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Home Education and benefits issue....
Comments
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It would be interesting to see how well children who have been HE do in their GCSE's compared to school educated children (just for my own interest really!) I work in a secondary school and when I see the GCSE maths papers for example, I wouldn't have a clue how to teach children the equations etc! I can't think of anything worse than being stuck at home for years with my children day in, day out. My point of view is adults should be at work and children should be in school with their peers (just my own opinion of course!!)
Hard to say, as there is no official HE register, so the figures wouldn't be available. Plus, children who are home educated do not have to sit GCSEs and there are families who choose not to take this route.
Given that quite a high proportion of school educated children fail to reach national average at age 16 though, I take your point that it would be interesting to see what the comparisons are
Thankfully we are not stuck at home day in and day out for years. The same applies for the many home educators I know.
My point of view is that parents should choose the most suitable education for their children / family - whether that is school or home educated There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
I'm fine thanks, pip - talking to loads of people and impressed with what I'm seeing.
I'd love to see comparisons between HE and school educated children too but there would be no way of doing it as it goes way further than formal qualifications.
A more equal comparison would be to look at them in later life - what they are doing in their 20s for example, but even then you could never make a direct comparison.
What do GCSEs actually measure if the children have been taught to the test anyway?0 -
Hard to say, as there is no official HE register, so the figures wouldn't be available. Plus, children who are home educated do not have to sit GCSEs and there are families who choose not to take this route.
Given that quite a high proportion of school educated children fail to reach national average at age 16 though, I take your point that it would be interesting to see what the comparisons are
Thankfully we are not stuck at home day in and day out for years. The same applies for the many home educators I know.
My point of view is that parents should choose the most suitable education for their children / family - whether that is school or home educated
That could be the case with HE children as well I assume, if there are no official records?
If a parent wants to home educate, that's a valid choice, as long as they have the means to do this.
The one concern I have with HE children is that they don't have to come into any contact with an "official " (for want of a better word!) person and can be lost from the system for years. If a child has problems at home (as many do where I work, the number on the child protection register is large) the school can often pick up on this fact through behaviour etc, what happens to the HE children, who are looking out for them?
(Not saying this applies to anybody on here, just my own thoughts on the matter.):heart2: Newborn Thread Member :heart2:
'Children reinvent the world for you.' - Susan Sarandan0 -
I'm fine thanks, pip - talking to loads of people and impressed with what I'm seeing.
I'd love to see comparisons between HE and school educated children too but there would be no way of doing it as it goes way further than formal qualifications.
A more equal comparison would be to look at them in later life - what they are doing in their 20s for example, but even then you could never make a direct comparison.
What do GCSEs actually measure if the children have been taught to the test anyway?
They don't measure a lot really, but most employers will still ask for them!:heart2: Newborn Thread Member :heart2:
'Children reinvent the world for you.' - Susan Sarandan0 -
That could be the case with HE children as well I assume, if there are no official records?
Agree, there is no way of knowing.If a parent wants to home educate, that's a valid choice, as long as they have the means to do this.
Totally agree that it is a valid choice.The one concern I have with HE children is that they don't have to come into any contact with an "official " (for want of a better word!) person and can be lost from the system for years. If a child has problems at home (as many do where I work, the number on the child protection register is large) the school can often pick up on this fact through behaviour etc, what happens to the HE children, who are looking out for them?
(Not saying this applies to anybody on here, just my own thoughts on the matter.)
Schools can pick up on issues and they can fail to notice anything wrong too, or they can report problems and those problems go ignored.
If someone wanted to abuse a child, they would do so regardless. For new born babies, although there is the option of seeing a health visitor, it is not compulsory, and children could be abused before starting school. Should compulsory checks on all children be made every six months or so?
What about during school holidays/ Should all children be reviewed half way through the main summer holiday?
What about the children who don't tell?
When abuse happens, it is sickening and the adults responsible deserve everything thrown at them, however, HE is not an automatic cover for abuse.
I personally, am happy that the laws were not changed and I am aware that my views on this matter will probably vary widely with others on the forum
As with anything, there is a risk of abuse, if the adult involved wants to abuse that child and even a register would not stop such abuse
There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
So the answer in a nut shell is HE children can be lost in the system for years, maybe not coming into contact with another adult (outside the family) for some time? I find it hard to believe with the sheer amount of child protection training etc that happens in a school, HE children seem to be totally forgotten about?
