An End to the California Homeschooling Controversy?

Originally posted at http://digitaldiatribes.wordpress.com on July 23, 2008.

In cautiously welcomed news, it appears that the entire case in California where a court held that parents had no right to homeschool their children (originally discussed here, with a follow-up here) has been dropped.

While that sounds good, there is still one more step to go in order to completely right this wrong. According to this article on the matter,

Hausknecht believes one of the parties should ask the appellate court to dismiss the appeal completely as being moot. “And that should happen as a matter of course,” he notes. “But since this is California, no one quite knows for certain. So we can’t say with a hundred percent certainty that this case will go away, but we’re pretty sure it will.”

So, dropping the case is a great first step. The next step is to eliminate any and all recognition of the previous ruling. This means it cannot be used as precedent. This step was previously taken on a temporary basis while a re-hearing was scheduled, and it is now time to make that permanent with the case’s dismissal.

The best final step is legislation that takes this out of the hands of the courts entirely. As the article says:

Ideally, says the analyst, state lawmakers would enact a law protecting parents’ right to educate their children as they see fit. He says it looks as if home schooling has won, but Hausknecht believes it could be just a ceasefire “because the uncertainties that convinced the court of appeals…to outlaw home schooling still exist under California law.”

“And we hope that that law becomes solidified in the future rather than made more uncertain for families that home school,” he adds.

But given the liberal nature of the California legislature, Hausknecht does not expect that to happen. He thinks it is a good sign, however, that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger came out so strongly in support of home schooling.

An Update on the California Homeschool Controversy

Originally posted on http://digitaldiatribes.wordpress.com on March 28, 2008.

There have been a few stirrings on the California Homeschool front recently. The initial posting regarding the controversy is here.

As can be expected, there are a great deal of people, groups, and organizations that are concerned about the decision. As a response, there are a few different petitions that have been circulated. First, The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) started a petition for the purpose of asking the court to depublish its opinion. This would mean the opinion could not be cited as precedent in other rulings. The response was overwhelming with over 250,000 signatures in two weeks. HSLDA believes that the petition has served its purpose and is not currently asking for more signatures. Another petition can be found here. The petition is directed to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has already expressed his support for home-schoolers. Another petition is found at Reverse The Ruling, a web site specifically dedicated to this court decision. Finally, there is a petition for parental rights found here, also based on this ruling. Those who wish to express their opinion have no shortage of avenues.

The Great California Homeschool Controversy

Originally posted on http://digitaldiatribes.wordpress.com on March 24, 2008.

Much has been abuzz in the homeschool community in reaction to a ruling last week by the Second District Court of Appeal in California. In a case that was not intended to be a referendum on the rights of parents to educate their children at home, but was expected to be an isolated ruling in an individual circumstance, the court used broad language that suddenly put the rights of parents to homeschool in peril.

A brief excerpt from the article presents the part of the decision that has created this concern:

“California courts have held that … parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children,” Justice H. Walter Croskey said in the 3-0 ruling issued on Feb. 28. “Parents have a legal duty to see to their children’s schooling under the provisions of these laws.”

“A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare,” the judge wrote, quoting from a 1961 case on a similar issue.

I am not a resident of California, but my wife and I do homeschool our children. I am not posting to have the predictable debate about credentials, ability, socialization, and the like. This is really about the rights of parents to educate a child as they best see fit. I am not opposed to some basic and meaningful regulation in the matter, but at the same time homeschoolers are rightfully very skeptical about any government involvement in the matter. Quite simply, we can’t trust the bureaucrats. I would be incredibly reluctant to allow any “observer” into my home and provide any excuse for them to judge against my wishes. In today’s world, God only knows what they’d come up with.