GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING
6L
! I E
t
o g
o R'
o o
4
Amanda and Emily Bcrgson-Shtlcock arc emong thosc who rrtltc about bclng takcn scrlously ln thls lssuc's Foc1rs, pages 19-23.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE: NH6.6TBEEQENL p.3-4 Help for Superlntendents Cracklng D'own on Thrants Dtploma Regulailone CHALLENGES & CONCERTIS Serc-role Stereotyplng
Speech DlfrculHes
\4TATCHING CHILDREN LEARN
p.9-13 Overcomtng "Artlst's Block'
I:arntng Ftom Peers Wdtfng Together 3 year old's Thoughts Vldklng rfr/lth a Toddler Llfe Wthout Credentlals RETIIINIfi NG CUZTURIIL IJIERACX: revlewof the newbookbyE.D. Hlrsch, Jr. p. 13 RESOURCES & RECOMMENDA.
TIONS p. ra BOOKREVIEWS p.15-18 FOCUS: DO ADULTS TAI(E
CI{ILDREN SERIOUSLP p. 19-23 Thoughts ftom chlldren and teenagers
THE EFFECTS OF TELEVISION: Intervtewwlth Marle Wlnn p, 2325
ADDITIONS TO DIRECTORY p. 26-27
"I feel lllce I'm llttle and etrcryone elsc trs blgger," wrltes Mona Welner lrr thls lssue's Focus, 'Do Adults Thlrc Young People Serlouslf' Descrlbtng thelr feellngs about belng young tn a world full of adults, the wrlters tn thesc pages seem kcenly awane that thelr lltfleness often mlsrepresents them. They have to work tcrtcr as hard to convlnce older people to see them as theywant to be seen. 'I am physlcally a small petson,'wrttes Serena Glngold, 'but I have blg thoughts." TWenty homeschoolers are an unusual sampltng, howerrer. These wrlters are surer of thetr..fcmtly's respect, for ecample, than twenty randomly-chosen
young people ln thls countrywould be. Ttrey also flnd enough attentlveness and respect ln adult frlends and colleagues outslde the famtly to balance tJ:e dlscourtesy and dlsrespect that they often obsenre ln the adult populatlon as a whole. It's clear ftom thelr descrtptlons that the chlldren crave these lrnportant relatlonshtps, and that a llttle such posltlve treatment from an adult goes a long way. Havlng been taken serlously and welcomed lnto the adult world on a few slgnlttcant occaglons, the chlldren are less lke$ to dlsmlss ttrat world erren when they are excluded from lt on other occaslons. Desptte betng repeatedly shut out or lgnored (the descrlPHons of bclng overlooked by adults who are slmply saytng hello or goodbye should encourage the rest of us to make a serlous efrort to remember what chlldhood [s really llke], these young people clear$ want to flnd a way to get tn, to do eomethtng that matters. Many of them are dolng! thts already. Mlkc Dodd observes: 'Once IVe gatned a Penton's respect because of my worh when they dlscover my age they contlnue to treat me as an equal." Mlke' at 15, ls perhaps old enough to pass foran adultwhen he needs to. He has a chance to demonstrate trts skflls as a cctmPuter programmer before people flnd out how old he ls. Thls ts harder at 6 or 8 or lO. when 'llttleness' ls the flrst thlng people see. Several ctrtldren seem aware that some part of whether or not adults talce them scrlously depends on them. Heather Bastlan wrltes, 'If I act llke a Itttle ktd, that ts the way my parents trreat me. Horrever, lf I act go\rtn-up, my parents treat me grown-up.'Amanda and Emlly Elerglson-Stttlcock, wrtUng about thelr ercperlences ln the world of work, recognlze that 'lilhen you want adults to talce you serlously, lt dso lnvolves tlme and commltment on your part." These wrlters ane awarâ‚Ź that certaln legal restrlctlons reflect socletfs perccpUon of young people's competence - the rrcUng and drMng ages. for enample - and some mlnd thls more than others. Manyargue that age ls an arbltrary cdterlon - 'I see no rtason why lt should be assumed that my sense of Judgment ls worse than that of someone two years older than me- - but they are also unsurc of how to unlrrcrsallze thelr trust tn themselves tn a way that would meet thelr standards of falrness. Ttrey may belleve that they and thelr frlends are capable of votlng responslb$, but they can't be sure about everyone else tn thelr age group. TWo wrlters suggest a test for prospectlve voters under 18. as lf they werr hesltant to grant thc rtght uncondlUonal$. (One of the prlnclples of suftage tn thls crountry ls that oncc you harrc lt, you don't need to prorre your quallflcattons. At one tlme lt was unthlnkable that women could vote; when they won the rlght, hos'ever, lt was for all women. Can we lmaglne granflng unlversal suftage to chtldren?) One flnal note. There's a lot of talk these days about chlldren 'grosttng uP too f,ast.' rnl$stng "the best pars of thetr llrrcs.' It may seem, when these wrlters lnslst that theywant to be treated as adults, that they are vlctlms of some klnd of modern pressune to leave chtldhood beforc they're ready. But thls ls not what theec chtldren are saylng. They don't wzrnt to becpme somethlng other than what they are: theywant ushattteg are rlgtxrwwto be recognlzed and valued. At the same tlme, tleywant the gate to the garden of chlldhood to be a swlnglng one (as Nancy \4rallace, vrrlilng about John Holt's Egape Jturn Chlldhd.ln GWS #56. sald so well) so that when they rlant to ocplore the adult world and how they mtght flt tnto lt, thcy can. Too many of today's l8-year-olds, looldng ahead to theadult llfe that awalts them, s,ee nothtng there that looks tnvlttng. It's llkely that the wrlters ln thls lssue of GWS, havlng been glven access to the adult world when they wanted lt as chlldren, wlll flnd more tn lt to satlsfy them when they llnally get there themsclves. - Susannah Sheffer
