[CS-FSLUG] Fwd: [ChristianHomeschoolinginAustralia] More on Montana from a Home educator who was there

[Leon Brooks]

Ironically enough, this is from an Oz home schooling list, interesting 
reading.

----------  Fwd; orig to ChristianHomeschoolinginAustralia  ----------

Subject: More on Montana from a Home educator who was there
Date: Sunday 20 February 2005 03:19
From: "Barbara Smith" <Barbara at hef.NOSPAM.org.nz>

Posted by permission of Cathy, the author. This may be forwarded.

Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2005 12:53 PM
Subject: SB291

Thank you for all your prayers!

It was an amazing thing to be at the capitol yesterday as history
was being made. Homeschool families not only filled the largest hearing
room to capacity, but many areas of the building were shoulder to
shoulder. They put TV's in 3 or 4 areas so the hearing was live cast
all over the capitol building. Although we arrived over an hour early
for the hearing, we couldn't get standing space in the hearing room
itself, and watched it via TV in the rotunda. I'm sure there were more
than 1,000 people, possibly closer to 1,500 (they had printed 1,000 "I
love homeschooling" stickers and ran out, many people didn't have
one).

In several heart-wrenching stories, Sen. Ryan opened with appeals
to rescue the "shadow children" who are locked in closets and the 14
year olds who can't read, all done under the guise of homeschooling. He
stated these legal measures weren't after all of us, of course, we were
the good homeschoolers, he was just after the bad people. One of his
stories featured an 18 year old girl whose lifelong dream was to be a
nurse. In visiting with a nurse, the nurse became concerned that her
academics were 4-6 years behind what she would need to enter college,
and so wrote the senator about her concerns. Sen. Ryan had other
proponents for the bill, including several school superintendents and
administrators who denied any possible way that a parent could be
qualified to teach all subjects, especially without a college degree.

(Sen. Ryan did strike the language preventing parents from
homeschooling a developmentally disabled child, and revise the
"parent" term thus allowing a stepparent or legal guardian to
homeschool.)

Among other things they claimed:

Public school is safer due to measures to background check and
fingerprint teachers, safety inspections of the buildings, and fire
drills, none of which is done for homeschools.

Truant officers had no power to take steps legally about those who
didn't teach anything. Although superintendents knew of abuse or
educational neglect complaints and cases, they couldn't do anything and
that educational neglect is not against the law.

Public schools put out significant expense to "catch up" all the
lagging behind homeschool students they get in.

There was no hours per day instruction requirement for
homeschools, whereas public school children had 7 hours per day of
instruction.

Several divorced fathers said ex-wives weren't providing
instruction, or were instructing at odd hours, therefore the child's
sleep schedule wasn't the same as the father's when he had her on the
weekends.

Grandparents were unhappy that grandchildren were being homeschooled.

Homeschoolers are so socially inadequate that they will never
function in society and will only be stuck at home for life.

Homeschoolers teach exclusivity, a case of homeschool students who
robbed a home and murdered the owner when he caught them was brought
up. The testifier said that hate was taught in their home and that
anyone who didn't belong to their church was appropriate prey.

For the opponent's to SB291, we had our legislative liaison Steve
White, the current Miss Montana, a homeschool graduate who now holds a
biology/premed degree and is soon off to medical school, HSLDA attorney
Dee Black, researcher Dr. Brian Ray, and numerous parents, school
administrators and children. There were so many that they allowed only
about 25 to give narrative testimony, then directed people to hand in
written testimony. An attendance sheet was passed around on which
everyone could sign in and list opposition to the bill, this becomes
part of the permanent record.

Among the points made against the bill:

In Montana, truant officers have the strongest legal authority of
any state in the nation, they can investigate, arrest and so on.

The current law DOES state hours of instruction required per day.

Statistics indicate educational level of the homeschool parent
makes no significant difference in student achievement, a quality
education doesn't require a college degree.

(Although the bill proponents denied any meaning in the success of
students educated by only high school graduate parents (several amazing
stories of high academics, including National Merit Finalists), they
were quick to pull out stories of individual failures and say only
failures were meaningful.)

A bill opponent handed in to the committee copies of an email from
Sen. Ryan sent to all the superintendents around the state asking for
homeschool "horror stories", not all their experiences with
homeschoolers evidently, just horror stories.

The vice chair of the committee acts as chair when the bill
sponsor is the chair, each side was given 1 hour in this hearing. At
almost the end of the allowed time, a lady stepped up to the
microphone. She said she hadn't intended to speak and hadn't prepared
narrative testimony, but since Sen. Ryan had mentioned the 18 year old
who wanted to be a nurse and was academically behind, she wanted to
clarify the situation. She went on to very graciously explain that the
girl was her daughter (every homeschooler in the room gasped,
wondering what was to come). She had been born with cerebral palsy,
hip joint problems and near total deafness. A specialist told the
parents that if she was sent to public school she would never learn to
speak, read or write. They decided to homeschool. The girl learned to
walk at 3 1/2, speak at 4 1/2, and now signs and lipreads well. She
does indeed dream of becoming a nurse, and is now in her second
semester of college. Presented as a "horror story" by Sen. Ryan, who
left out any details of the true situation, this is rather a story of
victory. Loving parents helping their child triumph over physical
disabilities to aim at reaching her potential.  Their other six
children are doing well in homeschool.

Sen. Ryan took his few minutes of wrap up at the end to again plea
with us to turn in the abusers of "shadow children" and those who can't
read or function in society. The heavy implication, I believe, is that
he's sure we know those people and are just sheltering them from
prosecution.

In a total surprise, to me at least, our local senator who is on
the committee and also thinks "we just have to catch the bad ones out
there, please help us catch them by turning them in", made a motion to
proceed to executive action (the decision process) immediately. He then
made a motion to table the bill (which kills it, it can't come up again
this session). The motion to table it passed by 10-1, no mystery who
the dissenting vote was.

I believe we were delivered in a mighty way yesterday! What a
blessing that the mom of the girl Sen. Ryan mentioned was there,
willing to speak and was very gracious, although not all who spoke
were equally gracious, on either side of the issue. In a side note, we
happened to run into a family after the hearing, that had been
standing by the mother when Sen. Ryan initially told his version of
the girl's academic failures. The mother was shocked and shaking her
head.

We appreciated so much God's grace that allowed everyone at the hearing 
to hear the truth of the story, and for us to learn her response to 
Sen. Ryan's twisted form of the story. (We'd stopped to ask if they 
needed help when we saw them with their hood up.)

I would have preferred a greater show of formal decorum, but still, when 
our children and families are under attack, it's pretty natural for a 
show of applause and cheers when the attack is called off.

Thank you again for your prayer support, please pass along sincere
thanks to everyone else who was praying for us, and PRAISE GOD for
victory over measures to count us all guilty of abuse and neglect
without due process.

Rejoicing in Christ!
Cathy

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Cheers; Leon