New laws on home schooling raise concern

A NEW draft policy on home schooling looks set to tighten government’s control of the system. The Department of Basic Education said this week it had gazetted its “Draft Policy on Home Education”.

“The department took a decision to review the (old) 1999 policy in order to address gaps which created inconsistencies in the implementation of the policy nationwide,” it said.

The new draft policy’s publication follows that of the draft Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (Bela), which was released for public comment last month. “Clause 25 of the bill aims to strengthen the legislation on home education, in alignment with the policy,” the department said.

Home-schooling advocates have raised concerns about Bela and the new draft policy. The former states that the Head of Department (HOD) must approve a home-schooling application and register a child, and only if the proposed home-education programme “covers the acquisition of content and skills at least comparable to the relevant national curriculum determined by the minister”.

“It also requires parents to arrange annual assessments for their children, and provide the HOD with assessment reports. The new draft policy states that “a parent may choose to offer any curriculum that meets the minimum outcomes and assessment standards prescribed by the NCS (National Curriculum Statement).”

And “a parent should organise teaching, learning and assessment in a manner that a learner is able to achieve the minimum outcomes and assessment standards prescribed in the NCS” as well as “use the services of a competent assessor to assess the progress of her or his child against the minimum outcomes and standards at the end of grades 3, 6 and 9”.

Bouwe van der Eems, chairperson of the Association for Home Schooling, said the policy documents sought to impose the national curriculum on home-schoolers.

“This policy makes it difficult if your curriculum differs from Caps (Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements).

“Caps divides knowledge into subjects and grades. We don’t really do that in home schooling, but now they (the department) want a measuring instrument,” he said, adding the association would request that the deadline for public comment, December 8, be extended.

Parent and member of the Pestalozzi Trust – a legal defence fund for home education – Anelle Burger, said in a letter to the department there were an estimated 100 000 “home-educated learners” in the country.

“This overwhelming desire to micromanage 1% of the school-age population is also bizarre,” said Burger, who is in her second year of homeschooling her eight-year-old child. She said “forcing parents to register their children for home education” showed a lack of understanding, limiting a parent’s right to choose the education that is in the best interest of their child.

To comment, send submissions to: The Deputy Director-General: Curriculum Policy, Support and Monitoring Department of Basic Education, attention: Ms P Ngcobo, 222 Struben Street, Pretoria, 0002. Fax: 012 323 7749, or e-mail: ngcobo.p@dbe.gov.za