Search Results for: blog homeschooling abuse or abuse of homeschooling

Homeschooling Hits the News … Again

The eyes of the nation are on this case. A Pennsylvania couple—Louann Bowers and Sinhue Johnson—was arrested for concealing their five children from the eyes of the world, raising them without heat or electricity, not providing for their basic health care, isolating them from anything found on the “outside,” and for not seeing to their educational needs. The couple is currently locked up in York County Prison, and the children have been placed in foster homes. They have received medical treatment and most of them have been enrolled in school. The parents say they have been homeschooling the children, but … Continue reading →

Homeschooling cover for child abuse and sexual exploitation?

Who comes up with this stuff? At the head of homeschooling headlines today is an article out of the UK entitled Home schooling ‘could be a cover for child abuse and sexual exploitation’. My problem is not that some people feel this way, but that some people will try to convince others of this drivel. Here are some of the items presented in this article: In some extreme cases, home education could be used as a cover for abuse. We cannot allow this to happen and are committed to doing all we can to help ensure children are safe, wherever … Continue reading →

Great News! Homeschooling is Officially Still Legal in California

It seems almost poetic that I should happen to be in California when the state’s appellate court ruled that a previous declaration that homeschooling was illegal was wrong. While I have not noticed hordes of homeschoolers dancing in the streets of Las Angeles, I can feel the proverbial sigh of relief. California homeschoolers are victorious in the fight to keep homeschooling legal in California. Ever since a Judge declared that homeschooling was illegal in California last winter during a child abuse hearing California homeschoolers have been up in arms. Homeschoolers had many allies in getting this decision reversed. The Homeschool … Continue reading →

Dr. Laura on homeschooling

While I don’t necessarily agree with everything Dr. Laura Schlesinger says, or rather how she says it, I was delighted this morning to receive a link to her blog this morning and a post she made on homeschooling. Dr. Laura’s blog post was entitled, Home-Schooling Does Not Hamper Socialization. Now this is not a huge revelation, I have mentioned it many, many times. The fact that Dr. Laura took the time to put it in her blog, in a way gives homeschooling a bit more credibility, or it at least gives homeschooling families a reason to do little I-told-you-so dance. … Continue reading →

Comparing Homeschool Abuse to General Childhood Abuse

“HARFORD COUNTY, Md. (WJZ) ― A Harford County child starves to death, leaving a senator to wonder if the state should be checking in on the welfare of children who are schooled at home.” I see a headline similar to this about 4 times a year. A parent who happens to homeschool their children or who claims to be homeschooling their children does the unthinkable. Instead of the tragedy being addressed for what it is, however, it is used to vilify homeschooling as a whole. What is interesting is that when abuse happens outside of homeschooling it is addressed as … Continue reading →

Is It Time for a new Homeschooling Survey?

According to the HSLDA it is. They are distributing a survey to homeschoolers through several homeschool-testing services in conjunction with the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI). If you order a standardized test (which is mandatory in most states) through BJU Press, Family Learning Organization, Piedmont Education Services, or Seton Testing Services, you can expect to receive a survey along with your test materials. According to the HSLDSA website, the reason for this test is to provide updated information about homeschooling to the public. They say this is necessary because it has been nearly 10 years since the last survey … Continue reading →

Sleep Deprivation and Infant Abuse?

The CDC recently published a shocking report. According to their study, 91,000 infants per year are abused or neglected during their first year of life and about 33% of those abuse cases occur within the first week of life. Experts everywhere are calling for more focus to be put on this critical time period of mom adjusting to caring for a newborn. Especially if the newborn shows traits of being colicky or fussy. (I just have to point out here that most babies aren’t colicky or really fussy in the hospital.) While the statistics are shocking there are a few … Continue reading →

Has the California Verdict Affected Your View on Homeschooling?

I cannot say I have ever seen as much conversation about homeschooling as I have this past month. It started, of course, with the California verdict declaring homeschooling without credentials illegal. This ruling has been followed with a literal flood of articles, opinion, and comments. While the majority of the articles are positive toward homeschooling and parents rights, the comments are brutal, critical, and often immature. I have personally been trying to ignore the bru-ha-ha, but decided to speak up because I feel that the California verdict has affected the views of many towards homeschooling… in a bad way. I … Continue reading →

Meet a Families.com Blogger – Andrea Hermitt!

I’m a homeschooler, and I bop over to the homeschooling blog quite a bit. I find the encouragement I need to keep going from the fun and informative blogs there, and Andrea Hermitt is largely responsible for that wealth of knowledge. Andrea, thanks for taking the time to join me today! How long have you blogged for Families.com? I first began blogging for Families.com in December of 2006. In July 2007, I left to pursue other opportunities, but I could not keep my distance. I returned to Families.com about a week ago. I’m not surprised you couldn’t stay away – … Continue reading →

Ask a Homeschooling Blogger: Why Are You So Against Government Involvement Part 2

Note: As I have explained in my previous blog this morning, I have received an e-mail that I think articulates the opinions of many who do not home school and don’t understand why those of us who do might see government intervention as a bad thing. I generally ignore these letters because they are often riddled with poor language and have clearly not been thought out. For the original question in part, please see the first blog. This is a continuation of my response. Those Who “Claim to Homeschool” Every so often, we hear of a news story about a … Continue reading →