Why Register Home School Students?

My friend Fran Eaton is asking why the state should want to know more about homeschoolers:

"Why?” and “That’s odd” are the two responses we’ve heard to state Sen. Ed Maloney’s (D-Chicago) proposed legislation requiring parents of non-public school students to register them with Illinois’ State Board of Education.

“Is there a compelling reason for parents of non-public, parochial or homeschool students to register with the state?” asked former state Sen. Patrick O’Malley (R-Palos Park). “That seems odd.”

That’s a question many interested parents are asking this week after learning about the buzz-creating Senate Bill 136. Tuesday morning, Maloney said things had slightly changed.

“We’re not after private school students. We’re going to amend the bill’s language. What we want is to know where the homeschoolers are,” he said.

“There are virtually no regulations on homeschools. No curriculum, no periodic checks on their progress. Regional superintendents tell me they have no way of knowing whether a home-taught student is truant or not,” he said. “We want more accountability.”

So, essentially, it's a naked power grab by the state. Parents have too much power, the state not enough.

Maloney, a former school administrator, said he plans to hold a subject matter hearing on Illinois homeschoolers’ accountability in the next few weeks. He’s not ready to table the legislation, as David Smith, a Will County homeschooling dad of five, would like him to do.

“We’re hopeful that Sen. Maloney will come to his senses and table this legislation,” Smith said after leaving a meeting with Maloney at the State Capitol on Tuesday. “We’ll be encouraging homeschoolers to call, write and pressure the senator to keep government out of the way of parents and their responsibilities.”

And Maloney said, “Certainly, for the most part homeschoolers do a conscientious job that exceeds standards. I’ve heard many anecdotal stories about home-taught students doing well, but there are some out there that aren’t. We need minimally to know who the home-taught kids are.”

For Terri Koyne, a homeschooling mom in Macoupin County, southeast of Springfield, that simply isn’t acceptable.

“He says he wants to just register us, then says we don’t have curriculum requirements,” the mother of four said. “Some of our curriculum is religious. Should a public school system be able to accept or reject that?” [Emphasis added.]

This is a grab for control: the state, which is bad at education, wants to gain control from homeschoolers, who are good at it.

Maloney says that some home-taught students aren't doing well. Well, neither are many, many, public school students, and if some kids aren't doing well, that's not a justification for the state to try to take control of my kids' education. Nor yours.

Senator Maloney's phone number is: (217) 782-5145.

Senator Maloney's email address is: ed@edmaloney.com.