| From the HSLDA E-lert Service: |
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| Date: From: Subject: | 1/21/2004 3:23:44 PM Home School Legal Defense Association Tennessee--Mandatory State Testing of all Homeschool High School Students Threatened, Calls Needed! |
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====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== January 21, 2004 Dear HSLDA members and friends, If we act now, we may stop this bill mandating state testing of homeschool high school from ever starting! Please take a moment and make a few calls. House Bill 2163, recently introduced by Representative Mike Turner, would require all non-public high school students to take the Gateway end-of-course tests in order to graduate from high school. This bill would not only mandate testing of all homeschool and church-related high school students but would also effectively require them to conform their curriculum to match that of the public schools. This bill must be defeated before it gains any momentum. It is crucial that you contact Representative Turner and your own state representative to express your opposition to this legislation. REQUESTED ACTION 1. Please contact Representative Turner, the sponsor of this bill, and explain, "Please withdraw H.B. 2163. This bill will require unnecessary testing of homeschool and private school students and violate the rights of parents to choose the curriculum they consider best for their own children." 2. Please contact your state representative with this message: "Please vote against House Bill 2163 which would require unnecessary testing and violate the rights of parents to choose the curriculum they consider best for their own children." A letter is a very effective means of influencing legislators. If you choose not to write, please call and email the representative. He needs to hear from every homeschooling family in Tennessee. Representative Mike Turner, 615-741-3229 108 War Memorial Building, Nashville, TN 37243 3. Please forward this E-lert to every homeschooling family you know who is not a member of HSLDA and urge them to contact the sponsor and their own state representative. To get the name of your state representative, use HSLDA's Legislative Toolbox at http://www.hslda.org/toolbox. If you do not have Internet access, call the Tennessee Legislature at 800-449-8366. BACKGROUND: This bill is a grave threat to the freedoms of homeschooling parents in Tennessee. The Gateway end-of-course tests are referenced to the curriculum used in the public schools. In fact, when the law requiring end-of-course tests was first passed, the Tennessee Legislature stated that "These tests must reflect the complete range of topics covered within the list of state approved textbooks for that subject." Therefore, if this bill becomes law, parents conducting home instruction will be forced to use public school textbooks for the high school years in order to effectively prepare for the end-of-course tests. In August, 2002, the State Board stipulated that students must successfully pass examinations in three subject areas-- Mathematics, Science, and Language Arts - in order to earn a high school diploma. These examinations are now known as Gateway Tests. The passage of House Bill 2163 would mean that homeschool and private school students would also be under this requirement, and would have to take the Algebra I, Biology I, and English II Gateway tests in order to graduate. Currently, only eight states require testing as the only means of evaluating a home instruction program, and no state requires homeschool students to be tested on state content standards. Furthermore, studies have shown that increased state oversight of homeschooling does not result in higher academic achievement. Another problem with enactment of this legislation is that it will result in a violation of federal law, since it will require homeschool students to take the same tests by which the state complies with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. On January 8, 2002, President Bush signed into law the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Among other things, this federal law requires states to test public school students in the areas of mathematics, reading or language arts, and science at certain grade levels in order to measure their achievement of state academic content and achievement standards. However, HSLDA added into this federal law a provision which specifically excludes homeschools from the testing requirement: "Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to affect a home school, whether or not a home school is treated as a home school or a private school under State law, nor shall any student schooled at home be required to participate in any assessment referenced in this chapter." Representative Turner's effort to include homeschool students in the state assessments will place Tennessee in violation of federal law and should result in the loss of all federal funding for education. To review a copy of the bill text, go to: http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=1275 To review a copy of a memorandum on the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, go to: http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=1276 Sincerely, Chris Klicka HSLDA Senior Counsel {{JoinAd}} ====================================================================== The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of: Home School Legal Defense Association P.O. 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Thank you for your cooperation. ====================================================================== | |
