One thought on “Elissa’s education and work history”

1. Homeschooling open to abuse and Christian Fundamentalism

   Email sent to the Education Minister the Hon Julie Bishop MP and SA Education Department.

   Dear Ms Day

   After raising my issues to the Federal Government in regard to hundreds maybe thousands of unregistered children who maybe open to abuse. I was somewhat shocked at the behaviour of the South Australian Education Department.

   A very serious matter has come to my attention. The South Australian Education Department is blatantly directing new homeschoolers to homeschool forums that contain anti-government, racist, bigoted material and condone breaking the law. I find this very odd behaviour and would presume that you check these sites out first. These sites often advocate non-registration but lately have taken a more sinister note. I have protected people’s identies but am more than willing to provide any links you need.

   Firstly this has recently been posted,
   “I was put into contact with Sally who was nice and very helpful,in fact i would not have known about this group if it
   had not been for her.” This was referring to Sally Robbins of your department, the SA Home School Assessor. What she has done is direct this new homeschooler to posts like this. I think comments like this are dangerous and the Education department should not be recommending these forums.

   1) “God has thus far been able to show me how to raise our children,& how to educate them, we do not need the added finger of big brother in our lives. I see the government as a direct missile into pulling down the family unit.I think it is corrupt and ungodly, why would i invite them into”

   2) In Victoria it took two Christian pastors 3 years and about $200,000 (that
   I know of) to defend their freedom to teach that other religions can be
   wrong, and that Christianity is better.

   The Islamic Council Of Victoria claimed that a muslim who was planted in a
   Christian seminar was vilified by what was said there. The Racial and
   Religious Vilification Act does not allow Truth as a defence against such a
   claim.

   Now there may not be an Act of Parliament to say precisely that
   “Christianity is no better than any other religion”, but with a case like
   that what do most people conclude?

   And finally, if registering doesn’t affect anyone, then why do governments
   do it?

   3) *I* don’t live in the “real world” so I certainly don’t expect my children to if they don’t desire it!

   4) Would I allow a 16 year old to drive a car without a licence? Of course I would if the person concerned was capable. Having a licence hasn’t yet (far as I know) stopped the horrendous road accidents or the number of idiots who drive without thought or feeling to anyone else – so skill has to be the factor, not the number of boxes ticked.

   5) you are missing the point. Actually, it says in the Bible that parents are responsible for the education of their children, which is often the fundamental reason for Christian parent shomeschooling – not always but often. The Bible obviously says nothing about the Education Department

   6) One thing I have noticed about some unregistered homeschoolers is that
   they whisk their kids away when photos are being taken at public
   homeschooling events, and they do not give permission for photos to be
   published of their children- so when their kids are involved in groups,
   they are pulled out when cameras are snapping. They cannot even be
   involved in some events in case they are ‘seen” by moderators or
   journalists, whatever.

   7) And none of this is said in the assumption that it is wrong to register – my children are wards of the state, and I have no choice in their education,

   8) I am a Christian, exempted/registered, law abiding citizen but, through my
   contact with many ‘newbie’ HSers I have become very much aware of the many
   unlawful things that are foisted upon HSers (and the population in general)
   under the guise of being legal requirements, whereas the government holds no
   real authority (apart from bluff and intimidation) to do so.

   9) Many of us though, feel the government have no business in our parenting and so choose not to. We all make our choices, but we can’t make them for other people.

   9) I think the decision not to register comes from a serious desire to get one with the job of homeschooling, without the beaurocratic bollocks that often comes with pleasing the government. Who are they to dictate to me or to “make sure” my children are learning?? If I felt that the government *is* responsible for the education of my children then I would involve them, but I don’t….so I don’t.

   10) I feel differently about this idea. At the moment I feel that the government is pretty much leaving us alone. We are still seen as a minority and as it is so difficult to deal with us we are some waht out in the to hard basket. If suddenly homeschooling became mainstream with more people registering than the gorverment would be force to keep a closer eye on us and that leads to more restrictions and laws.

   As you know I am a strong advocate for homeschooling, I also believe firmly that it is your civil right to home educate. There is a very fine line however, in what is best for the parent and their beliefs and where children seem to lose all rights. There are hundreds/thousands of Australian children unregistered and unaccounted for. We are currently lobbying the Government to bring homeschooling under the federal umbrella. Some of these children are brainwashed, isolated and have little contact with the outside world. It is in fact a perfect breeding ground for physical and sexual abuse. I suggest the South Australian Education Department checks sites before it recommends them. I have attached the letter below recently written to the Hon Julie Bishop MP.

   I would be interested to know if yourself and Ms Robbins endorse these opinions. If not then I suggest you stop recommending these sites to new homeschoolers. We are fighting desperately to ensure that homeschooled families are registered and there is protection for homeschooled children. We want to provide parents with legal options and create a transparent system where parents are registered and children protected. We want to portray a viable option for parents whose children may be enduring severe bullying. In April of this year, Ben Veddon an 11 yr old British boy hung himself with his shoelaces because of severe bullying. Directing new homeschoolers to sites like this is neither helpful or ethical.

