Homeschooling is viable, alternative form of education

By Thomas Mundia

The recent by-elections have no doubt provided to the electorate an important trailer about the issues and choices they’ll face in the run-up to the general election next year.

We are very encouraged by the recent decision by the Minister of Education to withdraw the Basic education Bill 2012 and to consult further with stakeholders. We as East Africa Community of Homeschoolers write asking to be heard.

We acknowledge the great strides made by the Ministry to improve education in the country though note with concern some recent worrying trends. The Basic Education Bill 2012 if passed as it is will make homeschooling illegal in this country and deny parents a legitimate, well tested and successful alternative form of education.

Key benefits

Our main message is parents have a fundamental right to direct their children’s education and that they have a prior right to decide how their children should be educated which includes the right to home educate them.

Although it is more established in English-speaking liberal democracies, particularly the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and South Africa, homeschooling is also catching the interest of parents in other countries as an educational alternative.

In countries such as Germany, Brazil and Sweden, the movement is creating no small amount of controversy.

Statistics from the East Africa resource centre on Thika Road (Baptism mission) indicate around 100 families (though there are many more that are unknown) that homeschool in Kenya (under the East Africa Community of Homeschoolers).

Academic freedom

Homeschooling can be defined as the elective practice whereby children are educated directly under the personal oversight of their parents, often, though not exclusively, by their parents and usually in a home setting. Some of the key benefits of homeschooling are:

(1) Flexible learning schedules that compliment family life (2) Education that is wholesome and tailor made for each child’s learning style (3) Less peer pressure (4) Close Parent-child relationship and (5) Good Socialisation.

Homeschooling has produced some notable personalities such as Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison (inventor of the light bulb and motion picture camera, The Serena Williams sisters, Agatha Christie, Condoleezza Rice just to mention a few.

Homeschoolers are law-abiding God-fearing citizens of this country who have simply freely chosen this as a form of education that best suits their circumstances and simply ask to be understood, supported and protected under the law.

The current Bill as it is omits homeschooling as a form of basic education (definitions) even when it was mentioned by the task force report for the realignment of education according to the new constitution.  Parents have the fundamental right to choose and direct the education of their children.

Other concerns we have with the Bill are:

1. Too much power has been vested upon the concerned ministry to define what education is, control the content (one standardised curriculum), and regulate all forms of education (appoint the management boards for all schools).

2. The definitions of teacher and school are narrow and fail to recognize other factors and circumstances that may not fall under these classes.

3. Too much emphasis has been laid on children’s right (e.g. protection from discrimination and punishment) with NO mention of the rights of parents and teachers.

4. The issue of freedom of education and academic freedom, found in article 33 of the Constitution, will be irregularly restricted by the Education Bill i.e. despite the good intention of ensuring standardisation and equality in access to education the Bill threatens to deny parents the right to choose due to the state usurping all mechanisms of directing and managing education.

The Minister in his wisdom has noted the growing concerns from many stakeholders and ask him to give all of them a fair hearing.

Our recommendation is that we imitate the UK Education Law (Sec 7) ...children must go to school either public or private school unless they are “educated otherwise”.

State, parents, family

We also recommend the explicit inclusion of the term ‘homeschooling’ as a form of basic education.

Homeschoolers follow credible curricula and worldwide have self-regulating mechanisms that ensure the children are as good (if not better) than any other child in institutionalised schools.

We ask the Minister to recognise the complimentary role of state to the parents and family as the primary educators.

The Family has to be protected as the fundamental cell of society and school of love (virtue).

The writer comments on social issues.

[email protected]