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2/12/2007 2:58:30 PM Home School Legal Defense Association South Dakota--Calls Needed to Stop HB 1266,' Over-Funding Proven Failure'

====================================================================== From the HSLDA E-lert Service... ====================================================================== South Dakota--Calls Needed to Stop H.B. 1266, "Over-Funding Proven Failure" Dear HSLDA Friends and Members, We're giving a new nickname to H.B. 1266--the bill that would overfund the South Dakota Virtual School. We're calling it the "Over-Funding Proven Failure" bill. Here's why. We have just confirmed some remarkable statistics. Idaho has a public-school-at-home (PSAH) program similar in some ways to the one that would be funded with H.B. 1266. For both 2005 and 2006, fewer students in the Idaho PSAH schools scored "proficient" or higher on the Idaho Standards Achievement Test than their fellow public school students--at every grade level! This troubling data is even more shocking because in multiple scientific studies homeschooled students have achieved higher average scores than public school students when taking standardized achievement tests. This rubs salt in the wound of H.B. 1266 threatening to give brick-and-mortar funding to inexpensive home-based education. The public would be paying MORE and getting LESS! The attempt to borrow the homeschool "model"--but put the government at the center rather than parents--appears to have failed in Idaho. Before foolishly rushing to fund a program that appears to be a dangerous experiment--with children as the guinea pigs--the legislature should slow down and carefully examine official data from other states comparing PSAHs to brick-and-mortar public schools. ACTION REQUESTED Please call your representative with this message: "Please vote no on H.B. 1266. Please do not provide a funding mechanism for virtual schools. Virtual schools have been proven to be failures in Idaho. Don't experiment with our kids." Use our legislative toolbox at http://www.hslda.org/toolbox to get contact information for your representative. BACKGROUND This email will be posted on the HSLDA website with links to the data used here. H.B. 1266 funds the South Dakota Virtual School (SDVS) by allowing homeschool students, with some exceptions, to enroll in any public school in the state--including the virtual school--and the public school gets full pro-rata funding. When a homeschool student partially enrolls in a brick-and-mortar public school, this funding is rational. It is not rational when a homeschool student enrolls in a virtual school, like the South Dakota Virtual School, since virtual education is much less expensive. Section 1 of the bill allows homeschoolers to enroll in public school. Section 2 provides pro-rata funding, whether the student attends a brick-and-mortar school or receives inexpensive education at home. Section 3 requires school districts--which would include the SDVS--to allow homeschool students to transfer in. These 3 sections together create state-wide access to the SDVS and over-fund it dramatically. Thank you for standing with us for liberty. Sincerely Yours, Scott A. Woodruff, Esq. HSLDA Staff Attorney ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Idaho Virtual School performance on Idaho Standards Achievement Test (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- -> How many news articles did you read this morning over your oatmeal? We live in a world where concise information presented at the right time can make a big difference in the outcome of important legislative efforts. Yet it's tough to keep up with all the issues that affect you. HSLDA does this for you in the areas that affect your homeschool. Our emails and website enable you to take quick, decisive action. Please consider becoming a part of this team. 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Thank you for your cooperation. ======================================================================

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