The study of Political science deals with the theory and practice of politics. It also deals with the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. Homeschooling is a political statement. If you are considering homeschooling, you need to recognize that fact. Being informed and knowledgeable about the politics of education in our state is to your benefit. This page contains links and ideas surrounding the Political Science of homeschooling. We hope this page is useful to you. As on all of our pages we invite you to contribute to this resource. If there is a problem with this page, please contact us.

ITEMS OF INTEREST A Political Statement Ensuring Personal Freedoms -Legal insurance Preserve the Future Become Politically Active -Promote home education -Know your legislator -Know how to write a letter Is it really a homeschool issue? -"Good guys" and "bad guys"   ABOUT You may see this symbol sprinkled throughout pages at this website. These symbols indicate links to the writings of well seasoned Ohio homeschoolers.

Why is homeschooling a political statement?

People homeschool because they do not agree with what our society considers the “norm”. Once you step outside the norm for a society, you are into making a social statement and eventually that leads to making a political statement.

If you make the choice to homeschool, you will follow one of two paths.

You can be a passive homeschooler, meaning that someone will most likely speak for you and anyone else who is passive. As a passive homeschooler, it is highly likely that at some point your right to homeschool may be reduced or diminished. As a passive homeschooler, it is highly likely that at some point you will become unaware of what the result might be of someone else speaking for you.

You can be an active homeschooler meaning that you can speak for yourself, and thus become an advocate for homeschooling. As an active homeschooler, you will advocate at the level you are comfortable with. This can range from being a total political animal and storming the Capitol, to quietly preserving your individual freedoms and helping to preserve individual freedoms for future generations.

How can I ensure my personal freedom to homeschool my children?

1. Be an active homeschooler.
   
2. Know the Laws in our state. In order to be protected by our laws, you must know what they are and how not to stray too far from them. By being well read on what human rights are, what the U.S. Constitution really says, and what your State and local statutes have to say, you retain a lot of your own civic power and help to ensure your personal freedoms.
   
3. Know what to do if you have legal issues.
   
4. Know the People who make the policies and laws that can effect you, locally and at the State level.
5. Be aware of local policies that can effect what you want to do in homeschooling.
6. Know how to write an effective letter or email for when you have to object to something.
   
7. Filter and research "Legislative alerts" before you react.
8. Promote Homeschooling by setting an example.

Is it true that there are groups that will legally protect me if I pay a membership and follow their rules?

You're the only person who can really decide if this is true or not. But here are some thoughts.

The beauty of homeschooling is that it historically has been a grassroots movement. Some may argue that having one group represent our community may be a worthwhile thing for many reasons, but with that idea in mind, do you really think one group can accurately represent your family? Why give away your power? There aren't many places these days where you as an individual has a real say in social policy. Homeschooling is one of those places and if you are a knowledgeable citizen, there's really no need for you to give away the power to represent your own viewpoints as far as homeschooling goes.

Home School Legal Defense Association and Foundation Consumer Information By Mary H. McCarthy, links from Ann Zeise The Home School Legal Defense Association DOES NOT Speak for US! Unitarian Universalist Homeschoolers speaks out against HSLDA More Information About HSLDA Although the Home School Legal Defense Association is credited with helping homeschoolers in its early years, many believe the organization has changed. HSLDA's actions on federal, state and local levels have raised questions about the organization's direction, and whether it has strayed too far to offer any genuine protection or benefit to homeschoolers. Did you know there is a National Center for Home Education that speaks for you at the Federal Level on a number of issues you may or may not agree with? The HSLDA Federal Relations Department is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of parental rights and homeschool freedom. A Choice of Shepherds? by Sue Duncan "Whatever the brand name, turning our rights over to any outside “experts” sacrifices the very essence of what homeschooling is about." Sage: Sue Duncan. Sue Duncan created (HS-ALERTS) many years ago and they have been preserved and housed at The Informed Parent blog, authored by Mary Nix of Northeast Ohio. They were very timely and informative then and much of that information and sage wisdom applies today.   National organizations that may help you More troubleshooting ideas for local issues.

How can I help ensure that my freedoms to homeschool are preserved?
If current homeschoolers don't actively work to preserve homeschooling rights for the future, those rights could disappear. You don't need a representative to speak for you or your family. You are the best representative. The people who came before you thought it important to preserve homeschooling freedoms and here's how you can help today.

1. Learn how to use the General Assembly's Legislative Information System website so you can keep informed about homeschooling issues that may come up in the General Assembly.
   
2. Learn how to recognize issues that really do pertain to homeschooling in our state.
   
3. Learn as much as you can about how laws are made or changed in our state.
   
   

   How a Bill Becomes a Law in Ohio

4. Learn as much as you can about how homeschooling lobbyists and anti-homeschooling lobbyists operate. Sometimes lobbyists are in our state, often they are not:
   
   

   Thoughtful Reading Home Schools Run By Well-Meaning Amateurs Schools With Good Teachers Are Best-Suited to Shape Young Minds By Dave Arnold There's nothing like having the right person with the right experience, skills and tools to accomplish a specific task. Certain jobs are best left to the pros, such as, formal education. Does HSLDA Mix Causes? If So, to What Effect on Homeschooling?

