Rich irony: Now leftists want to homeschool

Since the left is scrambling to come to terms with the shocking notion of a president who isn't politically correct, one heartwarming trend is rising: the new interest among progressives to homeschool their children.

"The irony is rich," notes this article. "Leftists angered by President Donald Trump's new secretary of education, Betsy DeVos, are threatening to do what they once considered unthinkable – homeschool their children."

As a former homeschooling mom (our daughters have graduated), I find this encouraging.

For decades, conservatives have yanked their kids out of public schools in droves to avoid the liberal brainwashing and indoctrination taking place in America's classrooms. For this, we were richly lambasted by those who were "disgusted by evangelical Christian homeschooling parents who brainwash their kids into being just as ignorant, narrow-minded, intolerant and self-righteous as they are. … This kind of brainwashing is nothing short of child abuse. Mental, not physical." (Quoted from an email I received from a progressive reader.)

This same progressive reader further indicated all children – without exception – should be enrolled in public schools to shape their beliefs in accordance with current "acceptable" standards, including moral relativism, diversity, revised history, socialism and full accessibility to reproductive health services. It didn't matter what the parents think. All kids need a public school education to shape their minds in compliance with progressive ideology.

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Except – now there's a conservative administration in Washington. The shoe is on the other foot.  Oh no!

For the first time, leftist parents are facing what the right has dealt with for decades: placing their children in a potentially hostile environment where they may be taught (gasp) viewpoints antithetical to everything they believe in. The only reason they didn't object before this was because they approved of what was being taught. But now? Uh-oh.

So now liberals are interested in home education. Good for them. Of course, they'll have to pony up the money for books and supplies and curricula. They'll have to begin treading the morass of often-hostile state homeschooling laws. They'll have to toe the line to meet various requirements, file paperwork, conform to regulations and hope they've crossed every T and dotted every I.

And through it all, they'll learn to fear the ultimate government sledgehammer: Child Protective Services, which is routinely called to homeschoolers' doors for vague and unspecified accusations of abuse or neglect. Yes, nothing livens up a homeschooling parent's day more than the prospect of losing one's children into the foster care system for the crime of loving them enough to educate them at home.

Liberals will have to learn a few more things when it comes to successfully teaching their own. A big issue will be children viewing their parents as authority figures, not pals. One parent noted: "I homeschooled my children and there were days I wondered why I was doing it. If children are not taught authority, mom in charge and you need to do what you are told, parents will not last long. Most children don't like learning stuff that doesn't directly affect them. They want life to be easy and having schools at home send conflicting messages, relaxation and bucking down to work. Liberals will have a hard time with this because you need to discipline children when you homeschool them. Can liberals do this?"

To which another parent replied: "As a counter-cultural missionary (Christian teacher in a public school), I have known some 4-6th graders who had been homeschooled by leftist parents. They were worse off than the kids who had been in public schools since Head Start!"

So, yes, leftists who want to homeschool their kids will have a lot to learn.

Ah, but the benefits! There's no finer way to forge close and loving bonds with your children than to teach them yourself. Done properly, homeschooled children learn manners, discipline, self-control and respect. They develop a work ethic and become self-starters. These, I presume, are qualities every parent would be proud to develop in their kids.

Because let me tell ya, with few exceptions, these are not qualities routinely taught in a public school environment.

But wait, it gets better. It seems U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has introduced a bill that would completely abolish the Department of Education by the end of 2018. Massie argues state and local governments should be in charge of education policy rather than the federal agency, stating: "Unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., should not be in charge of our children's intellectual and moral development. States and local communities are best positioned to shape curricula that meet the needs of their students."

I couldn't be more pleased by this development. Remember, these Washington education bureaucrats are unelected and, therefore, unaccountable. Returning public education to regional or even state control offers the much-needed concept of local accountability over our school systems.

What progressives never realized – or perhaps just won't admit – is public education has degenerated to the position of breeding useful idiots whose purpose is to parrot the agenda of what funds it (namely, the federal government). There's a reason Nazi Germany wanted control of its youth. There's a similar reason our government wants control of its schools. America has slipped its moorings and drifted far away from its constitutional foundations largely because of its federal monopoly on public education.

Education was never mentioned in the Constitution because the Founding Fathers knew it was not a federal matter. Education in the hands of the government is a dangerous thing, and there are endless tragic historical examples to demonstrate this.

But now, at least for four years, we have the chance to yank our country back from its destructive path. Dismantling the Department of Education may not be the sole answer, but it's a good start.

I've heard it said that "brainwashing" is the job of parents, not the schools. This is not quite accurate. Homeschooling parents aren't brainwashing their children; they're raising them. Public schools are the ones indoctrinating children in compliance with state-sanctioned requirements that often contradict parental authority. They're the ones doing the brainwashing.

I may not agree with what progressive homeschoolers will teach their children, but here's the thing: It's their right to teach them whatever they want, just as it is our right to teach our children whatever we want. Works both ways, folks.

To parents everywhere, progressive or otherwise, who are contemplating educating their children at home, let me extend the hand of welcome into the homeschooling community. You won't regret it – that is, assuming you take the responsibility that comes with the job.

Oh, and one other thing: It's very difficult to homeschool if no one is home.

Housewife, anyone?

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