OFFICE ANNOUNCEMENTS aaaaooaaooaaoaaaoaao
NEWS & REPORTS
ISS:I Carol SeefeldL of the Insflhrte for Chtld Study at the Unlverslt5r of
HELP FOR SI.JPERS 7le Nol;rlnrlrlr-DeenDer lssw oJ FI-O& tle tr€'4.sleter oJ tle FAMLY
Itfiaryland's College of &lucaflon, called tn November to lrMte me to wrlte a chapter for a graduate textbok that she ls edlflng called Condrutnf Issues ln Fz.tlg CHAM. Hucafion The textbook, to be publtshed by Charles E. Merrtll ln 1989, wlll have a sectlon on responslblltty for educatlon, and I have been asked to address the lssue of the famtly as provlder
of educatlon. Carol Seefeldfs famlltartty wtth John Holfs work led her to thtnk of lncludtng us tn thls collecflon, and I'm lmktng forwad to ttre chance to speak to the graduate student audlence,
Insldc h{omtntlon"
a publlcaflon
for
I'PIRNINC oRGAiIIZAflON (WN, mcn-
ttued thattle
sentaleter to dlstut suryrlntendents ollerhg to tr;lp wlth honulschorrl lssues frr aneas wlere tllere ls ro lor,al lrlme*lrrrl gtvl.tp b hatdle ttvtu Thlnlclng that otler groups mlgllt worr.t to do sotretldrg sbnllar, ute group had
asleed Katltreln Mcfludg oJ I'LOW b.tell us exacdg wtlattheV had.olferd the superlnterdcnts, ond.u:lutthe response ltu.s been Kalhleen sent us tle tetd oJ the letrer ilv group nalld ouL whlch reods:
corpor:ate executlves, tntervteurcd Pat Farenga about homeschoolrng for thetr January lSth lesue. Also, Donna Fllchoux's arttcle, "A Look at Homeschoollng," was publtshed tn the Summer 1987 tssue of tlre Kappa Delta Pl .Re@rd
Memo to the dlrector of Student Servlces or person handltng homeschool alfalrs: The Farnlly trarning Organlzadon of Washtngton ls avallable for consultatlon and asslstance tn deding wtttl homeschool lssues ln dtstrtcts where local homeschool organtzatlons are not
Often, we send malltngs to people ln our lmmedlate geographfcal area" not$lng them of Holt Assoclates open houses and errcnte, and occaslonal other news of local lnterest. If you're not on thts llst and would ltke to be - tfyou ltve elsewhere but thlnk you d be tnterested ln corntng to our local errents eometlrnes, for ecample - let us know.
avall,able for thls purposre. In many areas of the state, good relaflons harrc been worked out so that fadlfes who choose to educate thelr children at home may enJoy peaceful coe:dstencr and, ln rx)me cases, mutual cooperatlon wtth the school dlstrlct. We
Be sure to let us know, too, lf you're on the general |lst of nameg we make avallable for sale and dorr't want to be. \ilCll remove your name tmmedtately lf you so
request. Our lease at 729 Boylston Street elrptres at the end of September, and we have begun to til/esflgate new oltce locatlons. We are hoptng to do as much of the pacldng and movtng as we can over the summer, when bustness here ls slower than it ls ln the fall, Later thts year we wlU be appealrng to those of you who are ln our ar€a for help wlth thls; we plan to mallyou a llst of ways you can help us. If you d ltke to rec.eive thts hst but thtnk you Itve out of reach of our local mailing lfst, let us know.
CALENDAR Aprll l. 1988: Penlnsula Homeschool-
ers'Servlcc Trtp to Portola State Park (helptnt at the park, walk wtth a naturaltst, camptng for one or two ntghts). For trrformaflon: send SASE to.Illl Boone, 2427 crandby Dr, SanJose 9513O. &flLlli: Connecflcut Homeschoolers Currtculum Fatr. lO-2 pm at the Church of Jesus Chrtst ofLatter Day Salnts, 13O South St, Cromwell, For tnformatlon: Kathleen Maynard, 203-388- 1390. Mav 5-8: Northern Caltfornta Homeschml Assoclaflon Conrrcnflon and Camp-ouL Near San Jos€. For tnformatlon: Connle, 415-674-L294. We are happy to nrn notlccs of maJor homeschooltng ertents, but we need plenty of no$c€. Deadllne for GWS #62 (events tn
May or later) ts March lO. Deadllne for GWS #63 (events tn July or later) ts May
lo.
belleve that such arrangements are tn the best tnterests of the ctrtldren and also of the communlty at large. Mutual respect among educators of errery persuaslon should be the goal. Problems that may artse regardlng compllance wtth the law or quesflons about the effectlveness ofa partlcular home program can best be resolved by homeschool peers who are ln a poslflon to understand the lssues tnvoh'ed. We are also knowledgeable regardlng soluflons that have been worked out ln other dtstrlcts setttng successful precedents. We have brochures and lnformatlon about the law whlch can be made avallable to homeschoolers ln your dlstrlct. We also olfer a qualrfylng oourse ln home-based lnstrucflon through Central Washlngton Unlverslty, Thls course can be made avatlable anlnrrhere tn the state. Please contact us tf there ts any uray we may be of help to you ln dealfngwtth the lssues of homeschoolturg.
