4Real Forums: Northern VAers HSLDA action needed!!!

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Topic: Northern VAers HSLDA action needed!!!

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JennGM
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Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Virginia
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Posts: 17702

Posted: Jan 15 2006 at 11:43am \| IP Logged

Got this in my email, affecting Prince William County. If you in the surrounding area, please call. I know most of you are in Fairfax, but still hoping to get the word out.

=================
Dear HSLDA members and friends,

Delegate Harry Parrish (representing Manassas, Manassas Park, and nearby parts of Prince William County) has filed a bill, House Bill 537, that would make it much easier for your local superintendent to force you to stop homeschooling and dramatically increase the paperwork load for parents and school officials.

Action requested:

If you live in his district, call Del. Parrish and ask him to withdraw the bill. Emphasize that you live in his district. Your message can be as simple as: "I am one of your constituents. Please withdraw House Bill 537. It would dramatically increase unnecessary paperwork for families and school officials, and unfairly penalize parents and children." Call (804) 698-1050. You can also use our legislative toolbox online at http://capwiz.com/hslda/home/ .

Del. Parrish's district includes all of Manassas and Manassas Park, the part of Prince William County surrounding Manassas Park, and the art of Prince William County sandwiched between Manassas, Fairfax County, Sudley Road, and I-66.

Background:

1. The bill would require homeschool parents to notify the superintendent every time they make a change in their curriculum, causing pointless paperwork for parents and officials. Parents need the flexibility to periodically make the curriculum adjustments their child needs without the added burden of notifying an official every time. Flexibility is one reason homeschooling is so successful.

2. The bill would raise the required standardized test score from the 4th stanine (23rd percentile) to the 5th stanine (40th percentile). More parents would be unfairly forced to stop homeschooling, even though providing an excellent education. If a child in public school or private school scores in the 4th stanine, they are allowed to stay in the same educational setting. The same should be true for homeschooled children. Parents have the right to homeschool all their children, whether the children are average, above average or below average.

3. The bill greatly restricts the availability of probation following a lower-than-required test score. Current law gives families the right to probation if an adequate plan is filed. The bill empowers the superintendent to refuse to allow probation for any reason or no reason. Current law allows a full probationary year. The bill empowers superintendents to cut short a probationary year at any time.

4. Homeschooling works. Study after study has shown that homeschooled students score higher than others on standardized tests. Homeschooled students excel in college and in life after college. No new restrictions are warranted.

5. The trend nationwide is to reduce restrictions on homeschool families. Several states have repealed homeschool testing requirements recently so that now fewer than half the states require homeschool testing. This bill tries to turn back the clock to the day when harsher restrictions were common because little was known about the success of homeschooling.

6. The Home Educators Association of Virginia and Organization of Virginia Homeschoolers are also working to stop this bill.

Sincerely Yours

Scott A. Woodruff

=====================================================
The HSLDA E-lert Service is a service of:

Home School Legal Defense Association
P.O. Box 3000
Purcellville, Virginia 20134
Phone: (540) 338-5600
Fax: (540) 338-2733
Email: info@hslda.org
Web: http://www.hslda.org

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Jennifer G. Miller
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MacBeth
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Joined: Jan 27 2005
Location: New York
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Posts: 2518

Posted: Jan 15 2006 at 2:08pm \| IP Logged

Quote:

1. The bill would require homeschool parents to notify the superintendent every time they make a change in their curriculum, causing pointless paperwork for parents and officials. Parents need the flexibility to periodically make the curriculum adjustments their child needs without the added burden of notifying an official every time. Flexibility is one reason homeschooling is so successful.

I know it's not really funny, but if something like that were passed, I would call daily with an update until it drove the superintendent crazy: "Hello. Today we got out these books from the library. They were not listed on my regular curriculum list, so I wanted to make sure you heard about it..." or "Hello. Today we found a dead opossum and are dissecting it..." or "Hello. Today we wrote about apples instead of oranges..."

What a stupid bill.

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MacBeth in NY
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Jen L.
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Joined: Oct 18 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2148

Posted: Jan 15 2006 at 9:22pm \| IP Logged

Since he is a Virginia Delegate, is the requirement meant to be for all of Virginia?

Good idea, MacBeth. I would definitely do it, plus you made me LOL. (And I see you found a reason to use the

)

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Jen
dh Klete,ds (8/95),dd (12/97), dd (11/00), and ^2^ in heaven
"...the best state in which to glorify God is our actual state; the best grace is that of the moment..." St. Peter Eymard

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