   
   
5. Recognize that the The State Board of Education and the Ohio Education Association are different entities and that you should pay periodic attention to what both are up to regarding homeschooling in our state. The State Board of Education can have a direct effect on home education, the Ohio Education Association has a powerful influence.
   
6. Learn how to filter and respond appropriately to Legislative Alerts that get passed along.
   
7. Write a letter to your legislator letting him know that there isn't one group or person that speaks for all homeschoolers. Download an example letter [.doc format].
   
   

   Grassroots Campaign: Write Your Legislators….. by Amy Cortez, Editor - The Eclectic Telegraph - Jan 2007 If you are homeschooling, you have already made a political statement. You are coloring outside the lines by most American standards. How far you color outside the lines really has to do with where you see yourself philosophically on this planet. Right or left, religious, secular, gay, straight, single, married, white, black, Latino, Asian, Native American -- all words that describe American homeschoolers.

How Can I be more involved in the homeschool movement?

You're already involved in the homeschool movement. There are degrees to which you can become more actively involved in how homeschooling is regulated in our state. The easiest way is to be informed and vigilant. Here are other ways to be involved:

1. Be informed by reading about local school issues and be aware of the real issues that can effect homeschoolers.
   
2. Be aware of recent Statewide Legislative happenings. React appropriately to those that effect our community. If necessary, write a letter or email.
   
3. Be aware of the next Legislature session in Ohio. Don't count on someone else to report issues back to you, stay informed about bills that are introduced.
   
4. Be aware of ongoing Legislative Issues.
   
5. Realize The State Board of Education has a role in your right to homeschool. If possible periodically attend meetings.
6. Realize that local school boards can also have an effect on your homeschool. Periodically attend meetings. These dates and times are posted in your local newspapers and online at the district websites.
7. Get to know your Legislator. Write a letter letting him know that there isn't one group or person that speaks for all homeschoolers. Download an example letter [.doc format].

Getting to Know Your Legislator
You will find that we have some very good representatives at the legislature, along with a few bad ones. For sure, many of them don't know what you know about home education, unless of course they are homeshooling their kids. Most likely, they know what OHEA (Ohio Education Association) and the state school board tells them. If individual home educators do not take the responsibility to educate their own legislators about home education, we will lose political battles and eventually our rights. Most legislators are willing to listen to their own constituents, because if they don’t they don’t get re-elected.

Know how to write an effective letter or email
If you are going to be effective in making your opinion known on an issue, knowing how to construct a good letter is key. The Organization of Virginia Homeschoolers offers some excellent ideas on writing an effective letter.

Is it really a homeschooling issue?

Have you ever received a message like this one? Scary legislative alerts are commonplace on the homeschooling scene. These campaigns promise quick and dramatic returns for very little effort on your part. Like the boy who cried "Wolf!," legislative alerts and telephone campaigns lose their effectiveness when they are overused.

There are groups within our community who sometimes can make even the most mundane or incredibly politically divisive issues into "homeschooling" issues, when in reality they are not issues that pertain to homeschooling at all. A lot of times these issues will come under the guise of "family issues" or "parental rights" or the urgency to preserve your fundamental rights as a parent - always complete with an explanation of how it will effect your rights to homeschool. Just because someone tells you it is a homeschooling issue it doesn't mean that it is really a homeschooling issue.

Learn how to filter what is and is not a real homeschooling issue. Here are some thoughts and ideas to try out.

Often issues in alerts come from groups that are outside the borders of our State, Cities, and districts. In filtering, remember that it is you that has to deal with whatever the outcome is, not a group who is outside your State, City, district. Remember that through the tenth amendment to our U.S. Constitution, each of our our fifty states retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, meaning that the federal government is limited only to the powers granted in the Constitution for the National government and that the individual states have the power locally.This is why it is worrisome when groups begin to meddle into Federal and even international territory with "homeschooling" issues.

Use your common sense and a filter on the issue. With the issue at hand ask the simple question, does this issue really effect my personal right to homeschool my children?

Sometimes alerts will actually be about homeschooling issues, recently in Ohio, when our regulations were up for review, an out-of state organization sent out an "urgent" alert to Ohio homeschoolers that contained inaccuracies and alarmed many homeschoolers needlessly. You can read about that issue here. The important thing to remember is that there really may be issues that come up that are pertinent to your right to homeschool in our state, but in being well read on what human rights are, what the U.S. Constitution really says, what your State and local statutes have to say, you can filter the real meaning behind alerts.

Questions you might use to help you filter issues, perhaps even test some of the questions out on the issues listed above:

So who are the "good guys" and "bad guys" with regards to homeschooling?

Only you can decide the answer to this question, but here are some ideas.

Apathy is dangerous to any way of living - especially if you are homeschooling. With that idea, one might add apathy to the list of "bad guys" VHEA describes:

• Apathy
• Ignorance
• Fear
• Prejudice and stereo typing.

The list of "Good Guys" VHEA describes:

• Information
• Education
• Communication
• Bridge-building

Each homeschooling family is different. Each member of a homeschooling family is an individual who needs to be vigilant and active in protecting homeschooling freedoms, and more importantly, freedoms and rights of the individual. The best way to protect your individual freedoms is to use them. Use them by speaking out on your own and on behalf of your children.