ISS/ thrs seem.s to b anerellent to ofrer lelp to tlv superlntendents uttllout challcnglrg or threatenbg them and. at the sane flnE to Increase the
wq
lllcelld
t}rrrt attse,
{ ang proHelzt-s or cpstle tomesclwllry WW oJ
tlons do vlew willrotbe lgnotd. Kathleen McCwdg aclCs:
So far we have recelrrcd about half a dozen replles. One superlntendent called and told us that the letter came atJust the rfght time, as he was struggltng wtth a couple of problems and needed some
advlcc. Ttrls man had already called the state OIBce of Supertntendent of hrbllc Instructton but sald he felt better after talhng to someone from the homeschoolers'slde of the lssue. One of hls problems was a rrother who wanted to send her chlld to school for
part-tlme tnstrucflon 'trvo or three tlmes
a week whenerrcr she felt lrke lt' I agreed that thts would be dtsruptlrrc to the clasaroom and that lt hard$ e€erncd to be
horneechooltng lf the chlld was tn school so much of the tlme, The tntent of the parttlme-student provblon lof the lawl was to enable shrdents to tahe a class such as band or cherntstry, not to serrrc as an
optlonal babysltdng servlce. Ttren he wanted to knowwhat I thought about a htgh school shrdent who
full load on a'partflme shrdent'basls. I suggested that, because ofthe nature oftrrgh school classes, ttds would not really be creatfurg a problem for tlre school, and why not take ad\Entage of the homeschool law to let a student hand-tallor hls o\nn educaflonal program. The superlntendent thought thls
uras taldng almost a
made sense.
Another superlntendent wrote:
'It
is
good to know that resourccs such as the
Famlly Learntng Organlzafion of \[Iashlngton are anatLable to the publtc school dtstrtcts ln our state. Whlle we do not have an tmmedtate need for your servlcts, we
appreclate your keeptng us tnformed of your acflvldes.' [SS: Interestlng to think
of a superlntendent vlewlng a homeschool
group as a resourcell One dlstrlct called to 'tattle' on a famtly whom they knew to be dolng homebased tnstnrcHon but hadn't sent tn the
'declaraflon of lntent" form requlred by
law. The superlntendent wondered lf we would 'take care of thern'It hrrned out the farnlly had complled wtth the law but thelr form had gotten lost ln the end-ofsummer shullle at the distrtct oltce. The farnlly cheerfully went down and resub-
mttted lL Of course homeschoolers call on us to
help lrron out problems with the school dtstrlcts. Recently I went wlth a famlly to vtstt thetr local superintendent who was asHng for samples of currlculum, a program outllne, and mahng other tllegal demands on a chlld who wasn't erren of legal school age yet (8, ln Washington). After I quoGd the law and e;glalned that the supertntendent's relauonshlp to a homeschool sltuaflon was the same as for a parochtal school, except that home schools flle a declaraHon of lntent form, he concluded that I uras a lawyer and started erglatnlng that he hadn't meant to vtolate the law but that hls concern was for the welfare of the chlld, etc, We had a good laugh afterwards because I'mjust a homeschool mom with only serren years of formal educaHon, a GED, and one year of college. It seerns to make a great deal ofdlfference to these guys - although I can't flgpre out why - tf you can walk fn and say, 'I represent (or am dtector o0 the )OO( Homeschool Organlzadon,' or whaterrcr. Somehow that llfts you out of tlre category of 'mere' parent. It's stlly, but tt works, Ttren they Erre mone ready to llsten to your lnterPr€tatton of the law. We also found a superlntendentwho has agreed to help us run a ptlot program tn hls dtstrlct for homeschoolers who want to earn a hlgh school dtploma- It would conslst of havlng a student take GROWING WTruOUT SCH@LING #6I
3 end-of-book or competency tesb tn each of for graduatlon. The the subJects school would then recognlze a passtng score as establfshhg credlt for the requlred class and would then lssue a diploma when the shrdent had obtalned suflclent credtts. We already hane t]re blesslng of the state olllce for thls. In thls state, at lea^st, lt seems the school authorltles ane stttrng back and watchtng to see what cr,eative soluflone to educatlonal dtleromas horne educators wlll dream up no<L We're trylng to make the most of lL
RI]NI{ING FOR SCHOOL BOARD FlDrn Betlr Grqtrt-DeRoas oJ Cal{or-
fllo,:
I recently ran for the local school board, and whtle I dldn't wln a tnrstee s€at, I dtd wln new homeschool supporters. E\rcry neruspaper artlcle co\terlng the elecflon noted that I was a homeschooler, and most quesflons dlrected tonrarrd me were about homeschoollng, Slnce ttre elecuon, a nelghbodng school dlstrlct ls puttlng together a supporttve lndependent study progran for homeschoolers, and my newly-forrned untf,ed school dtstrtct plans to develop such a proglram s<x)n. I have also gotten calls from new school board membcrs asHng me lf I vrculd be wtlltng to serrrc on varlous comrnlttees. I may do tbls. I thlnk thls lnvohrcment wlll lead to valuable dtalogue.
