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Alberta Home Education Association

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The One Thing

one

 "I made everyone a mailbox, put it on their bedroom doors, and sent them all mail, but no one has the time to send me any mail!" my 10-year-old daughter moaned, "no one has time to play!"

"Play?" My mind fought to come up with a reasonable excuse. "She doesn't realize Grandpa's just come through open heart surgery, a number of bills need paid, we're down to one vehicle, her sister-in-law has gone through a devasting late miscarriage, and look what's happening in the world…!"

I call it "mind chaos." Webster defines chaos as, "...a confused mass or jumble of things, a state of utter confusion."

"But she's right. Why can't I play her game for a while? Why is my mind in chaos? How am I ever going to be of the right "mindset" to homeschool this fall? I sent up a prayer. A verse came to mind. "...Let us lay aside every weight... (weight meaning: worry, concern, debt, mass, burden, encumbrance…) and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." Hebrews 12:1. God then reminded me that I needed to keep the most important thing first for me not to have a chaotic mind.

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A Helpful Handbook

22.08.02.A-Helpful-Handbook A Helpful Handbook

When I get a handbook alongside an item, a car for example, it is meant to help me understand and appreciate the thing I've invested in. You could say that its intent is to continue to encourage support for the choice the consumer has made. What I don't find in my handbook is encouragement to make a different choice, undermining my decision. If only the drafted update to the home education handbook seemed to work the same way.

10 years is a long time to wait between updates. The home education community and stakeholders have felt impatient as the old 'current' handbook is missing so many vital changes that have taken place after the last few years of advocacy. AHEA contributed to this resource for parents who go to the government website because it has importance. It is a bridge for those who don't know yet of other places to go for information or previously helped them know who the stakeholders representing their interests are. Parents should be able to find a goodly amount of help here.

This draft that the Department of Education finally shared in July can not exactly be described as 'helpful.' The last discussion on it and draft, a year ago and with different staff, left us a bit more hopeful. Now one could say this draft of the handbook is factual but dissuading and even discouraging for those who have already chosen or do want to consider home education, leaving the purpose of it a question. That purpose needs clarification if this version is going to exceed the old.

Critically, the underlying philosophical difference between the bureaucracy and home education families is captured in the second sentence, stating that, "Parents or guardians choosing a home education program for their children assume the primary responsibility for their child's education." (italics mine) Actually, parents that choose to home educate retain their responsibility to educate their child, they do not assume it from the government. We believe and have defended this as a God given, not government given, right and an essential pairing with the responsibilities they have.

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When School Is Polluted By Politics

22.02.07.Polluted-School-Building When School Is Polluted By Politics

Dear School Parents,
Somehow school has become complicated. It has become polluted by politics.
Education is about equipping our children with tools to learn and live their lives.
There are still ways for this to happen...

You have options and help. And yes, you also still have parental rights.  Let us point you to two things that you may find helpful.

1. You can decide to explore options outside of 'the system.' You have choices and can personally accept the responsibility that you have entrusted to the system. You and your home are the most consistent factors that your children have in their lives. "Parental involvement is the key to your child's success" is a phrase that echoes throughout the education system. Home education is relationship based learning that creates an environment for life-long learners - parents and children both!

If you wish to consider home education, we'd like to offer you this free booklet - the ABCs of Home Education. Here you will learn about the legality and framework of how home education works. Take some time to explore all the information under our Home Education Info tab. We are here to help you!


2. You can invest in learning more about the state of your parental rights. Join AHEA's Learn and Live Series for 2022 - Parental Rights In Perspective. There are sessions every other month lined up that will provide an opportunity for you to examine and reflect on where we really are.

Parents are largely unaware that their rights are actively 'in play' or even undermined. Apathy is how we are allowing our rights to be affected. Parents should not forget this inalienable birthright of theirs, that it is a prerequisite to responsibility, and that it is a blessing to our children. We believe that our God-given responsibilities require us to see, and be free to make, appropriate choices for our children and families. 

Home education is not being alone, but rather choosing to engage in ways that are positive and appropriate in your view. Being able to make that call as a parent is not only your right, but your responsibility. We support you in it. Subscribe to our mailing list to get more info and so you don't miss the next parental rights session!

Let's equip our children and ourselves for the future.


AHEA is an independent voice for parents that home educate, though our work often has far reaching implications in supporting and advocating for choice, parental rights and the family in general. If you would like to support AHEA in our efforts please click here.


Feel free to share with your friends that may find this topic and our work of interest. Thank you!

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1232 Hits

A Special Report

A Special Report "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" is a quotation from William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet. On this topic, no matter what terminology is used, it has been a privilege to focus time and effort on some very special people in our home education family. Webster's website says that the word special stresses having a quality, character, identity... of its own.

AHEA knows that those of you who have these exceptional children in your home have faced extra challenges because of your choice and commitment to home educate, since you've felt it provides the best environment for your child. We, in turn, made a commitment to you to seek to address this issue, and we have. It has been a regular discussion point in our advocacy work with the government for over a year now.

Last fall we invited families with special needs to participate in a survey on this topic. We collaborated with another stakeholder so that we could gather data from a wider group. The resulting information from respondents confirmed what we had heard and seen. As was shared in a Political Update blog last November, "There is no funding for diagnosis and support for children with diverse learning needs under The Home Education Regulations, The Guide to Education, and the Funding Manual." This is a serious problem that affects a great many of our home education families.

  • 38% had more than one child with special needs
  • 11% were single parent/caregivers
  • 90% were traditional, parent-directed home educators
  • 77% were formerly in the public system
    • 59% left within 1-3 years and another 27% left after 4-6 years

Everyone AHEA has spoken to about the topic has been very kind and cares about the needs that we are discussing. People have not been calloused, whether or not they personally have a child that may require additional support. However, and this is a big HOWEVER, caring needs to result in some very specific actions in order to be of help. Families don't want empathy - they want the kind of support that will make a real difference in their life. 

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The ADLC Anomaly

21.09.03.The-ADLC-Anomaly The ADLC Anomaly

History is complicated and the Alberta Distance Learning Center's (ADLC) relationship to home education, now history, is no exception. They started out simply enough, providing print resources (curriculum) to students across the province of Alberta. That simple plan grew over time into a service that provided not only print-based material to distance-learners, but online classes as well. In essence, both methods delivered teacher-directed materials with the possibility of the grades that would be recognized as fulfilling the Alberta Program of Studies, resulting in credits for an Alberta diploma.

Home educators have been told for a long time that this access fit within their home education mandate. This was very true from the sense that a parent could access many teacher resources (curriculum) for free. You actually still can find these government resources on LearnAlberta.ca. This was a boon for those parents who were looking to save money when they purchased their resources for any given year. The subtle shift of becoming a student of a teacher for credits, instead of a home education student that used the Alberta Program of Studies material and then challenged for the credits through a supervising authority, happened over time and without the implications being fully scrutinized by all the parties.

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2430 Hits