On any given weekday morning when the school bell rings and kids are filing into their classes on campuses across Southern California a number of other children are helping their parents transform their living rooms or kitchens into their own classrooms. The parents of these families have opted to home-school as oppose to choosing the traditional public school system for educating their sons and or daughters.

However in the past few weeks the issue of home-schooling has been making the news due to a recent appellate court ruling stating that parents who homeschool their child must hold a teaching credential. This ruling purports to jeopardize the numerous children and their families’ choice for an alternative educational setting.

Parents who home-school, have four different options to choose from that allows them to do this legally. The four options are:

1. To establish themselves as a private school
2. Have the instruction provided for by a certified teacher or tutor
3. Choose to enroll them in an ISP (independent study program) through the public school system and finally
4. To choose to enroll them in an ISP provided for by a private school.

Since two of the four options provide credentialed teachers to supervise the parents or to teach the child personally this eliminates the threat for many children in homeschool situations. If a parent who is a credentialed teacher chooses option one then they are also not affected however if they are not credentialed then the ruling does goes against their situation. Because private schools have traditionally not required their teachers to be credentialed the ruling affects them as well.

The case for this court ruling came from the judgment against parents Phillip and Mary Long of Lynwood, who chose the fourth option to enroll their child in a private school called Sunland Christian School. How this became a court case was that the parents were repeatedly reported to Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services for a variety of allegations one of those including physical abuse. The court feels by having the children attend school, whether it is private or not, would allow them to care for their well being by having other adults monitor their situation.

Phillip Long though feels that this is an attack on their Christian beliefs and plans to appeal to the Supreme Court. His desire to keep his children from being exposed to curriculum that includes the teaching of evolution and other ideals opposed to by their religion is supported by many Christians who choose to homeschool as well.

With the numerous appeals that will be arising from this ruling and with Governor Shwartznegger’s calling for the decision to be rescinded it’s doubtful it will be enforced anytime soon or if ever.

However not all parents who homeschool do it for religious reasons. Later this week I will have an article on the specifics of home- schooling along with interviews of parents who do so and why.

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Photo by A Mother’s Heart 

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