TEACHERS IGNORE TESTS F}om an otTlcle In tIE
9/ 16187
Topeka. Kansas CapttalJournal, sent fn bg Chrls Mag: The state mandates tlrern, the shrdents take them, and many teachers apparently tgnore tr6 results. tawrnakers were told T\resday that scores from the staterequlred rnlnlmum competency tests tn rnath and readtng fiequent$ ale shehrcd, wlth teachers and school admlnlstrators uncertaln why tlre tests are glven ln the
frst
place.
Shetla Ftatrm, vlce chat:man for the Kansas Board ofEducaflon, told the Legtslaflve Educaflonal Plannlng Comrnlttee that only 5O96 of the teachers ln the state look at rndMdual results. 'Test r-eults were nprre frequentl5r used to assess tnstnrcflonal elfectlrrcness than for worldng wtth lndtvtdual studenb,' she satd. 'Only 2896 of the teachers tnformed
students of thetr performance.' 'My lmpresslon ts that we went lnto tbls to see how the schools are dolng, rather than how tndtvldual shrdents arc dotn!,'sald Rep. Jesse Harder, D-Buhler. 'Should we as a state be gettlng lnto the test-maldng, test-gtvlng, test-prccrsstng buslness?"
ADD tle
-THE NEW DISORDER
Ftom an atdcle tlut uoas prtbltshd In 1 1 | 14 / 86 Mqtfreal Gazette:
You mlglrt nerrer hanrc heard of them. but attenflond deficlt dtsorders are mlsdlagpced and mlsunderstood more GROWING WTTHOUT SCHOOLING #6I
often than any otlrer dtsorder related to learntng and behavlor problems ln chlldren... ADD ls a collecflon of qrmptoms. Chlldren wlth ADD may be unable to concrntrate, harrc ehort attention spans, frequently ask to have thfngs repeated, get eastly dlstracted, not llnlsh what they start and confuse detatls, ...Chtldren are bom wtth ADD but lt may not be apparent tn the early years. Usually, tfs tn the early grades at school that lt flrst showa up, aald Mlchtgan chtld psychologtst Ronald Fttedrnan. Often, tt's seen as a dtsc'tpllne problem or a moflvaflon problem. In fact the clrtld ls frustnated and so are hls parcnts. "Any ch[d recognlzed as lacldng ln moflnaflon or dtslntercsted fn the earty grades ls rrcry often a chlld wtth ADD,' Frtedman sald. [SS:l Interesttng that thts rather n5/sterlous allment doesn't'show up' . unfll the chlld enters sch@l - perhaps the tedlous or lnapproprtate thtngs these young chlldren arc asked to do ln school are responslble for thetr lnablfty to concentrate, Ttre llnal cprrelatlon ls also trteresttng - tf you're not tnterested ln what the school requlres you to do, Frtedman seerna to be saylng, wewtll thenbe able to 'recognlze' your dlsorder.
CRACKING DOWN ON TRUANTS Ttrough Wlsconstn's favorable homeschoolfng law ls not currently belng challenged, serreral related bills arc before the leglsl,ature, accordlng to the Norrcmber lssue of tlre WSCONSIN PARENTS ASSOCIATION newsletter. Assembly Btll 389, fof example, urould trcrease the penalfleg for 'habftual tnrancy,' allowtng a
Judge to take away tnrants'drlver's llc=nses, order them to parttclpate ln conseltng
or work programs, or order *rem to r€rnaln at home except durlng pa.rdclpatlon tn a school program or rellglous worslrlp. WPA comments: 'It seems rldlculous to try to deal wlth tnrancy by forctng chlldnen back tnto a system that obvtously lsn't nmrldng for tlrem or they umuldn't be tmant ln the ffrst place. Wouldn't lt make nxrrc sense to decentnltze tlre system so each communtty could prorrtde the lncentlves that best meet the educatronal needs of tts shrdents? ... lThts bllll contradlcts what reseanchers atudytng Jrnrentle dcrlant behavlor flnd, namely, that confronHng tmants or flrst tlrne offenders wlth authorlty flE ree, labeltng them. or forclng them lnto a formal legal system produces repeated and more serrcre devtant behavtof. These researchers recommend provldtng avlenues for youths to move lnto adult roles. cary G. Wehlage, wrtflng in &l;ucallorl- Fall 1986, tn an artlcle tltled At-Rtsk Shrdents and the Need for Hlgh School Reform, etates, 'Data from naflonal studlee tndtcate that the school can be seen as contdbuttng to the problems of the at-rtsk shrdent. Sclf-esteem of dropouts actually rlgee after leavrng
school."
