Well said. Don't know why they against homeschooling when stats show students do much better. Like, what's the point of classroom based education in the digital age anyway.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/homeschooled-kids-perform-better-in-naplan-report-20160204-gmlgu9.html

Responsible home schooling represented by tested bona fide academic results? Yes and why not!?

Exclusive/selective/subjective or home based, inculcated from infancy, antisocial/insidious anti-christian indoctrination?

Hell no! And never ever!
Alan B.

Only a very, very few children are subject to the horrors referred to by this woman, who is "home educating her three children". The few are always a 'bit odd'; they have a little something about them that makes them stand put from the rest. Clue: perhaps it's the parents. After all, they are introduced to their peers at school and society in general on the same terms, under the same conditions. When 99.9% of kids are getting on fine, surely it's possible that your own dear sebastian has a problem? And, it could be that the problem is parental.

When I started reading this, a nasty incident from my own childhood came back to me. Primary school age, I was, and this woman bustled up to me dragging a miserable looking kid I had never laid eyes, and accused me of odering her wretch to take off his clothes at some time in the recent past. When the wretch squeaked, "I wasn't him",off she marched without a by-your-leave. I never saw them again. Perhaps they withdrew from the world into home schooling, and Lord knows what sort of strange existence where they - at least mother - felt safe.

There were some really weird people, even then. But now, they want to make their peculiarities public and complain to the rest of us about them; and, they are encouraged to do so with the help of the welfare and victim industries.

Some people should definitely NOT be parents. There should be no right to bring up a child to believe that he or is a victim needing to be constantly cocooned by a parents with problems.

A friend was explaining to me a few days ago how parents lose most of their rights the second they obtain a birth certificate.
Basically your child is a ward of the state, and parents are just the 'people' responsible for maintaining until they become adults.

If I was to take a guess a what this attack on homeschooling is about, I'd probably say 'Safe Schools'.

There has been an increase in the number of parents choosing to homeschool their children, but I don't know the state by state statistics.
There was another story on OLO a few months back in regards to Safe Schools not providing information regarding which schools are part of the program.
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18731

I believe these measures are to head off any parent wanting to avoid 'Safe Schools'.
Suddenly the government can say 'the parent did not follow the correct procedures and was not acting in the interests of the child' and then they have a reason to take your child.

So I look up the Education Minister and Roz Ward and this is what I get.
Nice pic, don't they look like best buddies?
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/safe-schools-architect-quits-body-over-appalling-flag-post/news-story/6241565056a4641611a9e994ae27ec9c

He said same-sex-attracted and gender-diverse people were more likely to be bullied and most of that bullying occurred in schools. “Safe Schools Coalition is an anti-bullying, a universal program in our schools and it saves lives,” he said.

So the Andrews Labor Government Education Minister is Pro Safe Schools (no surprise) and there is no shortage of articles where he proclaims its benefits and it's importance.
They even increased the funding by $300,000 after the government took over it's management

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-15/safe-schools-victoria-reignites-feud-with-canberra-over-program/7415452

And So Bekah Bel, this has nothing to with you, it's about enforcing their indoctrination of children.

One last point, this whole Safe Schools program reeks of bullying, only towards parents instead.
They are hypocrites (mentalcases) pushing the same bullying ideology they are purported to be against.
It's complete madness.

Ttbn..

There is also an interesting extension to your account.
Rich kids are cocooned in areas of expensive real estate: thus attend more civilised schools.
Many of the poor with children tend to be forced into a colony of destitute thinking. Many parents fight against this ineffectivly.

Their way around this, is private schooling. The first economical line of defence is a Catholic school, where parents hope the rule of order will be more rigid and protective of their children.

Other more astute parents become quickly aware of the left leaning odd ball public school system early. Probably by bad personal experience, leading to a bias against the public school system. Note the objections to safe school pro homosexual content and its exposed intent, for example.

