As it appeared in the Summer/Fall 1995 issue of
The Catholic Family's Magnificat! Magazine
Copyright 1994. All Rights Reserved.
by Marianna Bartold
Survey results on this page continue with Amarillo, Texas through Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Texas, Amarillo - Q # 9. *D. Q # 10. Homeschoolers have formed leagues - academics and sports - to compete with non-public schools. Homeschoolers want to use our curriculum and purchase textbooks through us. Homeschoolers fight the attempts to require ability testing of their students. (If parents are educating their children, why should they submit to outside testing?)
Texas, Austin - Q # 9. None in our area. They use Seton from the East Coast.
Q # 10. I believe (and my bishop believes) that people have a choice to have homeschooling. But the Catholic Church has already established a school system and that is the system that is official in our diocese. ("Parents have the right to freely choose schools or other means necessary to educate their children in keeping with their convictions." Charter in the Rights of the Family)
Texas, Dallas - Q # 9. The diocese sent a list of ten addresses, covering curriculum: University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Division of Continuing Studies; Calvert School; Baltimore, MD; American School, Chicago, IL; Christian Liberty Academy, Arlington Heights, IL; University of Texas at Austin, EIMC-Independent Learning; organizations: Hope for Texas, Austin; Texas Home School Coalition, Lubbock, TX; Texas Home School Book Fair, Richardson, TX; Southeast Texas Home School Association, Houston, TX; and publications: The Teaching Home, Portland, OR; and a list of 100 support groups through-out Texas. (As far as we know, none of the schools or organizations mentioned are Catholic. The homeschooling publication mentioned certainly is not.) Q # 10. I see that homeschooling could be effective for some parents, depending on the age and number of children. Not all parents are equipped to be the primary educator. (This is a denial of the graces parents receive from the Sacrament of Matrimony.) We also need to consider what problems occur when homeschooled children do need to enter our schools.
Texas, Fort Worth - Q # 10. College of St, Thomas More. 3001 Lubbock Ave., Ft. Worth, TX, does not do homeschooling; takes students who were homeschooled and wish to go with regular school. The diocese attached an article on the increase of homeschooling in the U. S. from the fall 1994 issue of Texas Association of Non-Public Schools newsletter, and the calendar entry about a homeschoolers' event in the Sept. 30, 1994 issue of North Texas Catholic.
Texas, Galveston-Houston - Q # 10. We do not assist them. Parents have requested our curriculum guides; they are not available to them. (Why is it that parents cannot see the curriculum guides?)
Utah, Salt Lake City - Q # 10. One family has one child in our school and is homeschooling special needs children; the second family is homeschooling because the child's musical talents are being placed as a priority and homeschooling is fit within the child's music program. One family has chosen to use all the materials approved by the diocese and our own school program in order to facilitate the child's moving into our own system when ready. The second family has chosen the Elizabeth Seton Program. From seeing the list of texts, etc., from the Seton program I would see the program as quite conservative and not preparing children for life in the 21st century. (Does the teaching of the Church ever change?)
Vermont, Burlington - Q # 9. *D. Q # 10. Some are fundamentalist, some simply dissatisfied with public system. We have no specific association...parents are being encouraged by some local clergy...most use Seton Home Schooling. I have spoken to our bishop about this already! (Was the topic of discussion on the sole subject of homeschooling, or that most of the parents in this diocese seem to be using the Seton curriculum? Does this person have a curriculum preference for homeschoolers? If so, which one and why?)
Virginia, Arlington - Q # 9. Seton Home Study School, Front Royal, VA; Home School Legal Defense. Q # 10. Parents should be affirmed that homeschooling is very consistent with Catholic philosophy. Principals and teachers should not feel threatened by parents' desire to do this. On the other hand, homeschooling programs which market on the basis that parish schools are dangerous to children and which don't recognize local bishops or the teachings of Vatican II should not be all that Catholic parents can find to assist them. If the NCEA can locate and recommend Catholic programs that meet catechetical standards of modern Church documents, it would be a great service to everyone. Good luck! (This comment started well and then slid into erroneous misconceptions. I wonder at the continuous stressing of Vatican II from many of the commentators. It is not a case that Catholic homeschoolers ignore or do not recognize Vatican II - it is the interpretation of various "authorities" on this pastoral document they disagree with. Further, there are those on both sides of the fence who like to stress some of the "negative" reasons why Catholic parents choose homeschooling. Sadly, it is true there are enough Catholic schools which no longer teach Catholic doctrine. This is the cause of concern for parents. However, the lack of genuine Catholic schools is not the only reason parents homeschool.)