On September 8, the Caltfomla Supreme Court upheld the right of pollc.e to
unote tn the NOKIHERN CALIFORNIA HOMESCHOOL ASSOCIATION newsletter: The case, In reJames D., tnvolved a l7year-old college shrdent who uras stopped by poltc= as he rvalked down the street one mornlng. Ilurlng the trrvesflgatlon, the poltce found thatJames D. uras carrylng an envelope cutalnlng dnrgs, When the case got tojuventle court, the officers safd they had stopped James D. for suspected tmancy. He looked young, was carr5rlng a book bag, and ttnras durlng school hours. TheJuventle court found such a stop unr,easonable, and ordered the case dlsmlssed. The Court of Appeals agr€d. BuL., the Calffomia Supreme Court rerrersed the flndtngs and returned the case to Jurrcntle court for further Proceedtngs.
"Wrfflng for the maJority, Chlef Jusflce Lucas clatmed that govemment tntercst tn enforclng compulsory educaflon laws ls substandal, and that truancy stops provtde an effecflve means of tden-
tfylng truants. The oplnlon went on to
ttnt the lnterference wtth personal lfberty was 'slfght.' In other words, a maJorlty of the Callfomla Supreme Court believes that certatn rlghts should be suspended when the tndividuals appear to flnd
be of school age.'
TIGHTEMNG DIPLOMA RULES Also worth uratchlng [n Wsconsln are the Department of Publtc Instrucflon's proposed changes tn the hlgh school equtvalency dtploma rules, whlch would flghten r€qufements by permittlng a student to recclve an equlnalency dlploma only lf he or she: (l) ts l8 l/2 years old, or
hls/her trfgh school class has graduated;
(2) completes an lndtvtdual counselteg sesslon to assess hls or her reading lwels and careerlnterests and apfltudes; (3) passes a GED test that wlll be more dlffIcult than the currtnt one: (4) completes an approved course or passes a test tn both health and ctvtcs; (5) completes approved tnstructlon ln career awareness.
The WSCONSIN PARENTS ASSOCIATION comments: 'These requirements do not provlde the alternatlve many youth need. Other approaches are possible: In Mlnnesota, htgh school Junlors and senlors rnay take college or unlrrcrsltJr @urses, count them tonrard hlgh school
graduaflon requlrements, and transfer up to $3,OOO from publtc htgh schools to the college or unlverslt5r to help them cover ttre cost. In Calrfornra" a 17 year old may take the GED lfhe or she has been out of school for 6O days and has awrltten rcquest from
the mtlttary, a postsecondar5r insdtutlon,
or a prospecdve employer.'
Let us know lf you hear about attempts
to tlglhten flons elsewhere.
dtploma regula-
GROWING WTTHOUT SCHOOUNG #61, Vol. I
l.
I
t$SN #0745-5305. Rrbtshcdbl-monthlyby Holt Assoclatcs, 729 Bcylston St, Boston MA o/2116.tz0lyt. Date of lssuc, February l. 1987. Sccorrd-class postagc pald at Boston Mr{ POSTTMASIER: Scrd address dungcs to GWS, 729 Boylston St. BostonMA(Xll16. No.
'perform tnrrcsdgatrrc street detendons'
ADVEKflSERS: Dcadltncs are thc l5th of oddnumbcrcd months. Contact Patrick Fanenga for
on suspected truanto. EUzabeth Hamill
ralcs.
4
PENNSYLVAMA HEARINGS ISS:I PARENT EDUCATORS OF
PENNSYLVAI.IIA,
the statewtde leglslatlve
acflon group, trvlted me to testlfy on behalf of thetr home educaflon bil at the House Educaflon Commlttee's hearlngs on Dec.ember 3 (see lncal News, below). Both parents and chldren were among the homeschoolers glvlng testlmony, and about threr hundred other parents and chlldren packed the hearlng rloom as
spectators. I urge readers to buy a copy of the Perursyluania Homeschmlers newsletter (RD 2 Box I17, Ktttannneg PA 1620l; sin$e lssue $f .5O) that contalns detatled transcrtpts and summaries of the testlmony, as lt is a fasclnating record and of use to others involved ln similar legisla-
tlve work. At one polnt durlng the day, the chalrman of the Educatton Commlttee asked tf any of the homeschoolers ln the
room dld notfeel represented by PARENT
EDUCATORS OF PENNSYLVANIA ln the negouatlons about the bill. No one ln the room spoke up, and the chatrman satd that
he took that to mean there weFe no spllnter groups. What tlrts demonstrates ls that Pennsylvanla homeschoolers have ellectively organlzed their many disparate groups and indtviduals lnto an ad hoc oqganlzatlon that does adequately represent everyone as lt works to pass new
legislatlon. That erreryone ln the room felt
represented by PEP does not mean that everyone ln the room agreed about approach, method, philosophy, or anythtng else about homeschoollng; lt means only (and yet very sfnrllcantly) that they have been able to unlfy for lobbylng purposes. Other states that have passed
favorable homeschooling leglslation lrt rec€ntyears have had to, and been able to, do thls as well, and homeschoolers who are stlll worlidng for new laws or regulatlons would do well to ask them how they dtd it.
for the State School Board to dellberate thts year, accordtng to Ttv Homesclwl hut Reprl the nenrsletter of the HOME SCHOOL LEGAL DEFENSE ASSOCIA-
TION, Current regplatlons requlre parents to have a bachelor's degree and to subrnlt a currlculuntr etandardlzed test scor€s,
quarterly report cards and lnformatlon
about hours of lnstmctton, subJect areas, method of tesung, and textbooks to the Board of &lucadon.
