The Home Education Review has now been published

Now an update from Sweden

Proposal for new School Law 2009

The 16th of June, 2009, the Swedish Government presented its proposal for a new Swedish School Law, that has been in the works for many years.

The position on homeschooling in the suggested law is a return to darkness. It is unbelievable. Homeschooling will NOT be permitted for those referring to philosophical or religious reasons according to the European convention on Human Rights!

The reason given is:

"…that the education in school should be comprehensive and objective and thereby designed so that all pupils can participate, regardless of what religious or philosophical reasons the pupil or his or her care-takers may have."

Thus, the suggested law argues:

"…there is no need for the law to offer the possibility of homeschooling because of religious or philosophical reasons in the family. All together this means that this suggested change cannot be said to contradict Swedens international obligations [i. e. Human Rights Conventions]."

The quotes above are my translations from the suggested law on page 584. The suggested law can be downloaded in Swedish from the Swedish Government homepage - here.

The law is now out for review and we will submit our very stern review to the Government. The review closes on September 25. The final law will be presented to Parliament during the spring of 2010 and will take effect in 2011.

The Swedish Government is making homeschooling illegal, thus showing off its worst totalitarian socialist roots. We will need international support to show that Sweden, as a member of the international democratic community, cannot take such a position. As Sweden is often seen as the great social utopia of the world, it is important for Swedish homeschoolers to win this battle.

Sensible international suggestions about the new Swedish school law can be sent to: skollagen@education.ministry.se

Jonas Himmelstrand, Rohus board-member

This scenario from Sweden looks very scary.

Dawn Primarilo, the Children's Minister, wanted our views on things.

She certainly has been provided with plenty of strongly worded stuff about the Badman Report.

If you didn't already know, Dawn Primarilo has transformed her position from being 'Red Dawn' into a staunch supporter of NuLab. I suspect her attitude towards HE remains just the same and just as bad.

A posting by Charlotte Goddard, the Editor of Children & Young People Now, at 14:38 on the 23rd June contains "apparently Delyth Morgan is responsible for the home education review and issues arising from it, while Vernon Coaker is responsible for home education generally."

Now who exactly is this Vernon Coaker?

* He is the Minister of State for Schools and Learners.

* His voting record does not make comfortable reading. He has never rebelled against his own party.

* Either he always votes the same as Gordon Brown or Gordon Brown copies him. Any idea which is correct?

* He was a teacher, or more precisely, the deputy head at Bigwood School in Nottingham.

* He is a member of the Socialist Education Association. This outfit aims to promote non-selective education, equality of opportunity and lifelong availability of adequate educational provision throughout the UK. It believes in all compulsory education being free and adequately resourced.

In the light of this information, he is undeniably a NuLab crony and a merchant of the nefarious side of socialism.

The responsibility for Elective Home Education, which resides in School Organisation, has now been transferred to Diana Johnson.

http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/aboutus/whoswho/ ... ml#schools

A few more facts:

* His background is in economics. He studied Economics and Politics at the University of Warwick before doing a Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Trent Polytechnic.

* He became an MP in the 1997 general election after 3 unsuccessful attempts at previous elections.

* He is married to a teacher.

* He recently apologised for misleading MP's after saying 70 police officers were injured in the climate change riots when in fact he knew the number to be only 4.