Posted on 03/11/2007 11:50:14 AM PDT by EternalVigilance
A Superior Court judge in New Jersey says homeschooling is just about the same as deliberate child abuse.
In fact, he says, he just might name a school district in his state as a defendant in a current court dispute, citing the district's "shocking" failure to monitor and test all students – including homeschoolers.
"In today's threatening world, where we seek to protect children from abuse, not just physical, but also educational abuse, how can we not monitor the educational welfare of all our children? A child in New Jersey, who recently was found unfed and locked in a putrid bedroom was allegedly 'homeschooled' and because no one, such as a teacher or nurse, was able to observe any abuse in a school setting, it went undiscovered," wrote Judge Thomas Zampino in a case that came before him.
That's even though New Jersey state law does forbid child abuse, and its regulations regarding homeschooling say parents or guardians are allowed "to educate the child at home." Further, the state law notes they are not required to submit any type of communication of intent to a local school board, nor are parents required to have their plans approved by a board.
(Story continues below)
In fact, state law allows a school board in New Jersey to act against a homeschooling parent only if there is "credible evidence that the parent, guardian or other person having custody or control of a school-age child is not causing the child either to attend school (public or nonpublic) or to receive equivalent instruction elsewhere than at school …"
Despite New Jersey state law, Zampino insists what heeds to happen is this:
Certain basic requirements and safeguards should be implemented that protect all children, once the decision to "homeschool" a child has been made by the parents, as follows: 1. A parent/guardian who seeks to homeschool his/her child(ren) must register the child(ren) in their home school district, so that no child slips through the cracks of our education system.
2. A curriculum must be presented and filed with the local board of education and some "homeschool" training seminar required for the teaching parent (a four-hour video would suffice).
3. Testing on the same standardized basis for all students shall be administered to all homeschool children on an annual basis to measure whether "equivalent instruction" is being received by a child "elsewhere than at school."
A New Jersey lawyer familiar with homeschooling precedents in his state told WND the judge suggests the parents in the divorce dispute work it out. But he said the judge's additional comments are alarming.
"He's presenting this as though it's authority," Christopher Brennan said. "He's just making this up, with no basis whatsoever, saying that this is what should be done."
The judge, in fact, didn't stop with just the New Jersey situation.
"Here, [a witness in court] testified that approximately two million of today's fifty five million school age children are presently being homeschooled in the United States. Such numbers outside the public school system cannot be left without any review requirements under the law," Zampino said.
"How can we have as existing law for these children, only two court decisions that are over 40 years old, and no state statute that outlines a framework for school districts when parents choose this alternative for their children" the judge asked.
The Home School Legal Defense Association, which works worldwide on behalf of homeschool students and projects, said it couldn't comment on the specific issues in the case. But the organization did note that the judge's words did not change New Jersey law.
"In order to protect individual freedoms, the founders of our nation wanted to be sure that governmental powers did not become overly concentrated. To prevent this, they wisely split power into three branches – legislative, judicial and executive. As the founders conceived it, the judicial branch has no power to make new laws. That power belongs to the legislature working through representatives elected by the people," the group said in a statement.
Brennan, however, noted that once a judge's opinion becomes available, it is easy for another judge to quote from that, or even cite it as a conclusion.
"What really is problematic [is] this is symptomatic of classic judicial activism. The Legislature clearly spells out what's required to educate a child in the state of New Jersey," Brennan said. "They've said, 'This is the requirement,' and it's just that they [homeschooling parents] have to provide an equivalent instruction."
The judge said the status of homeschooling, to him, isn't acceptable. His comments were prompted by concerns by Stephen Hamilton that his wife, Tara Hamilton, from whom he separated in 2006, was adequately teaching their children at home.
"In questioning by this court, the mother made it clear that in the ten years she had been homeschooling the children, no one from any Board of Education in Montclair (where they lived until October 2006) ever visited the home. Ms. Hamilton never went to any school or board office, no lesson plan was ever reviewed and no progress report or testing of the children was ever performed. This is shocking to the court," he wrote.