In a school, child protection training/safeguarding is given to all staff (even admin staff) every 3 years, its taken very seriously.
However, I realise that most parents who HE would never harm their children, and do the very best they can.:heart2: Newborn Thread Member :heart2:
'Children reinvent the world for you.' - Susan Sarandan0 -
So the answer in a nut shell is HE children can be lost in the system for years, maybe not coming into contact with another adult (outside the family) for some time? I find it hard to believe with the sheer amount of child protection training etc that happens in a school, HE children seem to be totally forgotten about?
In a school, child protection training/safeguarding is given to all staff (even admin staff) every 3 years, its taken very seriously.
However, I realise that most parents who HE would never harm their children, and do the very best they can.
Technically, yes, a child can be unknown to the authority for many years, especially if they have never registered at a school.
It's not that HE children are forgotten about. In law, the responsibility to ensure that a child receives a full time appropriate education falls fully on the parent. Many parents choose to pass that authority on to the school, but they are still responsible for the child getting to school and receiving their education - which is why a parent can be prosecuted if their child does not attend school, and why a parent cannot sue a school if the child leaves at 16 without a standard level of education.
Some parents choose to fully take on their legal responsibility by home edding. That is a parent's right in law. There is currently no law that states a child's movements must be recorded, that a child must be seen by someone in authority x amount of times during their first 16 years.
Majority of people have their child's best interests at heart. Majority of people would not consider abusing a child. Sadly, there are some who are sick enough to do so, and will do so, no matter what measures are put in place.There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0 -
They don't measure a lot really, but most employers will still ask for them!
That's why many HE children do GCSEs in one form or another.
Young HE adults are finding their way into work/FE/HE without formal qualifications though.
A confident home educated candidate who can demonstrate a wide skill base and good written and verbal communication will probably fair better than a state educated candidate with mediocre GCSEs, no life experience and a crippled self-esteem though.
You can see on these boards how people lack ability to fill in an application form or write a formal letter. So what use are those GCSEs if they can't write properly?
Public confidence in state education is dropping imo and alternative CVs may well come into their own in the future.0 -
That's why many HE children do GCSEs in one form or another.
Young HE adults are finding their way into work/FE/HE without formal qualifications though.
A confident home educated candidate who can demonstrate a wide skill base and good written and verbal communication will probably fair better than a state educated candidate with mediocre GCSEs, no life experience and a crippled self-esteem though.
You can see on these boards how people lack ability to fill in an application form or write a formal letter. So what use are those GCSEs if they can't write properly?
Public confidence in state education is dropping imo and alternative CVs may well come into their own in the future.
Most Universities (in fact all that I've come into contact with) ask for GCSE's/AS Levels/A Levels or a certain number of points (given for the grade received at A Level) I'm not sure how a child would be admitted to higher education without formal qualifications? Even basic admin jobs in the paper ask for 3 GCSE grades at a C. I do think the whole system is flawed and having a grade in a GCSE doesn't prove anything really, I have a grade A in maths, but I can't remember much about what I learn all those years ago! Its only going to get worse with the newly introduced English Baccalaureate certificate, we suspect this will be the new set of qualifications that most universities will want their students to have! Who knows!:heart2: Newborn Thread Member :heart2:
'Children reinvent the world for you.' - Susan Sarandan0 -
Most Universities (in fact all that I've come into contact with) ask for GCSE's/AS Levels/A Levels or a certain number of points (given for the grade received at A Level) I'm not sure how a child would be admitted to higher education without formal qualifications? Even basic admin jobs in the paper ask for 3 GCSE grades at a C. I do think the whole system is flawed and having a grade in a GCSE doesn't prove anything really, I have a grade A in maths, but I can't remember much about what I learn all those years ago! Its only going to get worse with the newly introduced English Baccalaureate certificate, we suspect this will be the new set of qualifications that most universities will want their students to have! Who knows!
HE children have been accepted into colleges and university without having paper grades. Quite often they can demonstrate other skills.
Many do go down the route of sitting GCSEs though There is something delicious about writing the first words of a story. You never quite know where they'll take you - Beatrix Potter0
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