grown here in Washington, is remove decision-making to some remote place."
Ann: In fact, it all boils down to local control - and it doesn't get any more local than homeschooling!
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A Senseless Tragedy
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headline: Serious Questions Surround Child's Mysterious Death
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Georgia, By Mark Niesse, May 04
http://www.ledger-enquirer.com
"The next day, a 12-year-old neighbor known as a home-schooled, cigarette-bumming troublemaker was arrested for the third-grader's strangulation. Now, one week later, authorities still aren't saying why the boy would kill [the girl], what his name is or how she ended up dead...other residents who live along the three streets that run through the mobile home park question whether the boy was even capable of the crime. They wonder how a child weighing less than 100 pounds could strangle [her] and haul the fully clothed body to a ditch dozens of yards from the trailer park."
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Australia: Too Busy to Register?
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headline: Keeping Education All in the Family
The Australian, By Marea Donnelly, May 03
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au
"As an education system, home schooling eschews hallmarks of formal learning such as classrooms, exams or a strict curriculum + and official enrolment statistics. Advocates speak instead of natural, experiential or contextual learning, individual approaches, morals, values and the "spark" of learning too often snuffed out in school.... The Queensland Home Schooling Review released last October revealed a 'potentially disturbing' number + between 1100 and 7600 children + were neither registered as home schoolers nor in school, an issue it says must be addressed."
Ann: Based on responses to a poll, the Review suggests that possibly as few at fifteen percent of Australian homeschoolers are registered. Rather than fly into a tizzy over the low numbers registered, I hope Australian authorities just relax - unregistered families are usually so involved in an experiential education with their children that registering is just another paperwork chore that found its way to the bottom of the pile. Or maybe parents think the education of their children is no one's business but their own.
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Final Words
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E-mail addresses of reporters or their editors 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. Please include a link if possible and a sentence or two of your own that summarizes the homeschooling aspect of the story. Thanks to all who contributed to this and past issues.
Ann Lahrson Fisher
News and Commentary Email
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