Virginia, Richmond - Q # 10. We do not sponsor homeschooling in this diocese. Any parent wishing to homeschool (it has been minimal) must work through the public sector. (First of all, the entire state of Virginia is literally peppered with Catholic homeschooling families. Secondly, how can one home school through the public sector?)
Washington, Seattle - Q # 10. Recently, Catholic homeschoolers held a conference called the Catholic Family Education Conference. Generally, homeschoolers are not satisfied with the local public schools or Catholic school. If a parish is a community and school parents are part of the community, homeschoolers for the most part opt not to be part of the community. (Isn't a parish, first, a place of worship and spiritual instruction? Isn't this what Catholic homeschoolers do - worship God by attendance at Mass and reception of Holy Communion?) A parish that offers a good school and religious education programs cannot be expected to support a program for a few who are not satisfied. (There is a good amount of Catholics who are homeschooling in the Seattle area. They may be in the minority, but they are certainly not few.) Homeschooling could be an acceptable program supported by the nearest Catholic school if the students are in a rural area where there are no Catholic schools with-in a 25-mile radius and where very few Catholic students are available, prohibiting the use of special, private bus for transportation. In such a case, the students should come to school at least once a day a week and be connected via modem or satellite for distance learning during the other days that school is in session. (Again the vote from a Religious Ed. Dept. is that parents should be allowed to homeschool only if they don't have easy access to a parochial school. Even then, this DRE does not recognize parental rights and duties to educate. Rather, supervision over the homeschool is suggested.)
Washington, Yakima - Q # 10. I get many telephone calls from homeschooling parents who want Catholic materials to use. I don't have a good resource. Could you help? (There is a Catholic homeschooling couple, appointed as contacts by the bishop of this particular diocese. Perhaps the DRE should ask for their assistance, rather than the NCEA's.)
West Virginia, Wheeling-Charleston - Q # 10. In West Virginia, homeschoolers (not necessarily Catholic homeschoolers) have played a significant role in lobbying for educational choice. I do worry, however, about the very conservative bent I sense from those parents who have spoken to me (some have asked, for example, if I could get them copies of the Catholic textbook series for all content areas from the Daughters of St. Paul.) (Why does this request worry this DRE? Again, why can't parents see the books used to teach catechism - or any other textbooks, for that matter? If such schools want to promote the true Faith, there should be no problem in spreading the Faith by lending such books.)
Wisconsin, Green Bay - Q # 10. At this point in time, the movement toward homeschooling is minimal. It appears to have a religious orientation rather than academic. (Actually, Catholic homeschoolers provide a balance of both. It is only because they do not teach a "watered-down" version of the Faith that they are perceived as stressing a "religious orientation".) Those involved tend to be pre-Vatican II. (The use of this term is tiresome. However, the repeated accusation of "Pre-Vatican II" which is never defined, emphasizes once more that Catholic home educators must educate the general public if we are ever to be sure of retaining our rights.)
Wisconsin, Milwaukee - Q # 10. A significant number of parents who select this option are upset with the schools' curriculum, teachers, and "permissive environment". Nothing will satisfy them, and they opt to education at home. It usually lasts for a brief period of time, and the children return to another school. (What is it exactly about the curriculum, teachers, etc. that upsets parents? What are the statistics on the "period of time" such parents homeschool? What are the other schools that these children then attend?)
We feel the results of this survey have been an eye-opener and definitely educational. We pray that it will spur you to network with your local and/or state Catholic support group and Magnificat! Magazine. Not only must we Catholics support each other's choice in home education - we must educate others about it, too.
Kindly note: Magnificat is now out of print and no further back issues are available.
Although this survey and its results are four or more years old, it is an important document as it generated current "sacramental guidelines" as well as the ongoing debate within the Catholic homeschool movement.
This article was originally published in the last issue of Magnificat Home Education Magazine. While Magnificat is no longer published, we retain all copyrights to all the articles first printed in Magnificat, and we share many of the original Magnificat articles via the Keeping It Catholic Faith, Family and Home Education Network Website. If you would like permission to reprint any of the articles found on this website, please email us at keepitcatholic@usa.net