   We would ask for an urgent review of homeschooling assessment processes and an indepth report into the current status of homeschooling. The current approach is focused on the right of the parent and not the child. There needs to be an even balance.

   Regards

   Kate Gibbons
   Australian Homeschool Legal Advisory Service

   —– Original Message —–
   From: Kate Gibbons
   To: Stephen.Smith.MP@aph.gov.au ; Kevin.Rudd.MP@aph.gov.au ; julie.bishop@dest.gov.au
   Cc: theworldnews@sbs.com.au ; sastateline@your.abc.net.au ; newsdesk@theage.com.au
   Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2007 2:04 PM
   Subject: Homeschooled children open to abuse

   The Hon Julie Bishop MP

   Prevalence research has indicated that as children, 28 percent of men and 9 percent of women in Australia had experienced sexual activity with a male at least five years older than them.

   I am a registered homeschooling parent who is prepared to become ostracised from the homeschooling community because of the information I am about to provide. I am today requesting that the Federal Government centralise homeschooling because so many children are put at risk.

   The homeschooling laws are different in every state. In some states you are required to register and attend an annual meeting and others you are required to register and then have no accountability for the next 12 years. The Federal Government has no statistics for numbers of homeschooled children. Only Western Australia has been able to provide me with statistics for registered children, although how many unregisterd children remains unknown. The Education departments appear uninterested and unconcerned.

   For as many registered homeschooling children, we think there is probably the equivalent of unregistered children. This probably accounts for thousands of children. These parents have no accountability to any authority for the 12 years a child would normally be schooled for. I have seen for myself that a few parents abuse the system.

   This could also lead to paedophiles keeping children at home and lead to abusive circumstances for other children, without anybody knowing. These adults have no regulation or accountability. Whilst this maybe the minority of families, as a homeschooling community we have a responsibility to ensure children come first. It is very easy to get caught up in what is best for the parents and not for the children.

   In the homeschooling world my outspoken thoughts have caused some unpopularity. I do feel it is a parents right to homeschool, but I also believe firmly that homeschooled children have rights too.

   We need to be responsible in protecting homeschooling children. The Federal Government needs to take control with the same rules and regs for all homeschooled children. Why does one child in one state get better care and protection than those in another state. The potential for a paedophile to keep a child at home and remain anonymous from any Government department is frightening. These children could have a childhood of abuse, unnoticed and disgarded by this Government. Some homeschooling parents who homeschool from a young age, never register and have no accountability. The Government has a duty of care to every Australian child. It seems you are more than happy to target the Aboriginal Communities as a problem area, but homeschooling is a huge problem area which you have ignored. Most state departments are unable or unwilling to provide statistics and the Bureau of Statistics has no data on homeschooling.

   It is time to stop demonising the Aboriginal Communities and look at every Australian family and child. Every child has the same rights and protection of care. This protection of care is lacking for many non-indigenous children and indigenous families have used a scapegoat for an underlying problem that covers all of Australia and not one particular ethnic group.

   Child sexual abuse, both intrafamilial and extrafamilial, is one of the most difficult crimes to detect, primarily because of the secrecy surrounding the commission of the offence and the vast level of under-reporting by victims. Not only is the rate of child sexual abuse reporting very low, but for a variety of reasons only a small proportion of child sexual abuse cases detected, investigated and prosecuted actually result in a conviction.

   More and more parents refuse to register because of some abusive education department staff, who I have found personally to be rude and unhelpful. I am apparently capable of teaching my 13 year old son but not my 6 year old daughter.

   rom: Wesley.NEWMAN@Dest.gov.au
   You may not know this sender.
   Sent: Tuesday, 16 October 2007 11:26:12 PM
   To: kategibbons506@hotmail.com
   Cc: Publications@dest.gov.au
   Dear Ms Gibbons

   DEST does not hold any data collections on Home Schooling. My advice to you would be to contact each State/Territory Authority’s registration board or talk to someone at the Australian Bureau of Statistics and see if they have any of this data.

   Kind Regards

   Wesley Newman
   Data Services Unit
   Benchmarks and Reporting Branch
   Department of Education, Science and Training
   Email:wesley.newman@dest.gov.au
   Phone: (02) 6240 8578

   We sadly saw this week the case of a child murdered and dumped in a suitcase. If this child’s body had not been found and vigilant neighbours hadn’t noticed this child was missing, the child may of remained missing for years.

   We are hoping to ensure the safety of the thousands of unregistered Australian children who remain missing and unaccounted for. Perhaps the Government can put the effort and publicity into these children as it does the Aboriginal Community. Unfortunately

   Many parents are reluctant to register because of the appalling behaviour of the Education Departments. The current system is an accident waiting to happen. Unfortunately we do not know the plight of unregistered children at the moment.

   Kind regards

   Kate Gibbons

   Australian Homeschool Legal Advisory Service

   http://www.homeschoollawaustralia.com