"In this day and age where we seek to protect children from harm and sexual predators, so many children are left unsupervised. It is further shocking to this court that in September, 2001 the New Jersey Department of Education published answers to frequently asked questions about homeschooling as a guide to local school districts that listed the following:
1. Parents/Guardians are not required by law to notify their public school district of their intention to educate the child elsewhere than at school. 2. The law does not require or authorize the local board of education to review and approve the curriculum or program of a child educated elsewhere than at school.
3. No certification to teach is required to be held by the parent.
4. No standardized test(s) are administered to the children.
The judge, however, said he wasn't attacking homeschooling.
His comments, rather, are "a statement that it is necessary to register those children for whom this alternative is chosen and to monitor that their educational needs are being adequately nurtured. Judicial interpretation of the statute requires such steps to measure 'equivalent instruction' when the alternative 'elsewhere than at school' is chosen by parents.'"
In the case at hand, involving the Hamilton family, the judge said the father has an administrative remedy at hand. He may contact the Ridgewood Board of Education "and the school district will file suit … against Ms. Hamilton for the children's non-attendance at school." When she then notifies the court she's chosen homeschooling she will then be required to show the school district it is equivalent, the judge said.
The HSLDA said the judge probably would not have been shocked had he been aware that New Jersey's homeschooling laws are similar to those in other states.
"The judge is mistaken, pure and simple," Brennan told WND. "A judge can be mistaken."
He said the two million students homeschooled in the United States now are not being neglected, either. They are, in fact, protected from being molested by teachers, which while rare, does happen.
In a commentary on the Constitutionally Correct site, the writers said New Jersey judges "who legislate from the bench are giving Massachusetts judges (and German jack boots) a run for their money. … The court's opinion is a judicial temper tantrum. The judge wails that New Jersey law doesn't fit his idea of what the law should be. Not only does New Jersey law not require government monitoring and testing of homeschoolers, the state gives public schools no legal authorization to do so…"
The reference to Germany was about an issue on which WND has reported extensively. In that case, police took into custody a 15-year-old student, Melissa Busekros, and a judge ordered her into a psychiatric hospital, for being homeschooled, which remains illegal in that country.
Wolfgang Drautz, consul general of the Federal Republic of Germany, has said that "the public has a legitimate interest in countering the rise of parallel societies that are based on religion or motivated by different worldviews and in integrating minorities into the population as a whole."
That means, worldviews that do not align with those taught in Germany's public schools must be stamped out, he said.
The HSLD has called the case an "outrage."
Further, American homeschoolers should be concerned, as WND has reported, because the ease with which similar restrictions on free choice could be imposed in the United States.
Michael Farris, cofounder of the HSLDA, has called for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to protect the right of parents to educate their children at home, in light of such developments in Europe.
Except today's high school education is about equivalent to yesteryear's 3rd grade education. Perhaps your experience being homeschooled has not allowed you to see the disgraceful condition many public school's are graduating. If you want to know what that's like, as some of the people on these threads who teach at colleges see. I remember what I saw 20+ years ago finishing up my college degree and that was before homeschooling was even heard of. It was horrendous then.
There are far too many parents who don't give a damn about their kids. Allowing those parents to "homeschool" is incredibly dangerous.
How is it any different than allowing them to send their kids to public schools? The kids who do the best there have parents who are involved in their education. Thinking that sending those kids to public schools somehow educates them or protects them from abusive parents is pretty out of touch with reality.
The question is whether this governmental interference is reasonable or not. I maintain it is.
It is not. It's a government of the people, for the people, and by the people. It is not supposed to be an entity concerning itself with the daily affairs of people and meddling in their private business.
When cases of abuse come to the attention of the authorities, yes, something should be done, but giving up our freedoms and privacy and right to love our lives as we choose is too high a price to pay in an attempt to stop some people from doing bad things. They're going to happen anyway and the rest of us will end up living in the USSA. Ever read Brave New World or 1984? That's what you're promoting. You can argue for governmental interference all you wan but you're not going to find much support for it on this forum.
Happens to public school kids and I know of families that it happened to. Sending them to public school never stopped it or caught it.
Bad excuse to regulate homeschooling and families.
Happens to public school kids and I know of families that it happened to. Sending them to public school never stopped it or caught it.
Bad excuse to regulate homeschooling and families.
