Thursday 18 October 2012

Most home educating parents are normal...

I was asked recently to post about the fact that the vast majority of home educating parents in this country are perfectly normal men and women who want only to provide the best possible education for their children. I am happy to do so, because of course this is perfectly true. Unfortunately, the small percentage of strange and sometimes downright loopy individuals scattered among the normal and well-balanced home educators have an influence out of all proportion to their numbers. Many of these weirder types spend hours on the internet connecting with other odd people and, encouraged by a handful of high profile figures, they buy into a fantasy world of conspiracy and persecution. It goes without saying that this is not only the case with home education! That’s just what the internet is like. I am not bothered in general if a group of rock fans wish to get together and exchange mad theories about dead singers or if steam train enthusiasts want to accuse each other of heresy; these are harmless enough matters. I am concerned though when it is happening with home education, because I care about home education and worked for many years with vulnerable children. This is something about which I feel strongly.


Those relatively small number of home educating parents who sit up until four or five in the morning communicating with other like-minded nuts, often become vociferous members or founders of home educating support groups. They pick up a lot of nonsense from the internet and then become evangelical about spreading the news and explaining to other parents why they should not accept visits from their local authority or teach their children to read. Yes, really. I had an email from a mother at a home educating group who was secretly teaching her child to read, because she was too embarrassed to let anybody at her local group know about it. They was a strong ethos there about the virtues of the spontaneous acquisition of literacy and anybody who actually taught their child was regarded as a pushy parent. Imagine that; a home educating support group where parents were made to feel uneasy and ashamed about educating their children!

At another group, two of the main members were bitterly opposed to the MMR vaccine. Again, this was largely as a result of hanging round crank sites on the net. One of them had a child on the autistic spectrum and was so anti-MMR that one of the other parents felt that she had to keep secret the fact that she had had her own child vaccinated. In other groups dominated by people whom one could describe as disciples of various home educating gurus, parents allowed visits from their local authority, but kept that secret as well, for fear of being ostracised.

So, yes it is absolutely true that the overwhelming majority of home educating parents in this country are normal people who are interested only in educating their children. But that small number who are a bit mad have quite an influence and because they are so vociferous, they manage to dominate many groups, forums and lists. It is this which worries me.

31 comments:

  1. But you haven't written about them, Simon. Your first four lines mention them and then it's back to your views about a tiny minority of people.

    You are perfectly entitled to those views, but I am still concerned that anyone reading this site would assume that all home educators belong to the group you so dislike and want to act to regulate and control them because of a mistaken preconception.


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  2. 'You are perfectly entitled to those views, but I am still concerned that anyone reading this site would assume that all home educators belong to the group you so dislike and want to act to regulate and control them because of a mistaken preconception.'

    I thought that was the purpose of the site. Seriously, isn't it?

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  3. Well, I've been the parent who vaccinates in a room full of those who do not. But, so what? I was never shy of saying so. Home education requires a certain level of determination to do right by your child, regardless of the opinions of others, so I find it odd that you imagine ranks of folk silenced by a few. Perhaps you're right, but it's not a picture I recognise.

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    1. It's not a picture I recognise from either of the groups we regularly attend either.

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    2. Likewise - I've seen no animosity between pro- and anti- vaccination home educators.

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    3. I notice you miss the point about meetings being dominated by the disciples of various home educating gurus.

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  4. 'Well, I've been the parent who vaccinates in a room full of those who do not. But, so what? I was never shy of saying so. Home education requires a certain level of determination to do right by your child, regardless of the opinions of others, so I find it odd that you imagine ranks of folk silenced by a few.'

    Yes, but the very fact Allie, that you and Anne come on here and comment under your own names and make no attempt to conceal your identities, tells us that you are both strong minded and not likely to go with a crowd.

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    1. Though, to be fair, Anne hasn't experienced your abuse, yet.

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  5. 'I thought that was the purpose of the site. Seriously, isn't it?'

    Sorry, I am not with you. What is it that you suppose the purpose of this blog to be?


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  6. ' but I am still concerned that anyone reading this site would assume that all home educators belong to the group you so dislike and want to act to regulate and control them because of a mistaken preconception.'

    I don't think so. Did you watch the select committee hearing yesterday? There was no feeling at all that the local authority people felt like that. Talk local authority officers who deal with home educating parents and I think that you will find that they know such people are a minority. Unfortunately, they are an influential minority. They are the ones who organise campaigns, comment all the time on online articles and so on. Their views are the ones that many people see as being the standard view of home educators in this country. It is for that reason that I spend much of the time combatting what I see as a pernicious influence.


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    1. The thing is that I agree with you about their pernicious influence. Yet, you go WAAAAAAY too far and end up not helping.

      It's a bit like when Mr Williams attempts to 'help' the HE cause.

