Thursday 23 June 2011

Waiting for a home educating abuse ring to emerge in this country

I mentioned yesterday that home educators in this country often tend to have a particular mindset, whereby they will enthusiastically embrace evidence of the good effects of home education and ignore anything at all negative. This can be very dangerous, because it is frequently combined with a dislike and mistrust of ‘professionals’; be they teachers, social workers, doctors or anybody else whose job entails their caring about the welfare of children. Anybody who is, or claims to be a home educator is almost by definition in the right and social workers and teachers are always presumed to be wrong, whatever they are saying about children being educated at home. The dangers this pose should be fairly plain and obvious to an objective observer.

Any parent posting messages on any of the home educating support lists and forums in this country about a problem they are experiencing, are sure of the uncritical support of those on the lists. Other members seldom ask just why the social workers are knocking on a family's door or how social services became involved in the first place. It is enough that this is a home educating parent and one of us! Of course she is being persecuted. This same unquestioning acceptance of anybody who claims to be a home educator is extended to complete maniacs, such as Christopher Warren, the English cult leader in Sweden. He has faced allegations of raping children and runs a bizarre religious commune, having a number of ’wives’, some of them barely of the age of consent, but because he is a home educator, he must be OK. When he posted on the Badman Review Action Group, I asked a few questions. This was enough to make people agitate for my removal from the list and I so left. How dare I question a home educator in this way? This odious man managed to persuade others on the list that he was an innocent victim of government persecution and so Karen Rodgers, well known on other lists as well, endorsed him and his site. Free Sweden Net now bears the following from Karen:

"Great website and really scary content. Sweden is so often held up here as an example of an enlightened modern country. What an irony!" (KR, United Kingdom, 1 March 2011)

On other occasions, right wing American groups who believe in beating their children regularly and allowing them to carry guns, have also been endorsed by British home educators. Anybody from abroad who posts on any British list because their children are not at school and social services are concerned, can be sure of finding support on either BRAG or HE-UK.

The danger is that this willingness, on the one hand to believe no ill of anybody who says he is a home educator and on the other to mistrust teachers and social workers, will produce a situation where children who are not at school will end up being abused and their abusers actually will be protected by other home educators. The belief is, though not explicitly stated, that if social services are chasing a home educating parent, then they are the villains and the parent is the victim. This is not at all how I see it. We have in the past seen cases in Education Otherwise of this sort of thing happening. I strongly suspect that sooner or later, this attitude will create the ideal circumstances for some unscrupulous person to set up as a home educator and abuse not only his own children but other peoples’ as well. The hatred and mistrust felt towards professionals, combined with the sympathy felt towards all home educating parents makes this inevitable. The only way that such a situation could be avoided would be if home educators started being a little less hostile towards teachers and social workers and somewhat more searching about the motives of other parents. I don’t expect this to happen and so sooner or later, some charismatic fellow like Christopher Warren will become prominent in home educating circles here with disastrous results.

21 comments:

  1. 'The only way that such a situation could be avoided would be if home educators started being a little less hostile towards teachers and social workers and somewhat more searching about the motives of other parents.'

    That's just part of the solution, is it? Part of any improvement in the current situation would be for professionals to be less automatically critical and suspicious of parents who are home educating. That would then help to create a climate of co-operation and honesty.

    You just have to look at the TES forums any time HE comes up to see the astonishing amount of ignorance and antipathy that exists among professional teachers towards HE. Quite venomous.

    No wonder parents feel embattled.

    It would also help if bloggers and commentators didn't go 'over the top' too often in their posts ;-)

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  2. 'You just have to look at the TES forums any time HE comes up to see the astonishing amount of ignorance and antipathy that exists among professional teachers towards HE. Quite venomous.'

    This is also quite true. As I said yesterday, it would be nice if a group of parents and professionals could get together and examine things neutrally.

    'It would also help if bloggers and commentators didn't go 'over the top' too often in their posts ;-)'

    No, I'm not getting this!

    Simon.

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  3. Well this is a cheery post! Actually, I do share your concerns to some extent. I'm not sure if this is all about being home educators though. I think we are still learning about the internet and, as we learn, we make some very basic mistakes. I was one of those who signed a petition calling for the release of a Syrian lesbian blogger a while ago, only to find he was a middle-aged man in Scotland who'd made the whole thing up. The dangers are not extreme as long as we recognise the limitations of the internet and don't abandon all our common sense.

    I also agree with anonymous above. A more open and honest approach from LAs would help with this.

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  4. 'I was one of those who signed a petition calling for the release of a Syrian lesbian blogger a while ago'

    No need to feel embarrassed about this Allie! At my daughter's prompting, I too was one of the mugs who fell for this Internet hoax and signed the wretched petition.
    Simon.

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  5. Simon, this post is very skewed. The evidence for abuse in HE was shown to be practically non-existent, in spite of Badman's (and your) best attempts. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the authorities. The abuse of power and persecution of home educators by Local Authorities is well documented, and is the very thing that will solidify support for just about any home educator.

    To say that as a community we are not awake to the possibility of abuse is totally unfounded and unfair. We questioned your relationship with your daughter for example. We are smart enough to know that if occurrence increases it will impact all of us, so we are more likely to bring it to light than most other 'faceless' communities.

    Unlike you, I did not fall for the Syrian lesbian blogger - what does that say? That perhaps your judgement on many issues is not as accurate as you think it is?