Illlnolr: Cook County
Regtonal
Superlntendent Rtchard Marhvtck, who ls in charge of enforcfurg Illtnols's compulsory attendance law, sent a memo to all school dlstrtcts tn early Norrember declarlng that homeschoolers would henceforth be conslder€d chmnlc truants, and that dlstricts should forward the names of lmown homeschoolers to hls olllce. At the same ttme, Martqrlck wrote to several homeschoollng famlltes, gtvlng them the choice of putting thetr chlldren tn school or belng served wlth a clurt sumnons, accordtng to Dorothy Wemer ofHOUSE.
Dorothy told us that Superlntendent Marhvlck's letters, tn clalming that homeschoolers are tmants, mtsstate the Illtnots law under whlch homeschools are consldered prlvate schools, an acceptable alternatlve to publlc school ln llllnols. Parents who recelved the threatentng letter tnformed Marhrlck s offlce that they were ln compbance with the law. To date, only one famtly has received a sumnons, but a Chlcago law Ilrm has agreed to represent all famtltes who may have to go to court over thls lssue. Indlens: Though home schools are recognlzed as prlvate schools ln Indlana and need not be approved by the State Board of Educatlon, school olllclals ln two dlstrlcts have asked homeschoolers to submtt thelr currlculum, schedule of instrucdon, and method and results of evaluatton, accordtng to THE HOME SCHOOL LECAL DEF'ENSE ASSOCIATION. HSLDA attorneys are advlslngl
OTHER LOCAL NEWS
famlles not to subrnlt thls matertal, but to assure the school distrfct, lf asked, that
For qcl4resses oJ lrcal organlzallons, see GWS *6O or our Honeschdbg Resonrce llst, avallo,ble -for $2.
they are teachlng the requlred subJects orrcr the requtred period of flme. Nes YorL: At GWS's press tlme, the Elementary, Secondary and Contfueutng
Cdlforala: Elizabeth Harnfll of the
NORTTIERN CALIFlf, RNIA HOMESCHOOL ASSOCIATION sent us a draft of a new
poltcy betng considered by the Caltfornta School Board Assoclatlon wh,lch says that school dlstrtcts may exempt chlldren from compulsory attendance lf the chlldren are taught at home by a ccrtlflcated teacher or, if the parent ls not cerflficated, "two opflons remaln: the student may parttctpate ln an lndependent study program admlnistered by elther the dlstdct or county Oftce of Educatlon or parents may flle an allldavit with the state departrnent of educadon registerlng as a prlvate school." Elizabeth Hamfl comments: "Thls ls what we have been saytng all along, but many dtstrlct supertntendents have dlsagreed... Of course the CSBA pollcy does not ln any way change or allect the law, but It serves as an lndlcadon of the state Department of Eclucaflon's evolvlng atdtude toward homeschoollng.' Hawall: Homeschoolers ha\rc drafted
less restrlctlve homeschoollng
regF.rlations
Educatton Commtttee of the Board of Flegents ls about to vote on whether to
mandate Pupil Evaluadon Program (PEP) and Competency tests for homeschoolers. If the ESC recommends any actlon on thls testlng re€Flatlon, tt wlll then go before the full Board of Regents for a flnal vote. Since September, homeschoolers have heen meetlng wlth Department of
Educatlon ofilclals to dlscuss thelr oppositlon to mandatory tesdng. The
LEGISI,ATTVE COALMON OF HOME SCHOOL LEADERS (PO Box 332, S5rracuse 13205-0332) sent a summary of these meetings to the Board of Regents to ensure that the homeschoollng positlon would be
on record. In addldon to thetr opposldon to mandatory testlng, the homeschoolers noted ln the summar5l report that many superlntendents are unaware of the ruling last May ln the Reader-Tracy appeal whlch specilIes that 'there ls no statutory requlrement lln New Yorkl that a Parcnt or guardtan obtaln the prlor consent of
the supertntendent of schools or board of educatton before remorrlng a child from
publlc school.'Accordtng to the LEGISLATWE COALITION, many superlntendents appear to belterre that they have the power to approve or dtsapprone of home educaUon prograrns. Pennrytnnh: Members of the
House Eclucaflon Commltte heard testimony supporttng and oppostng HB 1364, the Home Educadon blll, on December 3. Parents, ctrlldren, and naflonal leaders spoke on behalf of homeschooling, and repreeentatlves from the teachers unlons and the School Board Assocladon presented the poslflon of those opposed to the btll. In the PENNSYLVANIA HOMESCHOOLERS newsletter, Howard Rlchman called the hearlngs a'resounding success' for homeschoolers. The chatrman of the Educatlon Commlttee ls now conslderlng posstble revlsions of the btll, and homeschoolers hope that he will then brtng tt up for a vote out of commlttee and onto the House floor, Homeschoolers will try to get the bill introduced tnto the Senate as well, so that through Senate hearlngs the rest of the leglslature can become familiar wlth homeschoollng. [See story above for more about the Dec.ember 3 heartngs.l Terar: In GWS #57, we printed excerpts from Judge Charles E. Murray's Aprll l3th rultng ln the Te:ras class actlon sutt of Leepr us. Arllttgtort Irdeperdert
