House Bill 2560

The Radical Rewrite of the Home Education Law

Pennsylvania Homeschoolers Accreditation Agency (PHAA) strongly opposes House Bill 2560. If passed, it would completely erase the entire current home education law and then substitute an untested new version which would negatively impact homeschooling parents, homeschooled children, and the state’s interest in an educated citizenry.

Aspects that would hurt homeschooling parents:

No recognition of homeschool association diplomas. Because this bill would forbid any PA Department of Education policy related to homeschooling, it would end the current PDE policy that recognizes homeschool association diplomas. Thus, if this bill were to pass, homeschool association diplomas would no longer be recognized as valid by the PDE, despite the fact that PHAA has developed an excellent reputation with colleges across the state and country. PHAA is the largest of the seven homeschool associations whose diplomas are recognized by the PDE. Each year of high school, PHAA member evaluators award high school credits to home educated students based upon PHAA’s rigorous standards. PHAA’s 1500 members (470 graduates per year) deeply resent this attempt to take away their diploma option.

No borrowing of school district textbooks. This bill takes away the option in the current law to borrow school district textbooks. This option is especially appreciated by low income homeschooling families.

No possibility of participation in school district sports. Because this bill would forbid any school district policy related to homeschooling, it would wipe out the policies that about half of the school districts have made to let homeschoolers participate in school sports and extra extracurricular activities.

No protection for the due process rights of parents. The due process procedures of the current law tell the superintendents what they need to do to investigate a complaint against a homeschooling family -- first the superintendent requests additional documentation, then there is a due process hearing with an impartial hearing officer to determine whether education is taking place. Elimination of due process procedures opens parents up to other kinds of prosecution by the state. Superintendents and child service agencies retain the power to initiate prosecution for “neglect.” Such prosecution carries potential loss of custody as opposed to simply having to put the child in school.

No accountability. This bill eliminates both of the accountability measures of the current law. Homeschooled students: (1) take tests in grades 3, 5, and 8; and (2) have progress evaluated by a professional educator annually. Accountability gets all of us, including homeschoolers, to do things that are good when we would otherwise be too lazy or too busy to do them.

Aspects that would hurt homeschooled children:

Reduced child protection. This bill would remove all of the following child protections that are in the current home education law: (1) immunization requirements, (2) medical services requirements, (3) protection of the child from being homeschooled when a felon or child abuser lives in the home.

No evaluators to provide encouragement and help. This bill would remove the requirement that homeschoolers meet with a professional educator of their own choice to evaluate the portfolio and interview the child at the end of each school year. Evaluators read and respond to student writing, appreciate creative projects, appreciate hard work, and serve as guidance counselors. Not only that, they often point out student excellence in evaluation letters that function as recommendations for the student when applying to summer programs, for scholarships, to colleges or for employment.

Lowers value of home education graduation. Currently homeschool associations, recognized by the PDE, maintain high standards in order to protect the reputation of their diplomas. Partly as a result, homeschooled student’s diplomas are given respect, even preference, by many colleges. This bill would end the PDE policy recognizing homeschool association diplomas. Instead the bill itself claims that graduation from a home education program is the equivalent of high school graduation if a certain number of “years or equivalent credits” are met. Unfortunately, nothing in the bill specifies how completion of credits can be determined. Currently credits are determined via the annual evaluation of the portfolio. If this bill passes, judges may be asked to determine whether individual homeschoolers have graduated. This bill could turn homeschool graduation into a cruel joke.

Reduced protection for the child's right to receive an education. This bill removes the accountability that protects the child’s right to receive an education.

Aspects that would hurt the state’s interest in an educated citizenry:

Blocks enforcement of truancy laws. This bill is designed to poke a hole in the compulsory attendance laws that is a mile wide. Any parent of a truant would have 30 days after being warned that their child is truant to begin a home education program. Once in the home education program there would be no accountability whatsoever. The parent would not even have to sign the currently-required notarized affidavit asserting that they would abide by the provisions in the law.

Opens graduation loophole in compulsory attendance law. Those who complete the vague graduation requirements of this bill would be exempt from further compliance with the compulsory attendance law. Thus any parents who want their teenagers to labor full time in a family business could claim completion of graduation requirements in an attempt to exempt the family from truancy prosecution. No form of monitoring completion is allowed in this bill.

Removes algebra and geometry from course requirements. This bill would remove the current requirement that homeschooling parents teach algebra and geometry to their children. Homeschooled students could graduate with no high school math whatsoever! This reduction in standards reverses the trend toward higher standards in math education to prepare students for a technologically advanced world. Even the GED has higher standards since it was just revamped so that half of the math section would consist of algebra and geometry.

Devalues high school diplomas. This bill is designed to let dropouts give legitimate diplomas to their children. It would do so through the following three actions: (1) it removes the requirement that homeschooling parents must have a high school diploma or its equivalent, (2) it removes all accountability from the diploma-granting process, and (3) it requires that home education graduation be recognized as the equivalent of high school graduation for all purposes. As dropouts graduate dropouts, the effect of this bill would be to devalue the whole concept of a high school diploma.

Dr. Howard B. Richman, Executive Director

Pennsylvania Homeschoolers Accrediation Agency