Responding to Other People's Concerns About Your Decision to Homeschool

Page 5

Legal Concerns
Some people wonder if homeschooling is legal. The fact is that it is legal in every state in the United States as well as many other countries. Suffice it to say that if you are familiar with the legal requirements for homeschooling in your state, this should be a very easy concern for you to address.

Public Schools
Frankly, this is one of the silliest objections to homeschooling there is. The basic concern is that people are worried about the welfare of the public school system if too many kids take advantage of alternative options. Personally, I wouldn't even dignify this concern with a response, but there are several possible responses as you can see in the following list:

• Removing kids from public schools doesn't directly affect the funding those schools receive; homeschoolers pay the same taxes that support public schools that everyone else does. In fact, removing kids from public schools improves the funding per student ratio because the same amount of funds educates fewer children. Because the effectiveness of public education is largely believed to be a result of the amount of funding provided to it (which isn't true by the way), people who have this concern should actually be glad you have removed your children from the public schools.

• Many public schools are failing to educate kids effectively. There are numerous studies that show that the effectiveness of public schools continues to decline. Why would I want my child to be part of a failing system just to support that failing system?

• Decreasing enrollment in public schools, through private schools, homeschooling, and other options, should increase the pressure of competition on those schools. Competition will have a positive impact on the public schools and should result in improvements in the public school system.

Defending Against Formal Attacks to Your Homeschool
Fortunately, it is highly unlikely that you will ever need to use the information in this section (which is why most of the chapter is devoted to defending your homeschooling decision when challenged informally). Because homeschooling is a legal and well-recognized right in all the states in the United States as well in many other countries, the odds are that you will never be in a situation where legal authorities are involved in your homeschool. This is especially true if you do your best to comply with your state's regulations governing homeschooling.

In rare situations, there might be some attempt at legal interference with your homeschool. Any legal challenges are most likely to come from your local public school district officials. If your homeschool should be legally challenged in some way, don't attempt to resolve the case yourself. Seek legal help immediately.

The best source of this help will be an attorney who has experience in homeschooling issues. An excellent source of such help is the Home School Legal Defense Association. You can contact the HSLDA via its Web site (www.hslda.org) or by telephone (504-338-5600).

Tip:

• Besides making sure you comply with your state's requirements, documentation can be your best defense in any legal situation. Always keep your homeschool well documented and maintain your documentation in an organized way so that you can use it effectively should you ever need to present it.