Scl@l Dlstrrct whlch found that ofa home school ls nota
operatlon
vloladon of the Te:<as Education Code, because home schools are to be considered prlvate schools under the law. The September-November lssue of Tle Home Sclwl Cout RepprL the newsletter of the HOME SCHOOL LEGAL DEFENSE A.SSOCIATION,
now reports that the state will appeal the Leeper declslon. HSLDA adds: 'In addttlon.., some superintendents ar€ attempttrg to clrcumvent the holding by sendlng letters to homeschoolers clalmtng that since the state has determtned the currlculum that must be taught, and slnce it is the obllgadon of school oftlctals to enforce the law, all homeschoolers must brlng their currlculum to school olffclals for lnspecdon. Howerrcr, Judge Murray lnthe Leeper decision makes lt clear that homeschoolers are under no obltgaflon to seek prior approval of their public school..." Waeblngton: In GWS #6O, we wrote that homeschool groups had met with the Renton school superlntendent to tnform htm that the dlstrict's annual Declaradon of Intent form contalned an addendum that was not requlrred by lau The December lssue of the HomeschrcIers' Vobe r€ports that representatives of homeschool groups met successfully wrth another dlstrict olllctal, the Spectal Servtces
Coordlnator of the Issaquah School Dlstrlct, agatn to discuss dlscrepancles between what appears on the distrlct's Declaration of Intent form and what ls actually requlrcd by law. Serrcral homeschool representatives also gave a r€port on home educaflon ln
Washtngton to the House Educaflon Comrntttee on December 5, discussing cooperatlon wtth publtc schools, glvlng htgh school credlt to homeschoolers, and actlvltles of the homeschool organlza-
flons. GROWING WTITIOUT SCHOOLING #6I
CHALLENGES & CONCERNS: SEX-ROLE STEREOTYPING Sue Haley of Oregon wrltes: 'One thlmg I would llke to see dlscussed ln GWS ls the lssue of sex role stereot5ping. From the parents' letters and the tnterest llsts of ctrildren tn the pen-pals sectlon, I see ltttle lndlcatlon that homeschoolers are growlng up any more free of sexual stereot5rpes than formally schooled chlldren.'We asked a few other readers to address the lssue Sue ralses, and we hope that ottrers of you wlll wrlte as well.
RAISINGASON-WITHOUT RO
l#f,
"*rn
McAtptrc (rN):
I don't know rnany homeschoolers personally, and the only cpncluslon I can draw from the letters tn GWS ls that we're a prctty dfimse lot. But I thfnk Sue Haley ralses an tmportant lgsue, one I d ltke to see dlscrrssed more often. Judgfng from the rresponses IVe recelved to my comments ln GWS #58, the subJect of sex roles does seem to be one that concerns qulte a few of us. As I've mentloned before, rny son Nathantel's lnter€sts (he'll soon turn fO) have always leaned more tourard the arts, trlstory, and wlldMe than tradltlonal 'allboy' pursutts. Though he's rrcry actlve
physfcally and anything but shy, compefldve sports and group actlvltles llke scouflng stmply don't appeal to hlrn I have no problem wtth thls. He has no pmblem wtth thls. But rrow, do some ottrer
ltl I'ne been accused of 'femlnlzfng' my son and neglecttng to develop hls 'mascullne ldentlty" (whater.er the heck tlrat means). The whole premlse, of course, ls screw5l. The nrorld te full of thoroughly rnascullne poets, muslclans, htstortans and wtldMe conservadonlsts, The world ts aleo full of gay men who greur up playlng football with Itrrc-ln fathers. But people do perslet |rr maldng these sex-mle assumpflons. And I\re s€en a number of 'ltberated' couples suddenly rsrrert to ster€otjlpe when lt corres to thelr ldds. Phrttcrrlarly when lt comes to ratshg people harrc a problem wlth
thelr sons.
That old double standard ts sUU wtth us. Glrls are often encouraged, these days, to be assertfue, play soc.cer, become bustness tyc$ons, etc. But tf a boy exprteases an lnterest ln ballet, sewlng, or po€try that's when blgh arudety tdts the fanl It's consldered OK for gtrls to be aggresstve because socletlr values thts quallty as a 'mascullne' characterlstlc (t.e, strong/ postttve/deslrable). It tsn't so OK for a boy to be ecnslttve or arflstlc becausc thafs seen as 'femlntne' (t.e. weak/negatfue/ undeslrable). I thtnk there's rxlne prlessure on boys to conform to stereot1pe, and more pressure on the parente ofboys to promote
that conformtgr. Interesdngly, all the
letters I rec=lned from readers tn response to my letter tn GWS #58 were from the rrpthers of sons. I'm curlous to know about the daughters.
