Homeschooling Banned in California as State Turns Parents Into Criminals for Teaching Their Own Chil

Originally posted by ANoNyMiKE
Again I would think parents would want the best possible education for their children.

As we from california have stated before, the best possible education is NOT in our schools. spend a day in a california classroom and you will understand.

reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

Again I would think parents would want the best possible education for their children

Because many public schools and the teachers and the environments are NOT the best possible education for our children!!!

And when you have a child, and find out the school and or schools in the area are crap....and you need to quickly find an alternative, homeschooling is that option. So how do you propose a parent QUICKLY finish up college and get that education that the very teachers in these schools got?

The school district that my child will go to is one of the worst in the state of Colorado. This causes MAJOR anxiety for me, because my child does NOT deserve anything but the best. I refuse to put her in most of the schools in the disctrict based on their horrible performance ratings and the liberal BS that runs rampant in them.

And most kids who are homeschooled are WAY ahead of those who go to public schools. So, you tell me which is better for the child?

Luckily, the state of Colorado offers cyber-school for children. That will be my last resort if I cant get her into some private or "gifted" schools.

[edit on 9/23/2008 by greeneyedleo]

You both just took a line out of context and tried to spin it... please respond to my entire statement.

Why is requiring formal training in education in order to be an educator a bad thing?

Why did we not here about this when the law in question was first implemented? As the article says, this is not creating a new law, but clarifying an old law. That means this has been on the books awhile. So this should not be coming as a shock to the "160,000" homeschoolers out there.

With that being said, I am in full support of parents teaching their children and keeping them out of the public school systems. Its your life live it however you want to. Millions of kids have been homeschooled, sent off to college and live happy, productive lives. If the kids are passing the state tests, there should be no reason the parents have to be held to the same educational requirements as teachers.

reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

Why is requiring formal training in education in order to be an educator a bad thing?

Because it is not realistic. If I had a child in school right now. And the school was horrible and needed to pull my child from that school - what is my alternative?

1. To leave the child in horrible school, and child suffers
2. To homeschool
3. To go to college for 4 years and obtain my degree in education while my child either sits at home not going to school - or child is left in horrible school.

Homeschooling as it is NOW works. Why fix something that is not broken.
Fix the damn schools FIRST before you tell me how me whether or not I'm qualified to teach my child!! (you - not you - but the government )

Do you have children? And if so, are you 100% satisfied with their school?

[edit on 9/23/2008 by greeneyedleo]

Well, it appears some people here are rather ignorant towards how Homeschooling works.

I was home schooled from the first grade, until the end of the high school.
I had bad asthma as a kid, and I'd miss a lot of school whenever I'd get sick.
So, my Mom decided to teach me at home.

When I reached the age of 12 or so, we found a "program" for homeschooling.
Essentially, it was a place where homeschooled kids could get their books, go on field trips, meet other kids, etc.
The parent is always required to fill out a "lesson plan" to show the state that the child is learning what is supposed to be learned at the correct grade level.

Upon entering high school, all the homeschooled kids went to class every Tuesday. Got their assignments, did them at home while working independently, and returned them the next week. Rinse and repeat.
Once again, it served as another way for kids to do their work at home, while still being able to meet new people and interact.

Now, I will say one thing... I turned out "better" than most public schooled friends of mine did. I had a lot of friends, from all different public schools and from the homeschooling "school."
I was mature, because I was around adults a lot, and learned how to respect others. I also learned how to work independently, how to focus, and how to manage my time.
I went to parties, went to dances, and lived a "normal" life.

HOWEVER, homeschooling does not work for everyone.
Some kids do it because they got kicked out of school, or because their parents want to shelter them from the real world.
Religions reasons, too.
Many homeschooled kids appear to be a little "off"... but, again, so do many public schooled children.

I think it's a bad decision to make homeschooling illegal. It provides many opportunities for children that others would never be able to appreciate.
Traveling, for example, is possible when you are homeschooled, and etc...

Also, as others have said, parents are not allowed to just "teach whatever they want their kid to learn", either.

Originally posted by ANoNyMiKE
I can't get my head around why you're essentially arguing you shouldn't need an education in teaching in order to teach your children. Why is that so ridiculous?

Why not? Oh, maybe you were educated in CA public schools.

