WORRIED ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN'S HEALTH BEING SAFEGUARDED AT BISD? HERE'S ONE OPTION

With the confusion as to whether on not the health of Brownsville students will be adequately safeguarded from the coronavirus on opening day, a few people having approached me about my experiences and methods homeschooling my grandson for 2-1/2 years.

Let me start by saying that the State of Texas is VERY receptive to recognizing homeschooling as a viable option and considers homeschool years equal to those spent in private and public school.

Texas is a religious state and many parents fear what they consider "secular" education, the teaching of evolution and a moral environment not consistent with their belief system.

The Texas Historical Association sponsors homeschool days where students can visual history with real life historical enactments.  

Various groups in north and central Texas sponsor field trips for homeschooled students jam-packed with Texas history.

Homeschool advocates refer to their teaching choice as "spirit-filled, parent-led education."

Students taught at home through high school are typically measured about two years ahead of their peers in public school according to the THSC.

But, the primary reason for homeschooling your children with confidence is that it is legal.

On June 15, 1994, after a nine-year court battle, the Texas Supreme Court in TEA v. Leeper issued a 9-0 decision guaranteeing the right of Texas parents to teach their children at home without fear of prosecution.

The court held that homeschools are exempt from compulsory attendance because they are considered a type of private school. The compulsory attendance statute is currently found in Section 25.085 of the Education Code. In accordance with the Leeper decision, homeschools are exempt from the compulsory attendance statute because they are considered a type of private school under Section 25.086(a)(1) of the Texas Education Code.

According to the Leeper case, the only legal requirements to homeschool in Texas are:

• The instruction must be bona fide (i.e., not a sham).
• The curriculum must be in visual form (e.g., books, workbooks, video monitor).
• The curriculum must include the five basic subjects of reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and good citizenship.
  • Good citizenship is similar to civics. Public schools teach one semester of civics, usually in the senior year of high school. Teaching U.S. and Texas history, government (theoretical and practical), the Pledge of Allegiance, and similar activities will also help meet this requirement. THSC provides several ways to help you meet this requirement (see resource box below).

There is no need to register or in any way contact the local school or the state government prior to homeschooling, unless your student is currently in public school (see rules for withdrawal from public school).