So, as an economic alternative, parents, more from panic than good sense, choose to home school their children.
Obviously, being a member of the working class, working the necessary hours needed to earn enough for survival, home schooling would be difficult to near impossible, given the time constraints necessarily invested into working those long hours!

A some years back I had cause (privilege and honor) to enroll my kids in a public country school that had a (lead by example) Catholic Headmaster. Who believed in the principle of sparing the cane completely! And on the back of a belief that violence only begets more violence!

His approach to bullying was to appoint the potential bullies as (eternally alert for any breach of the rules) prefects, with a (I'd do the same thing for a white fella) brief to look after the little kids and praise the hell out of them before an entire (P&T) assembled school community when they did just that!

With ceremony and high appointment to house captain status included in the (big deal for the kids) pomp and ceremony, bugle and flag raising, occasions.

With the antisocial misfits given similar (praise only) well done little Sebastian, treatment when they adjusted and became compliant!

Public shame and humiliation being outlawed, but not (temporary) exclusion or exile, replete with the dreaded response of humiliated tearful (boo hoo, how could you little Sebastian?) "PRIVILEGED" Parents?

Without question, that intelligent approach turned potential bullies into paragons of virtue and model citizens?

Unfortunately, I had to/was required to leave just when my own had learned to love that little country school, it's compassionate and kindness personified Head, and the local "welcoming" N.S.W. northern rural community! And where homeschooling was noted by it's complete absence!

The experience forced me to revisit my own disciplinary practice and eliminate any and all (rare) capital punishment from it!

Particularly when affection and enforced time out eventually proved more effective! Reward must of necessity, be confined to copious praise, not sugar hits or toys etc/etc!

I would suggest the above template be used to eliminate bullying from our schools! And perhaps the home?
Alan B.

dan,

It's just all too hard these days. I was sent to school to learn. I didn't learn much, but you could get a job anywhere, so it didn't matter. Most of us were more or less normal - apart from the kid I didn't know and definitely did not want to see with his togs off. Now, kids have to be in 'relationships' and constant turmoil. There are things called 'helicopter parents' (generally female because a dad isn't really necessary these days, apparently). Girls are 'best friends' with their mothers, and dad and the boy .. well, not much is known about them. I'm glad to be on the downhill run and hoping like hell I won't be back after everything goes black.

Tttbn

Yep, we can only sigh in disbelief at the changes.
How about " school of the air". Wasn't that home schooling for kids. This day and age, why not copy that successful model?

Diver Dan,
I believe that with teacher shortage problems, as well as a large proportion of teachers being women, (non equal gender teaching) that they should create a national digital school curriculum, that can be used by anyone young or old, to learn basic schooling via app.

My kids were so unfortunate to receive a few years home schooling. the local state school was nothing a short of a zoo. Now one has a couple of degrees, another finishes medicine this year while the smartest is a Sparky earning twice the money I ever have. One of my sons mates who was home schooled at the same time and not particularly bright in my opinion is also a doctor. Poor deprived kids and they did not have to have their minds perverted by ' safe' schools' and other social engineering programs. They were taught to think before the attempts by unis to dumb them down with socialist dogma.

dan,

Too much trouble to pedal the radio these days.

With 99.9% of mothers 'fulfilling' themselves and being 'equal', but still in debt, with ridiculously high mortgages, there is little chance that that there will be a boom in home-schooling.

Apropos of nothing, I rose at 10am today after another virtually sleepless night, and couldn't get the lid off a new marmalade jar. I used to pride myself on my skinny but powerful wrists. Today, I had to resort to the lid-removing gadjet. The end is nigh. I'm bewildered and buggered.

runner,

Good on your kids. Some kids do well despite their parents. I hope Dr. Runner sticks to doctoring and doesn't join 'doctors for the environment' like a couple of of the pestilent contributors we have had on recently. Medicine is a necessary calling, but it seems to go to the heads of some, who believe that a medical practitioner somehow adds a little something more to a particular hobby horse than does an old-age pensioner pensioner with similar interests. Job snobbery is a particularly nasty disease, in my view.

