a question of money

[KinkyDorito]

If you home educate your child, do you get the funding rather than the school?

Nope! Not a brass farthing!

is this a joke? The feckless would not bother to get their children up for school, claim they were home schooling and pocket the money!

Him as pays the piper calls the tune.

Most HEers wouldn't want to touch a penny of State money, to be honest. We'd much rather keep our educational freedom.

Not a joke, unfortunately.

I don't know much about HE, but circumstances are starting to suggest that I might need to consider it for DD(13).

I find it bizarre that state funding is into the thousands for each child per annum, but there is nothing available for home educators. You'd think there would be a bursary or something for resource purchase.

I hadn't thought about the implications for state interference if funding was given. I'd assume I'd still have to follow suitable GCSE curriculum anyway, so I wouldn't be as free to choose as someone with a younger child?

No you don't have to follow the GCSE curriculum, if you and your DC don't feel it's the right choice for them. It might be or it might not be, depending on the circumstances, what she hopes to do in the future, etc.

It's one of those tricky issues - yes the state save a little money by your child not being in school, but there would be (big!) strings attached if they gave out funding, which most people who choose to HE wouldn't want, as whatever the reasons for HE are, its likely that either the school system doesn't suit your child and/or the education authority in your area is not dealing well with problems in their schools.

What some HErs would like would be the chance for their DC to sit exams and have coursework marked, but that's not available either so you'll have to put her in as an independent candidate if she does want to do GCSEs, and find a solution to the coursework issue (One good answer to that is IGCSEs which can be done purely on the exams and don't need marked coursework)

Thank you for your reply AMumInScotland; I appreciate it.

She wants to go to uni to study either RE or History. If she ends up being HE, then I would need to facilitate that.

She has cancer. She's missed a huge amount of school. She went back to start a phased return in the year below today, but she is already in pain with her joints. I'm starting to think I should explore my options. However, I worked FT before all of this and am currently still employed and trying to go back to work. If I do decide to HE, then many things will change for us as a family.

Another clueless poster here - Do you have to pay to put your DCs in for GCSE exams then?

I always thought Home ed would be cheaper because you don't have to pay for uniform etc... but I think I might be living in fairy land.

If she can't attend school because of medical reasons, then the education authority ought to be providing her with appropriate education, so your first call ought maybe be to talk to them again, explain the return to school isn't really working out, and see if they could let her come in only some days, or just work at home - that way she can still have her coursework dealt with by the school and do her exams there when the time comes. That way she's still their overall responsibility, and they cover the costs same as if she was physically in school every day.

At 13 it's up to you whether you feel she'd be ok on her own in the house, or if there's someone else who could be there with her for at least part of the time.

That would certainly be cheaper and simpler than "Elective Home Education" which is where you have basically opted out of the state school system and are on your own!

As far as I know there is a fee for sitting each exam. It used to be about £27.

MotherPanda - yes, you have to pay for each exam they take, so there is a cost for that. Plus textbooks etc. But the biggy for most families is the loss of earnings if you can't go out to work, specially with younger children where you have to be there with them the whole time. With teenagers there may not be the need for supervision, but then again it depends why they are out of school - some teens need just as much positive input as younger DC if they are going to sort out whatever the issues are/were.

Hi

I am so sorry to hear about your daughter's cancer.

Are you in England.

If so, info here about the local authority's obligations www.lgo.org.uk/news/2011/sep/councils-not-let-down-children-school-special-reasons/

www.direct.gov.uk/en/Parents/Schoolslearninganddevelopment/YourChildsWelfareAtSchool/DG_10037983

If you home educate, you don't have to do any exams if you would prefer not. I have an 18 year old who has never taken an exam.

Govnt Guidelines here
edyourself.org/articles/guidelines.php

Info about taking exams as private candidate here
edyourself.org/articles/exams.php

Thank you for this Fiona. I am going to read through the links . I am in England.

If they don't do exams, does this make it complicated for uni entry or getting work? How do you get round this?

Thanks again.

It depends what they want to do KinkyDorito

I know some, now grown up autonomously HE young people, who are running their own businesses, or are successfully employed by others, using their life experience and skills.

Our three were autonomously HE all the way through their teens. We did no formal work at all.
The eldest then went on to FE college post 16 to do 2 GCSEs and then an access course. He's at Uni now reading Psychology.
The middle child used her life experience and skills to get a job with a well known national organisation. She has since taken herself to FE college and is now at Uni level doing art.
Youngest didn't even learn to read until she was 14, she was so severely dyslexic. By 15 she'd begun an OU started course which she passed well at 16. She used that to gain entry to FE college and is now at Uni level doing music.

Many of our other friends children didn't start any formal education until they went to FE college. Amongst these number young people now reading Social Policy, Soiology, Classics, English, IT, Child Development, Art, Economics and Veterinary Science
We have other friends whose children did GCSEs as distance learning courses-some over a period of years.
Others have used the OU to do their whole degree and some have done part of an OU degree to demonstrate their ability and have been accepted by 'brick and mortar' universities to complete their course