You wouldn't believc how many unsohclted lectures IVe heard on the vlrtues ofLittle League. IfI had a daughter, rrould these sarme people be hectortng me to send her to charm school? Somehow I doubt lL As one wornan wrote me, 'I thlnk lt's sadwhen pcople ltnrt themsehes that way.' I agr€e ivlth her. I want Nathanlel to have as man5l optlons as posstble. I don't want htm to grow up Gellng bound by other GROWING WTTHOUT SCHOOLING #6I
people's derrands, deflnltlons and hangups. Thafs one ofthe reasons we're homeschoolers. Forhrnately, most of our close frlends are tnvolved tn the arts, so Nathanlel has seen llnet-hand that a guy can be as adept wlth a sonnet as wtth a socket wrench. Hes known btg strong men who wer€n't ashamed to weep over Lafufeme. I\re uratched hlm, orrcr the years, flgure out exactly what ldnd of mascullne tdendty he wants. He often @rnments on qualldes he admhes ln a pardcular person (and he's an tncredlbly astute obsewer of human nature). He's clearly capable of selecting hls own role models from the people we know and read aboul One of his c'urrent heroes l,s a young vtolnlst named Idand Chen, whom we met recently after a local conccrt. And he ltkes hearlng werythfng about Ishmael Wallace ln GWS (he thlnks Ishmael must llve on Mount Olympus). I've always sought out chlldren's books that feahrre strong herolnes as well as hemes who don't conform to tradltlonal expectatlons. And IVe emphaslzed tlrat therc's a lot more to world htstory than the explotts of whlte male warrlors. I can't tmagtne how anyone cruld construe thls as stsel$flng my son. But tf they do, we ftgure it's thelr problern not oura.
ENCOTJRAGING
S
ELF. ESTEEM
Ftom Matdrcd Smlth (MD): Orcr the years IVe had contact wtth many homeechooltng famtlles, and I nrould guess that only a rnlnorlty were ooncemd about sex-role ster€otj4plng. But there's a world of dtlference between the relnforc.ement of sex nrles ln the coerelve envlrlonment of school and in the relaflveh free envlronment of home. That ts, otr.--"1or dllTeren& between schooled and homeschooled clrtldren ls the extraondtnary degree of subseMenc.e schooled chtldren are subJected to dally. When your datly Me ts planned and dlrected by others, when your movernents are controlled by the clock, the lssue becomes one of datly survlval, and self-esteem and Lndtvldual empowerrnent are vtrtually non-odstenl I thtnk lt's thts conttnual eroslon of power
that
learrcs chlldren pr€y to lnstltutlonal scdsm (among other thtngs) - they're less
sure of themselrrcs and thelr lndlvlduallty, and less able to reslst the subtle and notso-subtle peer pnessure. You can't tell how much self-esteem and confldence people harrc from looldng at an lnter€st ltst of pen-pals or par€nts' letters to CWS. lW daughterJamte, for example, would ltst the followlng teterests: drawlng, wrlun& tce skaflng, sdmmfng. She wants to be a motherwho homeschools her chtldren.
Sex-stereotyped role? Yes, tf thls ls all
you know about Jamle. But Jamle ls
asserdve yet constderate, tndividualtstic yet cloperatfue. She speahs out when others are afi::atd to do so. She is very actve and suc,cessful ln several sports, has a wlde variet5r of interests, and loves leamtng. She has written books and created her own publlshtng crmpany to sell them. She works for money and barter. And, ltke all chlldren, she is very sensitlve to tnequallty and lnJustice. She can detect an 'ism' wlth ltttle trouble. Jamte's hlgh self-esteem and personal pourcr have been nurtured !n an atmosphere free of fear and lnflmidation. When mywifeJeanne and I became parents, we wanted to offer our chLildren a se)dst-free envlronment, to acflvely counter the sex-role stereotyptng so prevalent ln our culture. When Jamie was a babywe usually dressed her in unlsex clothtng. People, I discovered rather qutckly, feel a need to know what sex a baby ls befcre they can relate to the child. Some even become hdignant if they can't tell what sex the baby ls. To resolve this problem for thenl I dectded to go along wtth whatever strangers dectded Jamie's sex was. If thry remarked what a strong boy she was, I would agree wtth thetr observatlon. If they commented about my dellcate and beautlful daughter, I would nod and flash a smlle. This way, I avoided embarassed apologles from strangers (and frlends), and avolded early sexster€ot)ptng by krvttlng all cumments. When we read books to our chlldrerr. we often substltute the femlnine pronoun
for the mascullne form that the authors usually use. WhenJamle began to read on her own she dlscovered that books used the mascultne form almost excluslvely. Thts prompted her to ask why they do thts, and why books wtth male characters often have mor€ acflon or adventure than
those with female characters, We talked about hlstory, povrer, dtscrlmlnaflon, traditions, bias, sedsm, etc, often ending by readlng books aboqt women or others ln our culture who have been the targets of dtscrlmlnadon. Jamle has a well-developed sense ofrtght and wrong, and has asserted her dghts, or the dghts of others, ln numeroua occaslons throughout her
Itfe. To engender a phtlosophy of strength, I wrestled and pLayed Judo with Jamie as she grew. To develop mechanical csmpetence, I encouraged her to use tools to butld and flx thlngs. For her own autonomy, Jarnle is encouragd to quesflon or challenge adults, and has an age-approprtate understanding of sexua.l
rnatters. Years ago I would have reslsted the noflon that crertain tralts may be a matter ofnature, not nurture. But I'm not so sure about this .ulrmorre. I see my children becoming tnterested ln thlngs that Sue Haley would probably equate wlth sexrole stereot54plng. Janle, at lO, ls very