-Caveat Lector- Well I guess they woke up to the fact that there were some children that might just be getting some good food during the day and were not being given additives and other things in their lunches - so the kids might just have a chance to learn and not have to be on Ritalin or other drugs. Laura > Tuesday, February 9, 1999 > By DALE SINGER Of the Post-Dispatch > > Parents who were unhappy enough > with their public schools to pull their > children out are even less happy about > a proposal to make home-schooled students > in Missouri take the same tests that > everyone else does. > State Rep. Bill Skaggs, D-Kansas > City, says he not only wants to test > home-schooled children in Missouri, > who now are estimated to number 30,000, > but he wants to register them to find > out exactly how many there are and where > they live. He said his bill -- which > is expected to draw a big crowd at a > hearing at 3 p.m. today in Jefferson > City -- is aimed at home schoolers who > are failing to learn, not those who > are succeeding. > "For the life of me," > Skaggs said, "I can't understand > why a home schooler doing a good job, > a job that is allegedly superior to > public education, shouldn't be proud > of that and take the test that kids > take in public education so they can > show us they are doing a good job. > "Apparently they have something > to hide, and I don't know what that > is. We can't afford ignorance. Every > child deserves an education. If those > folks are not doing it at home, we need > to know that, and we need to go after > them and get those kids in school." > > Skaggs said he had experience in > his district with home schoolers doing > a poor job. > "You can tell the children > are not being properly educated, just > by the way they speak. They're just > too lazy to get them up and get them > to school. Those are the ones I'm after." > > Home schoolers say they have nothing > to hide but that they shouldn't have > to prove anything to the state. They > say they dropped out of public education > because it was failing their needs, > and they don't want to have to mold > their home curriculum to what the state > tests are trying to measure. > "I think that goes to the > very core of home schooling -- that > parents feel it's their fundamental > right to decide, within the boundaries > of the law, what they will teach their > children," said Diane McLelland, > the Jefferson City lobbyist for Families > for Home Education, an umbrella group > that represents home-schooling families > across Missouri. > "Private school students don't > have to take an assessment test. Parochial > school students don't have to take an > assessment test. Home schoolers shouldn't > have to take an assessment test." > > Under Skaggs' bill, home-schooled > children would have to take the state > test at their local school and pay a > fee. > Requirements in other states vary > widely. Illinois, Alabama, Indiana, > California, Kansas and Kentucky are > among those that require no testing. > Those that require some standardized > testing of home-schooled students are > Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Minnesota and > New York. > Missouri's home-school law requires > only basic record keeping and a minimum > of 1,000 hours of instruction a year, > including 600 hours in core academic > subjects. Brad Haines, who heads Families > for Home Education, says in states that > require registration, many home-schooling > families have gone underground rather > than signing up with the state. He also > said state testing means control of > curriculum -- mandating what families > who teach their children at home have > been trying to avoid. > "I think most Americans oppose > the idea of the state keeping tabs on > them," he said. "Registration > means control, as it does with anything > else. If he is going to mandate this > test, it would have the effect of driving > the home-school curriculum in an inappropriate > manner." > Haines said no one knows precisely > how many Missouri children are taught > at home; he came up with the estimate > of 30,000 by figuring that each of the > 4,600 in his organization averages 3.5 > children at home, and half of the families > involved in home schooling are members. > He also said that home-schooled children > already take some tests, such as the > ACT or the Iowa test, and average in > the 75th percentile. > Parental anger at the Skaggs proposal > is expected to translate into a large > crowd at today's hearing. Typical of > the reaction is this from Ira Brodsky > of Chesterfield, whose 10-year-old son, > Joey, left Green Trails school in Parkway > to be taught at home. > "Only an education establishment > that routinely graduates students who > can't read is capable of imagining it > is doing a good job and, as a reward > for its achievements, should be granted > new powers to oversee home schoolers," > he said. "It would provide those > who feel it is their civic duty to constantly > supervise others' lives a wonderful > opportunity for further harassing home-school > families." > Skaggs' bill is HB 540. > Copyright (c) 1999, St. Louis Post-Dispatch DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
