Homeschool Oklahoma is FOR parental freedom and our God-given right to educate our children how we see fit. Parents who take a leadership role in their children’s education have their children’s best interests in mind.
Homeschoolers are often criticized because of out-dated misconceptions, baseless biases, narratives against homeschooling, and blatant troublemaking. In a slight-of hand gesture to bring attention off the difficulties in public education, and to gain favor, opponents of unregulated homeschooling point their magic wands towards some cause such as safety or quality control. In some cases, these two issues are why families pull their children from the public school system in the first place.
Homeschool Oklahoma is FOR unregulated homeschooling. Families must not fail to provide for the education of their children. In fact, our state constitution asserts that families have a responsibility to ensure that their children are being educated in good faith. By “unregulated homeschooling” we mean that parents have the freedom to teach what they want their children to study and how they go about doing so without government oversight.
Regulations are a threat to homeschool freedom because regulators need standards for measuring success. In order to know if a child is receiving a genuine education, the child must be able to read by a certain date, perform a certain number of calculations by a certain age, and be able to share the same knowledge as everyone else. The proper measurement for this is the standardized test. This is a great way to mass produce a society of conformity.
But children aren’t manufactured. They are made by their Creator, unique in developments, talents, and abilities. Homeschooling is an opportunity to let children in all their uniqueness thrive in an environment of learning that is tailored to their needs.
Homeschool Oklahoma is also FOR children’s rights to be educated free from government mandated curriculum standards. A family’s privately-funded education means that a whole generation of children can be taught with the standards set by Jesus Christ, to love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself.
Help us keep homeschooling free in Oklahoma! Here are some things you can do.
ACT NOW
Contact your state legislators by phone and email to share your opposition or approval of these bills. If you don’t know who your legislators are, find out here! Politely tell them what you oppose or approve, and include why you feel that way. Be brief in your responses so they can quickly understand what you have to say about these issues. You can find your local representatives here.
You can use this Sample Letter to a Legislator as a template and check our Legislative Alert page for the latest on the relevant issues.
RESEARCH THE ISSUES
We encourage you to do your own investigation on these issues. The best way to get accurate information is to read the bills in their entirety and talk to the legislators who create them. If possible, research both sides of the issues. Check out HSOK’s position on current issues in homeschooling.
SHARE INFO
The more people know what is going on in the legislature, the more easily they can speak on these issues when the time comes. Please share the information we post with your homeschool groups and friends.
ENGAGE IN FRIENDLY DISCUSSION
Many times our friends hold the same values and beliefs we do. This makes it difficult to see past our biases and think through challenging problems. Find others willing to engage in friendly arguments so that you continue to stretch and grow.