A “breathtaking” ruling from where else but a California appeals court could subject the parents of 166,000 students in the state to criminal sanctions will be taken to the state Supreme Court.
And then the ruling could go national. In short, home schooling parents, watch out!
The ruling attacks traditional homeschooling, but also calls into question homeschooling through charter schools and teaching children at home via independent study through public and private school.
If not reversed, parents of homeschoolers across the nations are in big trouble. My question is then that if a parent refuses to comply and continues to home school are the children taken away from them? Is there jail time?
Justice H. Walt Croskey, whose opinion was joined by two other judges, then ordered: “Parents who fail to [comply with school enrollment laws] may be subject to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction, and subject to imposition of fines or an order to complete a parent education and counseling program.”
The determination reversed a decision from Superior Court Judge Stephen Marpet, who ruled “parents have a constitutional right to school their children in their own home.”
But Croskey worried that children are being taught by a “non-credentialed parent.” I don’t know about you but that statement worries the heck out of me.
It is also said under a section titled “Consequences of Parental Denial of a Legal Education,” that “parents are subject to being ordered to enroll their children in an appropriate school or education program and provide proof of enrollment to the court, and willful failure to comply with such an order may be punished by a fine for civil contempt.”
The future of homeschooling is in dire jeopardy. This is just the latest attack on Christianity. Make no mistake about it.
Update: I’m reading in some places that the LA Times blew the story out of context but if so nobody told the Governor of that state who seems perturbed by the ruling.
Gov. Schwarzenegger Issued a statement Regarding Court of Appeals Home Schooling
Ruling: “Every California child deserves a quality education and parents should have the right to decide what’s best for their children. Parents should not be penalized for acting in the best interests of their children’s education. This outrageous ruling must be overturned by the courts and if the courts don’t protect parents’ rights then, as elected officials, we will.”
March 7, 2008 at 5:56 pm
What a horrendous decision by a California appeals court (of course this is only one of many). Thankfully, this is state court and not federal. I have no doubt if the CA Supreme Court upholds this the other liberal states will be crawling all over each other to duplicate this travesty. I live in Maryland and I know they’d love this. Guess we’d have to change our residency to Virginia where, fortunately, we also own property.
March 7, 2008 at 6:18 pm
Prayers and more prayers
March 7, 2008 at 7:53 pm
I saw this as well and immediately contacted a homeschooling friend, who is coincidentally *uncredentialed* herself, in the People’s Republic of California to get the scoop. Her husband shared this link with me, saying basically, long story, short–False Alarm–the LATimes was misinformed and managed to get the gist of the story wrong all in the first few sentences. (Shocking-that a liberal news agency might do that, huh?) Anyway, to the homeschooling parents in CA–School On!
March 7, 2008 at 8:46 pm
This is a long time coming.
First, the all-powerful Teachers Unions are 100% behind this.
Espiecially considering how much smarter the average home-schooler is as compared to the industrial grade dufus that comes out of public school (which I am one of — it took me years after high school to learn all the things they should have taught me).
Now the bigger issue. Johhny can’t read because public schools long ago gave up as a primary goal of reading writing and aritmetic for an even more important goal …social engineering!
They can let escape from the Maoist re-education camps any minds that have not been “educated” by the social engineers and experimenters. You must be steeped in “Self actualization” and “Johnny has two daddies.”
Orwell was right, and they know it. No one must be allowed to ecape!
Can anyone hear Pink Floy’s “the Wall” theme music in the background; or is it just me?
March 8, 2008 at 4:18 am
patjrsmom,
I hope you’re right but it seems to me that the judges’ ruling says that that a child has to be either physically attending a private school, or he has to be tutored by a credentialed teacher, and those are the only two choices. Even the Governor called it “outrageous.” I don’t see the Governor going out on a limb like that if this is truly a false alarm. I hope you’re right though.
March 10, 2008 at 3:00 pm
The more I read about this one the worse it gets.