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Original poster

WWYD if you knew sum1 had claimed they were home eductaing their kids but failed to?

31 replies

igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:03

I know this woman quite well and she has claimed she has been home educating her daughter since she was 13. She is now 15 and due to sit her GCSE'S next year.

Anyway we had a conversation the other day in front of someone else and I asked what she was going to do come GCSE's in which the woman replied that her daughter would sit maths and english but would more than likely fail.

The other woman approached me afterwards to say she was thinking about reporting it and could she use my name.

Im not sure I want to get involved as it's none of my business but on the other hand I do think this woman is ruining her childs future.

OP posts:
FAQinglovely · 25/06/2009 20:06

well tbh (and I'm a state school user not a HE'er) I think the majority of stuff I had to learn for my Standard Grades (Scottish GSCE's equivalent) has been of no relevance to my day to day life. So just because a child may fail the exam doesn't mean that they don't know the stuff (IMO)

mrsruffallo · 25/06/2009 20:07

sum1?

SammyK · 25/06/2009 20:11

I would assume I didn't have all the facts.

Interested in this thread?

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Home educating
HecatesTwopenceworth · 25/06/2009 20:12

perhaps she'd fail because she's been taught maths and english and not how to pass a maths and english exam?

littlelamb · 25/06/2009 20:13

at sum1

nancy75 · 25/06/2009 20:14

lots of children that go to school fail their exams.
i would mind my own business

Original poster
igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:16

LOL my txt speak!

I am inclined to ignore it and really dont want this woman using my name.

I feel sad for the daughter. She wants to go to college and do equine studies and her mum is counting on the fact that they have their own horse to get her into college.

When I asked if the LEA had done any checks she laughed and said no as they had moved house twice since she was taken out of school.

I am not even sure this lady can report her and thats what I told her but she is just one of those people.

OP posts:
Original poster
igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:19

BTW do you think I should tell the mum what this woman has said or just keep out of it completely?

OP posts:
TheOtherMaryPoppinsDiets · 25/06/2009 20:20

How do you know that she hasn't been HE her daughter as you don't make it clear in the OP, just that she will only sit 2 GCSEs

TeenyTinyToria · 25/06/2009 20:22

Don't feel sad for the daughter. My home-educated brother never took a single exam - he became the youngest student in Scotland to pass an HND. They let him into college to do Electrical Engineering because he proved his practical skills and interest in the subject. No exams needed.

Many home-educated children get into college without any exams, often before the age of 16.

Original poster
igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:24

Sorry to be clear she has confirmed that she has not home educated her at all for the last 2 years.

Thats what the conversation was about and why she was sitting any GCSE's at all.

I know the lady very well and have done for years but should my name be dragged into this should I play dumb or tell the truth?

Can this woman even report her?

OP posts:
belgo · 25/06/2009 20:26

I would keep totally out of it. It's none of your business. Home education is very much misunderstood.

Original poster
igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:27

Thats good news TTT. I have offered to provide a reference to her for the work she does at the yard for any college.

OP posts:
AMumInScotland · 25/06/2009 20:31

Perhaps they are going about her education in a way which is less about exams, and more about the skills she will need for what she wants to do in life? That may not look like "education" when you're used to how schools work, but it can be an effective way for children to learn. For instance, she may have been finding out a huge amount about horses, or about running a business, or many other things, which will not lead her to pass GCSEs.

It's hard to know without understanding more about them, but perhaps the mother means that she has not been "teaching" her daughter, rather than that her daughter has not been learning. The two things can be quite different.

If someone has reason to believe that she is not getting an education "suitable for her age, abilities and aptitudes", then they can report that to the LEA, who can look into it. But it really does depend whether you think the girl has really not learned the kinds of things which will prepare her for her next stpe (college in this case). Colleges are often happy to accept an HE child's portfolio of work and experiences without exam results, so long as the college thinks they have the interest and potential to manage the course.

TeenyTinyToria · 25/06/2009 20:33

Some people don't actively "home-educate" in a school-type sense. My parents didn't. We followed our interests, and they provided books, advice, craft materials, etc. They were facilitators rather than educators, and that's how a lot of autonomous home-educators work things.

Exams can be quite pointless. How much do people remember from what they did at school? I did the bare minimum of GCSEs - English Lit, English, Maths and Latin. I didn't see a need to do subjects that I wasn't interested in, so I just did a few that would be of most use to me.

I wouldn't worry about this girl, and I would strongly advise against reporting her, or encouraging the other woman to do so. Home-educators can be totally misunderstood by the education authorities, who are often blinkered by their school-influenced ideas of what education should be.

LadyOfWaffle · 25/06/2009 20:39

I did equine studies and needed decent grades. Others who got below Cs had to do another course first... maybe that's what they are planning? She doesn't seem to have claimed she is not teaching her... maybe she tries very hard but the girl just isn't going to pass for whatever reason.

Original poster
igglepigglegotobed · 25/06/2009 20:42

Based on what you are all saying this woman is following the right protocol. She has admitted that she is not doing anything at all at home but all her daughter wants to do is work with horses and hence spends 24/7 at the stables.

I must admit I have never really paid much attention to it but became a bit concerned when she said she was not doing any educating at home because I knew how much her DD wants to go to college. But if they base her application on her experience, she will pass with flying colours.

When I see the other woman tomorrow I will put her straight. Thank you.

OP posts:
AMumInScotland · 25/06/2009 20:47

Oh, she might well have meant "We're never at home!" if her daughter is spending all the time at the stables.

FAQinglovely · 25/06/2009 20:52

TTT - I realised that when we had that snow in February and I had the DS's at home for a couple of days (some actual school closures, some I couldn't get them there LOL).

At the end of most of the days when DS1 said "it was fun not being at school" and we talked about what we'd done during the day we'd actually done a lot of learning. None of it actually "teaching" but they'd been helping me (I'd just moved house a week or so before) do loads of stuff that involved learning.

I thought then that I'd quite have enjoyed HE - if I had the patience to put up with my DS's all day everyday

releasethehounds · 25/06/2009 20:53

On the other hand, what if she goes in for equine studies and then decides it's not for her? No other quals to fall back on. Her mother has made that choice for her, instead of letting her take the exams and leaving future options open.

FAQinglovely · 25/06/2009 20:55

what you mean like those that specialist in the sciences, or languages, of arts........and then later on discover that wasn't for them either .

releasethehounds · 25/06/2009 20:58

Exactly. I didn't know what I wanted to do at 16 (come to think of it nor 18 or even 21). But I did have a good collection of qualifications which came in handy later on.

FAQinglovely · 25/06/2009 21:01

it's funny - I had a good selection of qualifications too (up to leaving school level) and they've been no use at all (and am now studying something totally different LOL)

flamingobingo · 25/06/2009 21:01

Release - Do you really remember all the stuff you learnt in the GCSE subjects that you haven't used since then though?

releasethehounds · 25/06/2009 21:05

No flamingo of course not (at my age!), but qualifications can act as a passport onto other training. I work with a number of teens in FE who have little or no formal qualifications and there aren't many options open for them, unless they're prepared to knuckle down and obtain the quals they missed out on before for various reasons. It's sad - they can be really nice kids, but often have no direction.

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