HSLDA Media Release
| December 19, 2001
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HSLDA Lauds Home School Protections in Education Bill
For immediate release
December 19, 2001
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Contact: Rob Zeigler
(540) 338-8663 or robert@hslda.org
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Home School Legal Defense Association President Mike Smith praised protections for home schooling present in the final consolidation of HR 1 and S1, the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act passed by the House last week and the Senate Tuesday.
"Most importantly, this bill prevents the Department of Education from regulating home school activity," Smith said. "Home schoolers have demonstrated that their education methods work-scoring 30 percentile points higher than the nations average on standard achievement tests. By including these protections, the conference committee has recognized there is no need to fix something that isn't broken."
HSLDA is also pleased that the conference has eliminated authorization for Goals 2000. "Education programs operating from the top down do little to bolster learning," said Tom Washburne, Director of the National Center for Home Education (the federal lobbying arm of HSLDA). "Parental involvement is what we need to be encouraging, not government mandates."
HSLDA is opposed to the federal role in the education process. As a result, HSLDA is pleased to note the following key prohibitions included in the bill:
- Prohibition of a national database.
- Prohibition of national teacher certification.
- Prohibition of a federal curriculum.
- Prohibition of a national test.
Caleb Kershner, Manager of Federal Policy and Research at NCHE said "These prohibitions are critical to reining in the unconstitutional role of the federal government in education. Certification, curriculum and testing are local issues and should be decided by states and the people as emphasized in the Tenth Amendment.
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