Old Post

[Paisley Hedgehog]

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[RootAnn]

In Nebraska this year, there has been a bill introduced (LB 1141) to mandate homeschooler testing each year, including a "pretest" before your child starts the first year. If the testing doesn't show enough progress, the bill would require you to enroll your child in an "accredited" (public or private) school. There are other parts to the bill (including that the parents pay for the testing or an 'assessment' of the student's work). It would be helpful to have updated testing in a study like the one you describe. So, if you do participate, thank you in advance! We think this bill will fail, but are assured there will be future legislation like this next year and the year after or until it passes.

[abbeyej]

Interesting. I got 21 ITBS tests from BJU in the mail this week (all for home schoolers, of course), and no letter...

[St. Theophan Academy]

Tennessee is dealing with the same issue right now, they are trying to change the law to say that all students must be tested (right now the law states that all public school students must test). This means that private schools and homeschoolers will have to cater their instruction to the public school testing system.

[Susie in MS]

In Nebraska this year, there has been a bill introduced (LB 1141) to mandate homeschooler testing each year, including a "pretest" before your child starts the first year. If the testing doesn't show enough progress, the bill would require you to enroll your child in an "accredited" (public or private) school. There are other parts to the bill (including that the parents pay for the testing or an 'assessment' of the student's work). It would be helpful to have updated testing in a study like the one you describe. So, if you do participate, thank you in advance! We think this bill will fail, but are assured there will be future legislation like this next year and the year after or until it passes.

 

I just wonder what they do with kids who don't score high enough in public schools. Do they have somewhere they can send them??? :mad: I'm sure tons of public school students don't show enough progress! Sometimes I wonder about the intelligence of those writing some of these bills.

[Paisley Hedgehog]

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[Ellie]

Why would I have been the only one to receive this letter? It was dated February 27, 2008, and was on HSLDA letterhead.

 

Weird

 

I'm sure you aren't the only one :-) Maybe it was just a random sampling.

[angela in ohio]

I'm sure you aren't the only one :-) Maybe it was just a random sampling.

 

I think you give them to much credit, Eliie. :D

 

Shari, do you use BJU curriculum? Last time they did a study like this, they used homeschoolers who used BJU curriculum.

 

I would be of the "Why not?" opinion if I got the letter. However, I think the "studies" are a joke, because they only test homeshcoolers who take standardized tests and want to report their scores. Not exactly a representative sampling of homeschoolers.

[abbeyej]

...However, I think the "studies" are a joke, because they only test home schoolers who take standardized tests and want to report their scores. Not exactly a representative sampling of homeschoolers.

This was my opinion of that ludicrous study HSLDA did along with someone else a few years ago on adults who had been home schooled. My brother and I both participated, but we both felt it was seriously skewed by the self-reporting aspect. I don't know of a single study so far that has actually used a representative sampling of home schoolers. I think it would be really interesting to see -- though also perhaps nearly impossible to accomplish. (We are, as a group, not exactly "joiners", huh?) ;)

[angela in ohio]

This was my opinion of that ludicrous study HSLDA did along with someone else a few years ago on adults who had been home schooled. My brother and I both participated, but we both felt it was seriously skewed by the self-reporting aspect. I don't know of a single study so far that has actually used a representative sampling of home schoolers. I think it would be really interesting to see -- though also perhaps nearly impossible to accomplish. (We are, as a group, not exactly "joiners", huh?) ;)

 

I think that it would be political suicide for homeschoolers. I get nervous whenever there is talk of "more research needed." Throwing the HSLDA/Ray/etc. studies, worthless as they are, around promotes our cause (it's nice when sloppy journalism helps our side, LOL.) I'd be afraid a scientific study would not help us. :eek:

[gardenschooler]

We do the Stanford with our homeschool group, and the tests come from BJU. Since our group is very large, I imagine we'll be in it, but I haven't heard anything about that yet (we're home sick from co-op today).

 

Of course, this is only going to get a small sampling of homeschoolers. We test voluntarily, but it's not required (yet!). I'll be throwing one high-scorer into the mix (dd13)- hmmm, maybe I should keep the little one (dd9) home this year. :D She's hasn't taken it yet, and she's well, prone to daydreaming, you know? I can't see her sitting for a test, and dh and I were just talking about whether we should sign her up for it this year.

[gardenschooler]

Tennessee is dealing with the same issue right now, they are trying to change the law to say that all students must be tested (right now the law states that all public school students must test). This means that private schools and homeschoolers will have to cater their instruction to the public school testing system.

 

I seriously doubt that bill's going anywhere. I thought it was telling that none of the private schools seemed the least bit worried about it. But I still think the public schools are after our good test scores, somehow! (private and homeschooled). I can turn anything into a bout of paranoia, lol.

 

And *if* there ever were a TN law that homeschoolers had to take the IOWA or Stanford, it wouldn't change anything for me - I guess it would for some really opposed to testing. But a test that is based on TN curriculum - I *really* don't think that bill is going anywhere. There are huge differences in the private school curriculum vs. the public around here, and they'd be inclined to join the fight.

[Bee]

I had heard that there was going to be a study conducted by them.I'm not sure where I read about it though.I don't like surveys like that because,judging from the last survey they did,it was a biased survey.In short,it wasn't a random survey of hsers or even hsers who have their children take standardized tests.To assume that all hsed children would have similiar test scores from the results of a few hundred or even a few thousand participants is a dangerous thing to base any research upon.