Ttbn

Opening a vacuume sealed lid the easy way.
Tap around the rim of the lid with (eg) the handle of a metal knife, half a dozen times until the dome vacuume seal indicator pops up. Two fingers will easily open the lid from that point!

That's good advice from one uneducated of course.

Good stuff runner....

THE DEEP STATE IS DESTROYING THE FAMILY UNIT. THEY WANT TOTAL CONTROL IN THEIR ORWELLIAN WORLD. IT IS TIME TO FIGHT BACK.

' hope Dr. Runner sticks to doctoring and doesn't join 'doctors for the environment' like a couple of of the pestilent contributors we have had on recently.'

ttbn

I have no problem with doctors or anyone else that wants to improve the environment. Let them pick up rubbish often left by the earth worshippers. I would of considered myself a complete failure if my kids could not see through the idiotic belief that man can control the climate. Fools who now live longer because of electricity, petrol and mobile phones have been so dumbed down that they think that stopping coal mining will change the weather. They are to blinded by dogma that they can't see that one good volcano produces more carbon than made could even if he tried.

I applaud the author for this article.

However, I have a question for parents: Is this situation new and surprising? Were you not aware in advance that your children will be incarcerated and bullied by the state for most of their childhood?

While details of the law may vary, the basic fact is that once born, one cannot escape clashing with the regime round every corner. Is it then right to bring children into this oppressive environment?

I have served my time in school out of love for my parents, so that they are not sent to jail - but it's rather parents who ought to protect their children and not vice-versa. If you cannot raise your children to be free, it is better to not bring them into this world to begin with!

runner,

We are on the same page when it comes to climate change and many other things. I also agree with your "zoo" description of the public school system; but does not zoo pretty much describe many aspects of modern society?

ttbn

when people are dumb enough to think humans evolved from monkeys its no wonder they act like them. Secularism has absolutley no science or logic to back its dogmas and is totally self contradictory. Hatred of Christ, absolutes and truth has does have consequences such as we now see. Those who reject absolutes are so adamant that they are right despite the contradiction.

Dear Runner,

While humans are animals who have most likely evolved from a common ancestor to them and some monkeys, these are merely our bodies, not us. We are not this human body and ought to overcome and transcend that animal-behaviour which arises from it.

I agree with the rest of what you wrote.

Nothing wrong with home schooling especially in the early years of a child's education. Long story but my daughter came into my care after a 3 year custody battle. During those 3 years my daughter was missing weeks of school every term. AT 8/9 YO, a few weeks after she came into my care she did the year 3 basic skills test, finished bottom in the school and was placed in the Special Needs Class. This was the broken child I was given courtesy of her mother,the family court and the social workers. I was to spend years repairing the damage done to my child. In all honesty I cannot really blame the teachers for this. It is hard to teach a child who is seldom there. I spent every weeknight for several years at the kitchen table teaching her myself. 2 years later she finished 4th in the school after doing the year 5 test. Once she started high school,as I had done my schooling decades before, I was unable to help her much but by then she was highly motivated and achieving extremely well. She finished 3rd out of 80 students when she completed year 12. She went off to the big smoke (I live in a country town) to attend university. There she completed a 4 year Psychology degree with 1st Class Honours before she was even 21 yo, won the Flinders University medal and a year or so ago completed a PHD in Forensic Psychology, yet if the powers that be had, had their way it would never have been and what a tragic waste of a child's life that would have been. I will never forget the words she wrote in the acknowledgements at the start of her Honours Thesis :- Finally thankyou to my dad. For fighting for me, guiding me through life and always believing in me. I could not have reached this point without the sacrifices you made. Made me one very proud dad and made all I had gone through and the countless hours spent so very worthwhile.