A wave of illiterate “home schooled” children

[RedSkyatNight25]

Prepared to get torn apart, and I know many homeschool because the school environment isn’t right for their children (SEN, sensory issues - whatever else) and their needs aren’t met by school with a chronic lack of SEN placements and too much demand etc. I’m not naive to that. I also know some parents with adequate resource will ensure their children have a rounded education whilst being homeschooled.

But there seems to be a movement to homeschooling by people who are simply anti establishment with a point to prove. Their grammar and communication on social media tells me they’re not equipped to homeschool a child. Not least I think the socialisation and soft skills school provides are hugely important too. I suspect most of these parents either haven’t considered the benefits of school or hugely underestimated it, especially past primary are parents really equipped to teach ALL the subjects with sufficient skill if they lack the knowledge themselves? Are they not underestimating the skills and expertise of qualified teachers?

AIBU to think it’s really concerning? These are the next generation of our workforce and infrastructure. I personally think we are hugely privileged to live in a country with free education - I know it’s not perfect but I’m not convinced homeschooling is better for a vast majority.

I read one study that said that homeschooling without structure left children several years behind their peers whereas homeschooling with structure put them a little ahead, although not by miles.

There's no register of home educated children in most places though so the only people participating and being recorded in research are people who are confident that their home ed stands up to scrutiny and not mistrusting of authority and science. If you don't know how many children are being home educated you can't say that 74% make it to college.

I personally think there is a correlation between the increase in autism diagnosis and homeschooling. As a mum of a NSD child, I was very taken back by the number of people on forums who homeschool their children. I think that schools (worldwide) are largely lacking the correct setup to support these children, especially the high functioning ones. As a contra argument to the study being quoted above, I would be curious to know, of that 74% of homeschooled chidren that go to college, how many graduate, get a job, and keep it? I think early intervention and socialising in highly functioning autistic children is key to integrating to society after education, i'd guess that this also very much applies to homeschooled children.

I did put that caveat in my post. Again, it’s very tricky as legislation and requirements vary from state to state. Some require registration, some don’t. Some have very strict rules and regulations, some don’t. Some require EHE children to take standardised tests, some don’t. Some states offer some funding for home educated children (particularly disabled ones) , some don’t. It seems that the states who are more lax in regulating home education have a higher proportion of home educated children. Alaska seems to have the most.

There does seem to be more data in the US (whether you deem it reliable or not , it’s up to you) than in the UK though.

American education system is ranked 31 in math and science. It’s far behind Ireland , Australia , Uk.
Not the best example to measure against.

They're an article here on progression rates for school pupils who move on to university at 19.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/gap-england-department-for-education-government-data-b2634966.html?

Are you sure you are not mentioning a group of specific sen children ?

They didn't have any diagnosed SEN and none of them had ever been to school.

I ask as my oldest had autism and normally those whee organised for children on the spectrum .

Having SEN doesn’t require a diagnosis. Neither does it require a child to be in school. The legal definition of SEN is set out in the Children and Families Act 2014.

I didn't say it was. PP asked if they were a specific group of SEN children and they weren't, they were just a group of Home Ed children. I meant that they hadn't left school because of not coping there or not meeting their needs, not that they couldn't be SEN without going to school. They were obviously not able to cope with the group which was completely child-led and relaxed, or at least not able to commit to turning up, but whether this was because the Home Ed they were receiving wasn't preparing them to be anywhere other than doing exactly what they wanted at home or because they all in fact had undiagnosed SEN can't be proved either way at this point.

PP suggested that anyone who doubted that Home Ed children were getting a proper education hadn't met any, because they are all articulate and intelligent. I was actually pretty positive about the idea of Home Ed before I met more Home Ed kids and parents, and there's been some exceptions but most of them- and that was the biggest group I've encountered- have not impressed me much and left me wondering how on earth they are going to deal with real life.

They definitely are not willing. Which is why this whole process is being dragged out by every delay tactic they have

I’m not measuring against it. It’s just that they have some data , whereas in the UK it’s severely lacking. Not even sure what your point is.

When you said ‘diagnosed SEN’ it made it sound like you thought a diagnosis was required. Sorry if that isn’t how you meant it.

From what you described, it is clear at least some of them do have SEN whether they have a diagnosis or not.

Nothing particularly shocking there. Private school pupils do better than state school pupils. Deprived pupils do worse than everyone else. We already knew all of this. How does that translate to home education though?

Just curious about the overall figures for moving on to university.

