Wednesday 10 August 2011

An historical perspective on 'the state as parent'

A recurring theme in the debate on monitoring of home education is that parents have responsibility for their children and that if we allow local authorities to become too much involved then, it is claimed, we will find the ‘state as parent’ creeping into our society. It is instructive in this context to look at just how local authorities became involved in family life in the first place.

As readers are probably aware, I used to write extensively for magazines such as True Detective and Murder Most Foul Quarterly (Yes, there really is a such a periodical). No normal person buys these things; they cater for the sicko market. At one time I wrote a series on the so-called ’Baby Farmers’ of late Victorian Britain. These were women who for a small lump sum would offer to look after unwanted babies and small children, taking good care of them or finding them decent foster homes. It was really a murderous scam, whereby having taken the money, the women would then either starve the baby to death or sedate it heavily with laudanum until it died of opium poisoning. Some of these characters disposed of hundreds of babies in this way for money. During the late 19th century, foster care and adoption were completely unregulated and when attempts were made through measures such as the 1898 Infant Life Protection Act to introduce monitoring and control over the practice of fostering. There was an outcry from many quarters. The state was trying to intervene in family life and what parents did with their children was their business, not the police or local authority’s. Precisely similar arguments were put forward when compulsory education was introduced and also when the practice of parents essentially selling their small children as apprentices to chimney sweeps and so on was stopped. The age of consent for most of the Victorian Era was twelve; it was only raised to sixteen after it became widely known that poor parents were selling their pre-pubescent daughters to brothels in order to cater for the paedophile market. Once again, there was outrage at what was seen as an unwarrantable intrusion into family life by the state. It was up to parents what arrangements they made for their children; it was no business at all of anybody else.

Now I am not of course suggesting that any home educators are selling their sons to chimney sweeps or their daughters to brothels! I am simply pointing out that local authority involvement with family life began for very good reasons and that those who objected so vociferously to this trend in Victoria’s reign are now generally accepted to have been wrong. It is from this historical perspective that I find myself a little uneasy when once again we hear the cry that we must preserve parents’ rights and not allow the state to take over the role of parent. In every case in the past where this slogan has been used, history shows those using it to have been wrong-headed and wholly mistaken. I wonder what the view will be in a century of those who now use this rationale for fighting against local authority interference in the lives of their families?

28 comments:

  1. The difference is that in the earlier cases you mention there was clear evidence of harm prior to state intervention and the regulatory measures would (and did) reduce the risk to children.

    A key point in the objections raised to the Badman recommendations was that there *wasn't* evidence of harm, and even if there had been, annual inspections by LAs were hardly likely to reduce the risk.

    The principle of minimal state intervention still holds; the state should curb individual liberty only if there is a real infringement of other people's liberty involved, and that intervention should be effective.

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  2. I wonder what people will think in a 100 years about the way our society allowed the abuse of those in the care of the state.

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  3. no visit here meeting nothing! and have a real nice surprise for any one from our LA who wants to try and be the 1st to enter!

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  4. "no visit here meeting nothing! and have a real nice surprise for any one from our LA who wants to try and be the 1st to enter!"

    Wow, in two illiterate sentences you make a clear case FOR monitoring.

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  5. Only if it invariably results in the same problems in a child. If I lack knowledge in something my child wants to learn we find information our someone who can help. Why would grammar be any different from any other subject? Out do home educators have to be experts in every subject, in you view?

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  6. 'Out' and 'our' above should both obviously be 'or'. Not in full control of predictive text yet!

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  7. "If I lack knowledge in something my child wants to learn we find information our someone who can help. Why would grammar be any different from any other subject?"

    Very true. My daughter is a much better writer than I am. She is more interested in writing in general and has opted to do various correspondence courses in English Language and Creative Writing up to Higher Education levels. I'm far more interested in maths and science which requires a completely different style of writing.

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  8. worn out anon say-Wow, in two illiterate sentences you make a clear case FOR monitoring.

    bring it on you wanna be the first though the door? hope you got a strong pair of teeth?

    did you see a teacher assitance been done for looting? LOL

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  9. ' hope you got a strong pair of teeth? '

    Gosh, I hope Anonymous has more than just two teeth! Most of us have around thirty two, but perhaps Mr Williams knows something we don't about this individual.

    Simon.

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  10. old Webb says-Gosh, I hope Anonymous has more than just two teeth! Most of us have around thirty two, but perhaps Mr Williams knows something we don't about this individual.

    who ever comes though this door over home education will have a lot less than 32 when they carried out! you wanna be the first to try Webb?

    did you see about that teacher who been done for looting Webb?

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  11. 'who ever comes though this door over home education will have a lot less than 32 when they carried out! '

    At risk of sounding pedantic, the correct expression ahould really be 'fewer than', rather than 'less than'.

    Simon.

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  12. tried Webb says-At risk of sounding pedantic, the correct expression ahould really be 'fewer than', rather than 'less than'.

    you are pedantic Webb you going to be first to come though the door?

    did you see the teacher assistance arriving at court charged with looting?

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  13. 'did you see the teacher assistance arriving at court charged with looting? '

    Well I did, but can't see at all what this has to do with home education. You will of course recall Mr Williams, that unlike you, I did not send my own child to school for a single day! The reason for this is that I have a pretty poor opinion of school as a way of educating children.

    Simon.

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  14. worn our webb says-I did not send my own child to school for a single day!

    what you want a medal? you dont have a poor opinion of school as you would like to send children back to state schools. question for you if a state school children said i want to be home educated you would say sorry you cant!
    your support of Badman would if it had been passed forced more children back to a state school.

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  15. 'you would like to send children back to state schools.;

    Not sure where you have got this idea from; I wouldn't send a dog to the average state school!

    Simon.

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  16. webb says-Not sure where you have got this idea from; I wouldn't send a dog to the average state school!

    you would send them back to a state school your support of badman proves that!and what about children at state schools who may say i want to be home educated?

    remember you fully supported crazy old Badman

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  17. 'you would send them back to a state school your support of badman proves that!'

    I was keener to ensure that children were being educated effectively at home, not on their being sent to school. As I say, I did not send my child to school; this is because I am not really in favour of schools. Home education is a far more efficient way of educating children.

    Simon.

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  18. Webb says-I was keener to ensure that children were being educated effectively at home, not on their being sent to school

    if Badman had won and we know LA's tell lies and many dont like home education so many parents would have been issued with SAO and some parents would have got scared and then would have forced child back to school.

    your in favour of schools as you refuse to help other state school children who may want to be home educated.

    some parents want help when home educating from they LA but we dont get it why dont you stand up for these parents all you ever do is agree with LA's
    people have been failed by school and you want them to be visited by the very people who failed them!

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  19. 'your in favour of schools as you refuse to help other state school children who may want to be home educated'

    Complete nonsense, of course. I actually advise parents of children with special needs at state schools how to deregister their children and educate them at home. This is in fact part of my job.

    Simon.

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  20. Webb says-Complete nonsense, of course. I actually advise parents of children with special needs at state schools how to deregister their children and educate them at home. This is in fact part of my job.

    you only help parents of children with special need what about all the other childre who may want to be home educated? your not intersted in them are you Webb?
    you also know that your support of crazy Badman would have forced children back to school

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  21. There's a difference between what a child wants and what a child needs and just what the parent can realistically deliver.
    Many many parents don't want to HE.
    Many children like school.
    And the country would be in far far far deeper shit than it already is, if we asked all parents to educate their children at home.

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  22. 'And the country would be in far far far deeper shit than it already is, if we asked all parents to educate their children at home.'

    Who's doing that?

    No one.

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