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Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:21 GMT 11:21 UK

"But if anything the home educators should have some sort of financial support because they are saving the local authorities money."
Captain Morgan

No they shouldn't, they have chosen to educate their children outside of the state system so they should pay for it themselves.

With rights come responsibilities, if you don't want to use a service provided by the state then that is your right but you have a responsibility to pay for the alternative yourself.

[Secratariat], Liverpool, United Kingdom

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:19 GMT 11:19 UK

Here is a simpler and cheaper idea.

All children being home educated must login to a Curriculum Approved website each day to complete core lessons. This computer site can 'register' them and monitor progress against national standards, so no worries there.

This system has existed for years but our numpty education 'experts' won't use it, because they think everyone - even the hard case disruptives - 'must' be at school in order to get an education. More home education now I say!

The Kings New Clothes, Cuffley, United Kingdom

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:19 GMT 11:19 UK

We've been home educating our kids since the day they were born. We will still continue to Home Educate our kids alongside school attendance. It is not an either/or choice as so many would have you believe.

This is what parents should be doing and maybe the authorities should spend more time looking at parents of kids who go to school and see it as nothing more than state provided childcare and couldn't give a toss about whether their kids are actually learning.

Grumpy, Kent

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:07 GMT 11:07 UK

There is already a register of who is Home Educated. The Local Authorities have voluntary visiting scemes. Home educators are free of bureaucracy successive governments have imposed onto schools.

HE parents are not obliged to perform SATS or Teach the National Curriculum. Where there is a suspicion of child abuse, social services have a duty to visit.

The register is a back covering exercise that Parents would be forced to pay for. Seems like self regulation is for banking but not people?

henry, liverpool

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:05 GMT 11:05 UK

A home-schooling register?

"Peter?"

"Here mum."

and that would be it.

I can understand a register when you have 30 kids in the room, but if it's your own kid and you have just fed him/her breakfast.

Is this where I say "political correctness gone mad" and "out of Europe now"?

Will de Beest, Spain

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:02 GMT 11:02 UK

I would be intrigued to know how home-educated children compare, exam-wise, with state-educated children. That, to me, would be the one and only excuse for local authorities to monitor home-educators. The home-educated youngsters I know are intelligent, articulate and do not lack for social interaction, plus they come across as far less stressed than youngsters taught in an unruly classroom environment.
The money spent on this venture would be far better spent on improving standards in class!

Glenn Willis, Lyme Regis, United Kingdom

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 10:00 GMT 11:00 UK

"It should be illegal to "school" your child at home ...I consider home-schooling a form of abuse ...most "home-educators" are motivated by religious reasons. They want to prevent science education from unravelling the religious dogma they have been imprinting onto the child." SaxonHero

I am an agnostic and ensured my home-schooled children were taught science. Can you be sure that the state will not imprint unreasonable ideas on children once home-schooling is made illegal, as you advocate?

[dudeiancan]

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:58 GMT 10:58 UK

I feel sorry for kids educated at home.
School teaches you how to interact with other pupils, teachers etc..
I must admit, I do not recall having met anyone who admits they were educated at home, but I cannot believe how any parent can cover the wide variety of subjects that make up the curriculum.
It would be interesting to see a TV programme on adults who were educated at home and how they have got on in life.
The law requires all children to be educated, but to what standard?

Andrew Lye, Johnston, Pembrokeshire, United Kingdom

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:56 GMT 10:56 UK

In the UK
Each week: 450,000 children are bullied in school
Each year: more than 360,000 children injured in schools
Each year: at least 16 children commit suicide as a result of school bullying
Each year: more than 1 in 6 children leave school illiterate.

I don't want my children to be in those statistics.
Google bullying suicide, it is horrifying.

Georgina Bass

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:52 GMT 10:52 UK

It's sad to hear that many home schoolers were bullied in the classroom. However, I'm not sure that pulling out of school is the answer. Hiding away to prevent being bullied is not addressing the problem and you will meet bullies throughout life, not just at school.

Janet, UK

If my child gets hit in the street, the perpetrator gets arrested, if she gets hit at school she last to put up with it? Even when the assault leaves scars and the school/education authority fails to do anything?

Georgina Bass

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:48 GMT 10:48 UK

My daughter has bipolar disorder, my son has a form of Aspergers. My wife and I took them out of school as the school system was not doing them any good. The support my son had at school was withdrawn, and his performance immediately dropped. My daughter was subjected to psychological bullying and the school did nothing about it. They are both now well-spoken, knowledgeable and confident. My son is taking GCSEs, my daughter Open University courses.

Ian, ashford, middlesex

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:45 GMT 10:45 UK

Here's an idea : fix schools and then home education shouldn't be necessary.

[podracev]

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:45 GMT 10:45 UK

No. This is another case of a control freak government thinking it can do a better job bringing up our children than we do. Another expensive department that will add nothing to this country. Another case of assuming that anyone non conformist is up to no good.

There are enough child protection measure in place already. If these don't work, don't single out home educators as potential child abusers.

Steve Edwards, Bishop's Stortford, United Kingdom

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:43 GMT 10:43 UK

If parents have to prove that the standard of their home education matches state education, they should have no problem at all. And will that include the appalling standards and total lack of education that so many state educated children are afflicted with. Also, what happens to the schools which so miserably fail these children?. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. If parents failed their children so miserably I would be the first to complain.

[Prusarn]

Added: Friday, 12 June, 2009, 09:40 GMT 10:40 UK

Another report commisioned by a goverment and reported with extreme bias , where else in any other sector would the findings of one man ( Mr Badman ) be taken as a correct and informative piece of work , all hys readers please look, and research the legislation already in place for home educators , and that many LEAs already do home visits and view home educated childrens work ,maybe this is just a back door approach to controlling what and how things are taught to children .

just curious, oxford