So?....What happens to government schooled kids who fail their standardized exams? Should they be forced to homeschool?
No but the school involved should lose it's authority to educate children.
You'd be shutting down about every public school in the nation, then.
The solution to homeschooled families who fail to homeschool their kids *adequately* is to send the to public schools but no one ever has any answers to what the penalty for schools should be for the same infraction.
The reason we homeschoolers take this so personally is because it is SO unusual among homeschoolers, that we don't like being tarred with that brush. That would be like tarring ALL parents who send their kids to public schools with the same brush as those parents who park their kids there for baby sitting, and don't have any involvement with the school OR their kids' work. The VAST majority of parents of public schooled kids are not like this, and would resent being characterized as such.
You'd be shutting down about every public school in the nation, then.
Exactly. If there's anything that shouldn't be socialized, it's education.
You'd be shutting down about every public school in the nation, then.
Exactly. If there's anything that shouldn't be socialized, it's education. It's too important to put into the hands of government beauracrats.
Lodge member, too, I'd bet.
Oh please! Anyone can get a grade equivilent exam available from a public school. The state would face a huge lawsuit for applying un-equal standards in testing. Theres no way in hell the state would risk giving a 7th grade equivilent test to a home schooled 4th grader and expect it to be the equivilent standard without being forced to apply the same standard to the public school kids.
Maybe a few out of millions, but the state can call for a examination of children, but you as a parent have a right to choose your doctor (not some state sponsored goon)...
You have the right to refuse entry into your house (unless by court order).
I personally use the Home School Defense fund to protect my family against unlawful intrusions into our raising of our children.
Good money in today's society to protect us from those that would take advantage of this situation to steal rights.
Very simple, Homeschooling parents know that if your child is slow to grasp one thing, you do pound it into them when they are not ready. You switch gears, teach what they can grasp at that time, and wait until they are of age to grab the information in large chunks later on.
My 7y/o is doing leaps and bounds in math, he now almost knows his multiplication tables to 12 X 12 by heart. He has a very firm grasp on fractions too. But... He is trudging slowly through reading.... but that is ok, we don't push until frustration hits on spelling yet, we know it will come in leaps and bounds later. Science is another strong point of my boy, and I can tell there is gonna be no stopping his wonder and development.
But the failure of schools to adapt a child by child basic learning program tends to push brilliant (in certain areas) children behind others.
The beauty of HS teaching is to max your child's abilities at the right time. It is the ability to teach outside the four walls in real world examples. It is the ability to form connections with other home schoolers to max your core values.
Locally there is HS proms, HS sports, and HS church groups that band together to teach. Almost twice a month our kids attend HS field trips to interesting places.
It is freedom, at it's inner most core.
BTW... we do test, we do take notes, we do submit to our groups requirements. But we did so voluntarily and I will fight to keep it that way so busybodies like you mind your own ..... business.
You do NOT pound it into them when they are not ready is what I meant to say above.
I agree.
My 7y/o is doing leaps and bounds in math, he now almost knows his multiplication tables to 12 X 12 by heart. He has a very firm grasp on fractions too. But... He is trudging slowly through reading....
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
My two boys were this way. The oldest was government schooled and his confidence was permanently damaged. The younger, at about 10, zoomed ahead in reading.
While my husband and I worked daily on reading with our younger boy, we knew when we were approaching the frustration point and backed off. If he had been institutionalized for his education, he would have been in a highly competitive environment and might have just given up.
While my husband and I worked daily on reading with our younger boy, we knew when we were approaching the frustration point and backed off. If he had been institutionalized for his education, he would have been in a highly competitive environment and might have just given up.
Ben Franklin was in his mid teens before he was ready to read and it didn't seem to hold him back.
Ping!
while it is true that some negligent parents or child abusers (Michael Devlin) may use homeschooling as a "cover", it is also true that abuse that occurs in the schools does not get reported as well.
If this judge wants to use one case to condemn homeschooling, why is he not using the dozens of cases of sexual abuse in the schools to do the same?
It wasn't just oversight by school officials that failed this kid...where were extended family members? neighbors?
DSS case workers?
It isn't just the school that come in contact with kids.
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