Mike, Mike, Mike. Sadly here's the real answer to your question. The CA education system is so bad that even teachers graduating from college with teaching degrees are not prepared to teach. Most have trouble with the "3 R's" themselves, so how can they teach others?

The CA education system has been dumbed down to to the lowest common denominator, which in CA is probably an illegal immigrant knowing almost no English. And the system requires that these kids be passed on to the next grade until graduated.

Another example. When I was in high school back in Iowa 30+ years ago, a book report meant a thoroughly written, several page paper. Now, in CA it means only a paragraph written with little regard to proper syntax or spelling.

Can't "get your head around" it still? Then just check out how many of the young people here on ATS write their posts.

Education should not be mandated. Do you understand what liberty is?

Originally posted by Reddupo
I am a senior in high school right now, attending my school from my home through the internet. This is the first year I've done this and I am already regretting only starting now. I have failed miserably all throughout my high school career despite being, according to my tests, above average intelligence. The difference in my opinion is the environment and how it's run. I can work at my own pace and on my own schedule and not only have my grades gone from F's and D's to A's and B's but I am actually able to learn the concepts that are harder to grasp by going over them again instead of sitting in a classroom spacing out at my desk while the teacher moves on.

My story is the same as yours. I went to traditional high school (both public and private) until my senior year. I learned SO much more on the online homeschool than in the traditional method, and my grades were excellent.

Right now I'm trying to convince my fiance's mother to send her 4 and 6 year old kids to online homeschool. They are just too darned smart to go to traditional school.

The last point about education nad liberty... SOOO WRONG MY FRIEND.


Education is a STATE issue. If the courts of California rule this way, guess what? Its going to be upheld. Don't have any notions of this being appealed to the supreme court. they will throw it right back to the court that ruled this way. Education has and always will be a state issue



hence... the no child left behind act is a fruad....


As for how I feel about this??? I went to private school in california as a kid so I cant really comment. The only kids I knew that were home-schooled were kids in the acting world, and they all have very closed minded views of the real world. But that could be for a vast majority of other reasons.

reply to post by ANoNyMiKE



Generally I am on the side of the fence you are on, but when it comes to telling parents how to raise their children (minus cases where the parent is causing unreasonable harm to their babies.. speaking of blatant abuse and not a smack w/ a paddle on the padded region, mind you) I think the gov't and others who support this are crossing the line.

I do not possess a degree in ANY area and certainly would not be considered for a teaching position in the public school arena, but I can say with 100% confidence that if you put me to the test in a battle of knowledge with how the system was meant to work in America, has changed, and now works, I would blow each of them away.

I am not the most apt mathematician (in fact, it would be laughable to even call me one haha), but I know a sufficient amount to be able to figure out how to help my older niece and nephew w/ their highschool homework and in fact, have helped them to understand it better than their teachers have.

I am not a scientist, but I LOVE science and experimenting both physically and theoretically and again, am confident that I could do a better job in getting my kids excited about learning science.

I probably know more about the true history of this country and the history of other countries than most teachers do.

I love sports and have instilled that love into my sons by teaching them what I know.

I expect my children to be able to use proper grammar and spelling. I started teaching them their alphabet and phonics before they could walk w/out wobbling (in fact, the school was quite impressed with how much they knew when they went into preschool).

yet, I do not have a teaching degree. EVEN IF I DIDN'T KNOW A G.D. bit of this, I am still the most qualified in calling the shots for my children's lives as dictated by the law of nature. They are a part of me and therefore their best interests are always at the forefront of my mind. None of their teachers possess the same kind of instincts that I do when it comes to my children.

I think a law such as this one is most definately imposing on ppl's personal lives and their right to raise their offspring as they deem is best fit for their situation.


[edit on 23-9-2008 by justamomma]

Originally posted by centurion1211

Originally posted by ANoNyMiKE
I can't get my head around why you're essentially arguing you shouldn't need an education in teaching in order to teach your children. Why is that so ridiculous?

Why not? Oh, maybe you were educated in CA public schools.

Mike, Mike, Mike. Sadly here's the real answer to your question. The CA education system is so bad that even teachers graduating from college with teaching degrees are not prepared to teach. Most have trouble with the "3 R's" themselves, so how can they teach others?

The CA education system has been dumbed down to to the lowest common denominator, which in CA is probably an illegal immigrant knowing almost no English. And the system requires that these kids be passed on to the next grade until graduated.