Oh ok, fair enough. Sorry I sounded rather dickish in my previous post. Not my intention.

Some peoples attitude to home education on here is shocking as is the misinformation. So many children struggle with school due to anxiety, SEN, bullying etc. One size does not fit all. The default position in England is home education. You apply for a school place if you want to but you are not obliged to. Parents must ensure their child receives a full time education but there is a lot of flexibility around what that should look like.

You don’t have to tell the LA if you decide to home educate from the get go. However once they become aware that your children are not in school they are allowed to make informal enquiries to ensure your children are receiving an education. in most cases a yearly report detailing the education in place and the progress being made is sufficient. The LA are not entitled to future plans.

The vast majority of children attend school and the vast majority of home educators do a decent job. It can be upsetting when you have a child who cannot cope in school and then have an LA who is over zealous and asking for more than they are entitled to. Facebook groups are an invaluable source of support to parents struggling with this but they also help them understand their rights and obligations and how to find local groups, resources and information about exams etc. Knowing you are not alone is important too especially when this wasn’t what you planned.

My son was unable to attend school due to health problems for most of years 8 and 9. He was provided with some tuition at home through the LA but it was barely enough to keep him ticking over in maths, english and science at a basic level. As GCSEs approached I was worried that he would not be able to attend and there was no plan if that happened - so I deregistered him.

We used a mixture of online courses and resources and I facilitated and motivated. I didn’t teach the subjects. He is way better at maths and physics than I ever was! I am a single mum and work full time from home so I was able to support him by working flexibly and taking annual and parental (unpaid) leave as and when to be more present and was obviously available in the evenings and on weekends.

He ended up sitting 5 IGCSEs and got good grades. He has since completed a 2 year level 3 course at college where he never had a day off sick and has just started university. I am super proud of him! For us home education was absolutely the best decision.

@Scarlettpixie , what a lovely story. I'm so pleased for you and your son.

I avoid the public Facebook groups like the plague, they're full of terrible advice. They're very robust in some of the private FB groups and while I may not take the same unschooly approach to home ed as they do, they're shit hot on knowing your rights and responsibilities and meeting them correctly.

My DD developed panic disorder during lockdown ( or just before actually but it cemented itself during lockdown). We tried and tried to get her into school but agoraphobia had her firmly in its grasp. We managed to access the medical needs teaching service and got English, maths and science tuition. She sat her GCSE’s at home. She got 6 all together; 8,8 in science, 6 in English and 7 in maths, then a couple more.
We tried online A levels it wasn’t working. So as medication was working and constant exposure therapy with me we found an access course. Anyway she started university 2 weeks ago.
I would never take education for granted after our journey. Although I’m an educator myself I was wholly unprepared for the enormity of getting her through those years. It’s not a choice either myself or her would have opted for if we hadn’t had to.

Confirmation of what, exactly? Given my opening paragraph was caveated to say I acknowledge home Ed/school can be done well and for the right reasons. The discussion was intended to be centred around people who not doing their children justice, I have made it pretty clear I am not condemning home ed as a whole.

The law provides for if people are not doing home ed justice.
The LA have asked for further information in the example given because there wasn't clear enough info in the communication received. In the very likely chance they remain unsatisfied that suitable education is taking place then a school attendance order is the next step.
What may be missing is why the child was removed from the school in the first place and whether that child will cope within the school that they are sent to. It may be that going back to school will not be the end of the matter as the child will need adequate support.

The law isn’t perfect in its application, it’s not as straight forward as that especially when families are actively avoiding engagement.

Actively avoiding engagement = failure to satisfy = SAO

There is Already laws in place to protect children from unsafe environments

There are already laws in place if LA believes that home Ed isn't meeting child's needs

There are laws in place and processes in place

BUT it is easier to blame a minority of society that utilize the process already available.

When Sara was murdered it was home Ed that they blamed but I. Reality it was services and professionals who failed to follow the evidence and failed to protect Sara.

If a child is removed from school that the school already identify as at risk from harm the school have a duty to report these concerns just as they did when a child attends.

We all have a duty to flag safeguarding issues.

A child isn't more at risk because they are home educated.

If a child isn't having a suitable education vie home Ed then there are processes in place to deal with this. We don't need to remove rights of home educating families - people just need to follow the processes already in place.

School children have 6 weeks off in the summer - are they safeguarded and checked during this period as standard ?

Would resources be best being diluted to every child or should limited resources focus on those known or suspected of being at risk?