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  7. 'Though, to be fair, Anne hasn't experienced your abuse, yet.'

    And neither for that matter has Allie. Could we have a few examples of this abuse? Redacted of course to remove the names of my victims.

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  8. Oh calm down, I'm talking about the nasty name calling, mostly. Although I do remember even the normally serene Allie getting upset when you talked about her son here once.

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  9. 'I do remember even the normally serene Allie getting upset when you talked about her son here once.'

    I didn't even know that she had a son! I had a vague idea that she had a daughter, but certainly don't recall talking about her. Perhaps Allie could tell us about this, as I genuinely have no memory of it.

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    1. A comment about a birthday party.

      As soon as you find out some nugget of information about someone who comments here, you feel the need to bring it up in a post.

      This is why so many are now anons. Anne's turn will come.

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  10. 'The thing is that I agree with you about their pernicious influence. Yet, you go WAAAAAAY too far and end up not helping.

    It's a bit like when Mr Williams attempts to 'help' the HE cause.'

    Which is a fair comment. What an alarming idea, that I am like some mirror image of Peter Williams...

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  11. 'Which is a fair comment. What an alarming idea, that I am like some mirror image of Peter Williams...'


    Finally, the penny drops.

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  12. I think I might have got a bit irritated once when Simon mentioned something about my boy liking Batman when he was four. I don't remember any abuse though! I don't really think it takes great courage for people to just say who they are and what they think -not here and not in the world of home ed generally. I think there is something of a tendency towards melodrama on the internet.

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    1. I couldn't agree more. Now, could we please start talking about home education, not personalities? Simon can be really interesting when he talks about this, especially when he describes his own experiences.

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    2. 'Now, could we please start talking about home education, not personalities? '

      The next post should be your answer to that question.

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  13. I had completely forgotten about this incident invloving Allie, which was a couple of years ago. I can't see any abuse of my part nor upset on Allie's. Here is the exchange, which looks perfectly amicable to me. Allie had said:

    ' I am frequently astonished by the level and depth of information that people share about their children'

    I responded as follows:

    Fairly breathtaking statement, Allie. It is true that I have mentioned the odd bit of information about my daughter over the last year or two. This is as nothing compare to what you have been putting up during that time. Photographs of your children, details of your personal life and the childrens's developemnt; absolutely every aspect of their lives, in fact.


    Allie9 December 2010 04:34
    I haven't blogged since March 2010 and I don't think I will ever blog in the same way as I did when the kids were younger. I think that (like many others) I rushed into the technology without thinking hard enough about what information was mine to share. But I can assure you that I've never blogged *every* aspect of my children's lives - or mine, for that matter.


    Allie9 December 2010 04:39
    Oh, and I wasn't actually thinking of you when I said "I am frequently astonished by the level and depth of information that people share about their children." I wasn't having a dig. I was actually trying to discuss something interesting rather than go to battle but I guess I have been pretty confrontational on here before so I don't blame you for interpreting my comment that way.'

    There followed a little light-hearted banter about the Batman costume her son had worn. Anybody who sees this as my abuse causing upset to anybody must be of his chump!

    Simon Web

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  14. 'Though, to be fair, Anne hasn't experienced your abuse, yet.'



    Yes, Anne; be afraid, be very afraid!

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    1. I'm shaking with terror (or maybe it's laughter.)





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    2. I said 'upset', Allie said 'irritated'. Whatever.

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  15. 'I couldn't agree more. Now, could we please start talking about home education, not personalities? '

    Be careful, Anne. As somebody says above, 'Anne's turn will come.'

    As a matter of fact, the next few posts I intend to do will be about the practicalities of home education. Mind, that does not mean that some of those commenting will not manage to sidetrack the discussion into an exploration of my character defects or the flaws in my personality!

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  16. 'As a matter of fact, the next few posts I intend to do will be about the practicalities of home education.'

    That'll be nice. I'll look forward to that.

    However, I predict you'll only write two of them before you back to posts along the lines of 'Why all other home educators are bad and I am the only good one.' That's always the underlying theme. Oh and don't forget to mention chess, to be sure that Mr Williams steps in.

    Before you know it we'll have all sorts calling each other F***wits again and all will be back to normal.

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    1. Yes, I think he misses the arguments, which probably explains his bewilderment when nobody argued with his assessment of the briefing paper. He's not used to people agreeing with him!

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    2. Perhaps then, we should declare a 'be nice to Simon week' and see what happens?

      Or am I tempting fate and a hideous attack?

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  17. "Yes, I think he misses the arguments, which probably explains his bewilderment when nobody argued with his assessment of the briefing paper. He's not used to people agreeing with him!"

    Exactly; people were nodding in quiet agreement - I even heard his name used in a positive way - and then he blew it all away.

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