Washington DC: New Homeschool Regulations

Until recently there were no homeschool regulations in Washington DC. That’s the ideal situation. When government regulates homeschooling it is a bid to exert control on something that’s a natural process that can be enacted between loving parents and their children.

The new regulations were developed with input from homeschoolers in that area. Parents must now submit a written intent document to let school districts know they plan to educate their children at home. They must also keep a portfolio of each child’s work and submit to school district reviews twice annually.

While I feel this is controlling, over-bearing excess of government involvement, it is much better than some of the regulations I’ve seen coming out of some of the states. Compared to weekly or even monthly supervision of charter school teachers, this looks like freedom. It’s all relative.

I’ll be happy on the day that the US government no longer involves itself in education in any way. We were brainwashed (in public schools) to believe we live in “the land of the free” but we have more laws and regulations than anywhere else on earth.

Source: Schools Roundup: Let’s Be Grownups Edition by Rachael Brown, published July 22, 2008 in DCist.