Home Education in China

Reading this China View article about Home Education in China, it brings it home yet again how important Home Education really is, not only for the open education of our children, but for the establishment of the proper balance between the individual and the state. More power to the people who manage to see it's value.

"It (HE) signals the educational advancement of China," Meng Siqing, a scholar in Tianjin Academy of Educational Sciences, wrote in his paper on home schooling. "From a long-term perspective, it is necessary to establish relevant laws and give support to those involved. By this, home-educated children's right to learn and the parents' right to choose how their children are educated can be protected," he said.

Although the Home Education described in the above article sounds slightly dated, with emphasis upon syllabuses and structure, it is infinitely preferable to the abuse that children suffer in Chinese primary schools, where battery is the norm and conformity the desired aim.

On the other hand, some HEers in China do sound as if they are fully up to speed, quoting the likes of John Holt, no less. One gets a great sense of the liberation of intelligence and the excitement of possibilities from a China Daily article about an American mother who HEs her son in Beijing. She finds that her son does his best work late at night, and she works with him accordingly. Across continents, we nod fervently in recognition and would like to tell you that we know precisely what you mean.