NHELD opposes HSLDA´s solution to the homeschool military enlistment problem
[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ PA Homeschoolers Message Board! ]
Posted by Howard Richman on December 05 2005 at 13:33:01:
National Home Education Legal Defense (NHELD) opposes Federal House Resolution (HR 1815) a bill that is being promoted by Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) in order to overcome the effects of the decision by the military to move homeschoolers from the high school graduate category (tier 1) to the GED category (tier 2).
The problem is that many drop-outs call themselves homeschoolers in order to enhance their resumes, and there is no accountability in most states that would prevent them from doing so. Only in Pennsylvania and South Carolina can homeschool organizations protect the reputation of homeschool diplomas.
Even though real homeschoolers on average score much higher than school students on tests, the group of "homeschoolers" being enlisted in the military actually score a bit lower on the military´s aptitude test. In fact, those homeschoolers who score average or below tend to drop-out of the military at a rate similar to those who once dropped-out of school.
If this bill passes as is, homeschoolers would be enlisted just as heavily (the bill says "no practical limit with regard to enlistment") as school graduates.
However, NHELD holds that this bill would let the Secretary of Defense regulate home school graduation and so opposes it. They are suspicious about what would be in the Secretary of Defense´s policy, which would have the force of law. They are also opposed to the word "home school" appearing in federal statutes for fear that it lead to a federal definition of homeschooling that could in and of itself regulate what homeschoolers would have to do.
I favor HSLDA's bill because it would solve an important problem. Currently the U.S. Army is enlisting homeschool graduates on the same basis as school graduates -- but that is because they are having trouble meeting their recruitment goals. The other services are discriminating against homeschoolers. Without a bill like this one, all of the services will discriminate against homeschoolers once peace comes.
http://www.pahomeschoolers.com/messages/16350.html aparently not.. I have been told that the recruiters are not allowing homeschooled kids to take the ASVAB.. and without an ASVAB score you can't even go to the MEPS.. I don't believe thats true. When I joined the military I took the ASVAB at MEPS. The problem must be that the home-schooled prospective recruits do not have the documentation (proof of HS diploma or home school equivalent) to even start at MEPS. They could take the GED, but I hear that many of services are trying to reduce the number of GED recruits accepted. As far as I'm concerned, if a prospective recruit has a GED and a decent ASVAB score and they have the confidence of the recruiter to start an enlistment process, there is no reason a service should reject them (unless they don't have a job for them).