Another example. When I was in high school back in Iowa 30+ years ago, a book report meant a thoroughly written, several page paper. Now, in CA it means only a paragraph written with little regard to proper syntax or spelling.

Can't "get your head around" it still? Then just check out how many of the young people here on ATS write their posts.

I hear your concerns about the effectiveness of the current public system in CA but you're still evading my point and trying to justify allowing unqualified parents to educate their kids by saying the public teachers are at least as unqualified.

"I perceive the teachers to be under qualified, I'm not qualified at all; therefore it's better for me to teach my children."

Isn't a better solution to either become qualified and teach them or to enroll them in a school that has teachers you believe are qualified?

Originally posted by bknapple32
hence... the no child left behind act is a fruad....

Noo your wrong, No child is left behind because they push them through weather they learned anything or not.

Hear about the best athlete in school getting great grades for crappy work so he can play in the next big game?

But seriously you are so correct, no child left behind is a sad, sad lie.

reply to post by iceofspades


....more on the online school, I think it's a great medium between homeschooling and state schooling. Students (K-8) are able to do their lessons online, at home, with the assistance of certified teachers. They are immersed in the possibilities of the instant worldwide library. Parents are able to monitor everything that is being taught, and provide their point of view on all material at the time it's being taught. In other words, parents can shape the curriculum and put it into context.

There are also meetings and field trips to satisfy much of the possible social inequity (though I believe it is fully within the responsibility of any parent to provide social outlets for their kids).

[edit on 9/23/2008 by iceofspades]

reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

"I perceive the teachers to be under qualified, I'm not qualified at all; therefore it's better for me to teach my children."

Isn't a better solution to either become qualified and teach them or to enroll them in a school that has teachers you believe are qualified?

Teaching a child involves a LOT more then just a college education. Seriously.

Can the person teaching actually teach?? Do they even have the proper personality to teach? The patience? Do they communicate well? Are they giving each child enough attention - especially when the child is having issues with something, or is that teacher just mass producing education like an assembly line?

Most homeschoolers also get to go out in the real world and experience things that you cant learn in a classroom. They get that one on one time. They get someone who actually CARES about them and wants the best for them.

A BS in education is not always going to cut it with our kids. And it is NOT easy to fire an incompitent teacher - a teacher who went to school to teach but should not be teaching. You cant really pick and choose teachers like you can doctors. And my child's education is just as important as the medical care she receives

Originally posted by greeneyedleo
reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

 

"I perceive the teachers to be under qualified, I'm not qualified at all; therefore it's better for me to teach my children."

Isn't a better solution to either become qualified and teach them or to enroll them in a school that has teachers you believe are qualified?

Teaching a child involves a LOT more then just a college education. Seriously.

Can the person teaching actually teach?? Do they even have the proper personality to teach? The patience? Do they communicate well? Are they giving each child enough attention - especially when the child is having issues with something, or is that teacher just mass producing education like an assembly line?

Most homeschoolers also get to go out in the real world and experience things that you cant learn in a classroom. They get that one on one time. They get someone who actually CARES about them and wants the best for them.

A BS in education is not always going to cut it with our kids. And it is NOT easy to fire an incompitent teacher - a teacher who went to school to teach but should not be teaching. You cant really pick and choose teachers like you can doctors. And my child's education is just as important as the medical care she receives

So there are no sufficient qualifications, a caring personality is what they need; well, good exit strategy I guess.

reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

So there are no sufficient qualifications, a caring personality is what they need; well, good exit strategy I guess.

That is not what I said.

Teaching a child involves a LOT more then just having a college education. And most public schools can barely provide most of what a child needs.

Do you have a child/children?

Originally posted by greeneyedleo
reply to post by ANoNyMiKE

 

So there are no sufficient qualifications, a caring personality is what they need; well, good exit strategy I guess.

That is not what I said.

Teaching a child involves a LOT more then just having a college education. And most public schools can barely provide most of what a child needs.

Do you have a child/children?

That's exactly what you said, you just said it again! There's no education people can acquire from post-secondary in order to teach; they need "trait-X" which you possess.

reply to post by SonicInfinity
Many good points have been made about the pros of homeschooling and online schooling which is an intermediary between group schooling and homeschooling. I have found nothing outside of this article indicating the latest Californian court ruling in support of homeschooling was knocked down. Those against homeschooling should cancell their victory parties. It looks like they have nothing to celebrate.