Request from HSLDA

[Jack Lewis]

October 14, 2003

Dear HSLDA Members and friends:

CBS National News ran a negative homeschooling report last night
titled "The Dark Side of Homeschooling" and will run a further report
this evening. The reports focus on a handful of child abuse cases
during the past 5 to 10 years involving families claiming to be
homeschoolers.

Last night's segment discussed the murder of Kyle, 13, and Marnie
Warren, 19, by their brother Brandon, 14, and his subsequent suicide.
The Warren family is from Johnston County North Carolina.

To view the CBS story go to:
http://www.hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=1139

Missing from the CBS story was that: Social Services had contacted
the family eleven times, were well aware of the condition of the home
and had been working with the family.

However, to any fair-minded reader the story leaves the impression
that homeschooling equals child abuse.

We are outraged that CBS would ignore the obvious facts and draw the
erroneous conclusion that homeschoolers need to be strictly
regulated. The story is a shameless attempt to smear an entire
community of committed, dedicated parents.

The real story is CBS's bias against homeschooling and it is using
this distorted story to encourage the regulation of homeschoolers.

Please call Viacom (parent company of CBS) and CBS to express your
opposition to the biased reporting and smear campaign against
homeschooling. Highlight the fact that homeschooling was not the
cause of the childrens' deaths and that you expect CBS to have higher
journalistic standards.


Viacom President and CEO - Mel Karmazin
P - 212-258-6000


CBS Evening News - LA Bureau
P - (323) 575-2202


Sincerely,

J. Michael Smith
HSLDA President

 

[saved4life]

Of course they need to be strictly regulated.

Strictly regulated doesn't mean abolished, though.

But it's society's obligation to make sure kids are being educated to certain standards, not just to the parents' ideas of what they should learn and know or not know.

 

[Jack Lewis]

Of course they need to be strictly regulated.

Strictly regulated doesn't mean abolished, though.

But it's society's obligation to make sure kids are being educated to certain standards, not just to the parents' ideas of what they should learn and know or not know.

Funny how government schools are churning out illiterate, foul-mouthed delinquents while the "unregulated" homeschools turn out well-adjusted, intelligent, high-achievers. Maybe de-regulation is the key to real education.

 

[saved4life]

Funny how government schools are churning out illiterate, foul-mouthed delinquents while the "unregulated" homeschools turn out well-adjusted, intelligent, high-achievers. Maybe de-regulation is the key to real education.

You wish.

Count how many "home-schooled" kids there are in the Ivy league colleges. Next to none!

Count how many "home-schooled" CEOs there are out there. Next to none!

Count how many preachers are home-schooled. Surprise...surprise...quite a few.

 

[Totentanz]

If you're rich enough to hire private tutors...it's worth it in everyway...but the thought of my Mom educating me is scary, despite how much she means to me!

 

[Jack Lewis]

Funny how government schools are churning out illiterate, foul-mouthed delinquents while the "unregulated" homeschools turn out well-adjusted, intelligent, high-achievers. Maybe de-regulation is the key to real education.

You wish.

Count how many "home-schooled" kids there are in the Ivy league colleges. Next to none!

Count how many "home-schooled" CEOs there are out there. Next to none!

Count how many preachers are home-schooled. Surprise...surprise...quite a few.

Wow, they really screw you up mathwise in those government schools. The percentage of children in the US who are currently homeschooled is around 2%. Homeschooling has been on the rise since the early 80s but was fairly rare before then. so obviously there would be a very small percentage of homeschooled people to event count in either of those categories.

However, homeschoolers are making a good representation in Ivy League schools (which you could have easily discovered had you actually researched your comment before making it)

As for CEOs they are also fairly rare, and using that as any sort of example is ludicrous. Blacks have a disproportionate showing in the corporate world, does that reflect their intelligence or some other factor? You can't claim that it proves one thing for homeschoolers, but not for other demographic groups.

 

[Heidi Mighty Mo]

Count how many "home-schooled" kids there are in the Ivy league colleges. Next to none!

Count how many "home-schooled" CEOs there are out there. Next to none!

Count how many preachers are home-schooled. Surprise...surprise...quite a few.

I am wondering where you are getting your statistics. From what I understand, there are several homeschooled kids being accepted to all sorts of universities, including ivy leagues. Of course the ratio will be smaller considering there are fewer homeschooled children than there are public schooled.

Another thing people don't realize is many of the great inventors and geniuses of the past were homeschooled - some after being labeled retarded in the public school system. Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Eli Whitney, John James Audubon, Elias Howe, Wilbur and Orville Wright.

 

[Nikki]

I just joined a homeschooling forum for homeschoolers where I live. The emailed the local news asking them not to air the show. The local channel said they had to because of affiliates. Anyways, the local news did a report on the 11 o'clock news last night and interviewed a few people from the forum showing the positive sides of homeschooling.

 

[saved4life]

Wow, they really screw you up mathwise in those government schools. The percentage of children in the US who are currently homeschooled is around 2%. Homeschooling has been on the rise since the early 80s but was fairly rare before then. so obviously there would be a very small percentage of homeschooled people to event count in either of those categories.

You think home-schooled kids make up 2% of any of those groups I mentioned?

Hmmm...home-schooled kids are just persecuted Christians, I guess. Just like black people...

 

[Heidi Mighty Mo]

I just joined a homeschooling forum for homeschoolers where I live. The emailed the local news asking them not to air the show. The local channel said they had to because of affiliates. Anyways, the local news did a report on the 11 o'clock news last night and interviewed a few people from the forum showing the positive sides of homeschooling.

That is pretty cool and good to hear!

 

[Jack Lewis]

Wow, they really screw you up mathwise in those government schools. The percentage of children in the US who are currently homeschooled is around 2%. Homeschooling has been on the rise since the early 80s but was fairly rare before then. so obviously there would be a very small percentage of homeschooled people to event count in either of those categories.

You think home-schooled kids make up 2% of any of those groups I mentioned?

Hmmm...home-schooled kids are just persecuted Christians, I guess. Just like black people...

Reading comprehension problems as well. That's really sad.

I wrote: "The percentage of children in the US who are currently homeschooled is around 2%. " The link I provided shows that homeschoolers do represent a significant portion of Ivy League Universities, although obviously homeschoolers that age would be much less than 2% of that age group since the number of kids homeschooled back then was fewer. Representation among corporate management is hardly evidence of any solid factor. Although, all this data is wasted on you, I'm sure.

 

[saved4life]

Reading comprehension problems as well. That's really sad.

: that was pretty good.

I'll let you win with that joke and move on...