    What evidence do you have when you say that Christopher Warren is a cult leader? What evidence do you have for the accusations you level against him? If you presented on shred of evidence people might actually pay attention, but as usual you make sweeping and unsubstantiated claims against people. You are the most well known agitator in HE, most intelligent people stopped listening to what you say ages ago.

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  6. 'To say that as a community we are not awake to the possibility of abuse is totally unfounded and unfair. We questioned your relationship with your daughter for example. '

    I must have missed this! What was the question, if you don't mind my asking?

    Simon.

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  7. 'What evidence do you have when you say that Christopher Warren is a cult leader? '


    I have been into the Christopher warren business in depth. Those interested in the matter might wish to beigin by reading:

    http://www.nccg.info/fastfacts.html

    http://www.nccg.info/jannicke.html

    http://www.nccg.info/memberindex.html


    Simon.

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  8. "We have in the past seen cases in Education Otherwise of this sort of thing happening."

    Have we? What evidence do you have?

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  9. "I mentioned yesterday that home educators in this country often tend to have a particular mindset, whereby they will enthusiastically embrace evidence of the good effects of home education and ignore anything at all negative."

    Really? The only abuse case I know of was reported to the authorities by home educators. The family in question had regular visits from the LA and contact with medical professionals who noticed nothing amiss. Obviously I'm unable to prove this as the rights of the involved children to privacy prevent this, but have you any evidence that your assessment of the situation is correct? I've seen the types of responses you mention on email lists, but I've also seen questioning and more cautious responses in the same conversations. You seem to read and note comments that support your prejudices and ignore those that don't.

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  10. '"We have in the past seen cases in Education Otherwise of this sort of thing happening."

    Have we? What evidence do you have?'

    That would be when various professionals were asking Education Otherwise representatives about the wisdom of their choice for the trustee responsible for child protection.

    Simon.

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  11. What, the trustee who's identity was protected by court order because they were innocent?

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  12. Simon,

    I hate even having to ask this question, because I fear that in your mutterings you may have stumbled onto something rather alarming, because I really rather would not look too closely at all this insane carry on, and, because I already know the answer ...

    Is this the same Christopher C. Warren that Alison Sauer is 'involved' with?

    *sighs*

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  13. 'Is this the same Christopher C. Warren that Alison Sauer is 'involved' with?'

    Dear me, Jacquie, and I am usually the one who is accused of 'outing' people here! And Alison thought you were her only true friend... Those who wish to know a little more about Mr Warren, or Brother Warren as he likes to be known, may find some more about him here:


    http://www.nccg.org/warren.html

    Simon.

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  14. What, Jacquie? That sounds worrying...

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  15. 'What, Jacquie? That sounds worrying... '

    I'm sorry, I thought that I had mentioned before that this fellow is a chum of both Kelly Green in Canada and also Alison Sauer in this country? Those who know Tania Berlow and her views about the New World Order might also profitably look at Brother Warren's website and see some of what is there. Perhaps I should post about this tomorrow.
    Simon.

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  16. "I'm sorry, I thought that I had mentioned before that this fellow is a chum of both Kelly Green in Canada and also Alison Sauer in this country?"

    I just don't know what to believe any more. The whole world seems mad. I'm away from the internet for a week now and perhaps that's no bad thing.

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  17. I have copies of emails between Alison and this Warren person, sent to me in error I believe ...

    When Simon mentioned the name in the above post it rang a bell, so I checked my email archive. This is the same person on the website mentioned above - Christopher C. Warren, a.k.a Ezion Gerber, a.k.a. S Karaliaucius, a.k.a Stanislaw Krolewiec - alleged cult leader and self confessed polygamist. I even have a copy of his certificate from Oxford.

    I hate to be the one giving your mad muttering substance Simon, but since I am all about fairness and justice, I am forced to agree that this time you may be right.

    Though I would be happy to hear Alison's side to this story, I know she reads your blog. I don't know if they are 'chums' as you put it ... perhaps she would care to comment?

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  18. 'Any parent posting messages on any of the home educating support lists and forums in this country about a problem they are experiencing, are sure of the uncritical support of those on the lists. Other members seldom ask just why the social workers are knocking on a family's door or how social services became involved in the first place. It is enough that this is a home educating parent and one of us! Of course she is being persecuted.'

    I wanted to just comment on this.

    When this happened lately on our local list, what appeared to happen was unquestioning support. ONLIST. However, offlist, people were engaging with this mother in the full knowledge that something was probably 'up'. People, thankfully, weren't so cruel as to hint that her parenting could be at fault, IN PUBLIC.

    Could it be that this is what you are seeing on whichever lists you read? You only see the surface responses, which may be predictably supportive and uniform, but may see all the behind-the-scenes work by experienced individuals who become aware of the family's background and of the reasons for social services' involvement?

    I suspect that strong, healthy, local communities of home educators are more in touch with the details and practicalities of various situations and more pro-active than you realise. They just aren't prepared to publically humiliate the families onlist.

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  19. 'but may see all the behind-the-scenes work'

    That should read, 'but may not see all the behind-the-scenes work'.

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  20. Never heard of any of these people, only ever knew about attachment parenting and John Taylor Gatto. I never liked authorities because quite frankly I never felt I needed anyone to watch over me. So what mind set box do I fit into then?

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  21. Make that a mindset before the grammar police comes after me

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