In Reversal, Calif. Court Says Homeschooling is Legal
A state appellate court in California has reversed its own controversial ruling and held that parents without teaching credentials may home school their children.
The 2nd District Court of Appeal said in its Aug. 8 ruling in Jonathan L. v. Superior Court of Los Angeles County that state statutes and case law at one time required homeschooled children to be taught by a credentialed teacher, but "subsequent developments in the law call this conclusion into question."
"Although the Legislature did not amend the statutory scheme so as to expressly permit home schooling, more recent enactments demonstrate an apparent acceptance by the Legislature of the proposition that home schooling is taking place in California, with home schools allowed as private schools," the court said.
The reversal was hailed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and groups that supported home schoolers, who had feared that the earlier ruling effectively outlawed the practice for many of California's 166,000 home-schooled children.
The Los Angeles Times reports here.
California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell, who had filed a brief urging the court to reverse itself, has this press release.
Liberty Counsel, a group that helped seek the reversal, has this press release.
It appears that the appellate court's controversial earlier ruling has been taken down. I blogged about the ruling here and here.
Comments
Odds are this issue is going to have to continue to be discussed in the court system. There are strong opinions on either side, and while home schoolers don't particularly like oversight from the government, the state does have an obligation to ensure these children are getting a serious education.
Posted by: Joe | August 11, 2008 11:14 AM