A Common Life: April 2020

How Can You Know the Bible is True?

Do you wonder if you can trust the Bible, I mean, trust it enough to base your entire life on it? Maybe these thoughts will help.

I trust the Bible. I've based my life on it and I'm trusting what God says in His Word for my eternal security. No man or man's religion will ever have my heart like God does.

Why You Can Believe the Bible-Voddie Baucham (You Tube video)

Why You Can Believe the Bible-Audio Voddie Baucham

From Homeschool to Harvard Through the Years

In 2012 Harvard was all about being accessible and affordable via their extension school, perfect for homeschoolers...

In 2015 we see an article, "Homeschooling is the New Path to Harvard".

In 2017 here is what was said about homeschoolers at Harvard: Dean of Freshmen Thomas A. Dingman ’67 said that homeschoolers integrate well into the student population, while also adding that the definition of ‘homeschool’ has certainly changed, now encapsulating students who take online courses or community college classes.

“We’ve had lots of success with students who identify as homeschooled,” Dingman said. “It’s changed over time, so I don’t know that you can say these are people who’ve only gotten their education within the four walls of their home,” he added.

In 2018 we see a profile of 3 students and their lessons on being home schooled en route to Harvard. You'll see these kids were not stifled.

Interesting how Harvard was working to shut down homeschooling during the start of COVID.

Harvard Kennedy School of Government Countering Harvard Law School's Disinformation Campaign Against Homeschooling

**Meeting is going on now at a new location. Live on FB and being recorded. Please tune in. This battle is about the American ideals vs. countries like Germany, where freedom in education is not permitted. Bartholet does not share traditional American ideals, which we see by what she's published about homeschooling.

This is very good news. My prayer is that this counter campaign will be used by God to bless families in America.

Harvard Kennedy Hosting Disinformation Campaign Regarding Homeschooling

Harvard Kennedy to Host Event to Counter "Disinformation Campaign"

You can join this meeting via Zoom.

May 1

Please pass the word.

(Photo courtesy of this website with free images at Harvard.edu, Sanders Theater. Content of blog not endorsed by Harvard University.)

Cooking Beans

Taking a break from the stressful reporting on Harvard University and the Law School's lack of scholarship toward freedom of parents and the beauty of parental authority, I bring you:

BEAN COOKING en masse.

Beans are probably the number 1 source of protein for the Mr. and I. It has taken far too long for me to cook a lot of them at once to freeze, but alas, it is part of the routine now.

After sorting and rinsing the beans, which doesn't take long if you buy bags of beans from normal stores, I put 1 lb in my Instant Pot Duo with 4-6 cups of water depending on the bean. For navy, I did 4 cups. (note-for those who I used to go to certain unnamed sources for cheap beans in bulk...what a nightmare of sorting. Just pay more and skip cheap sources if you care about time!)

This old girl can do 2 lbs in about 5 hrs and I went with Great Northern. I don't think I measured the water but if I did, it was 8 cups.

Let them all cool and for use while frozen, such as for smoothies, put in zip top bags and freeze flat. Often I'll employ that method, but for money saving, went with reusable containers this time. White beans are undetectable in a green smoothie and thicken it well. The three pounds of beans that were cooked produced the containers seen above as well as 2 more (at least). I made a great soup this night which I'll share in a subsequent post. ♥

Harvard Summit to Discuss Ban on Homeschooling

Have you heard of the private summit to discuss a ban on homeschooling this June? We need to be in prayer, Folks. There will be no advocates of homeschooling there. None were invited as far as I understand.

I wonder if Elizabeth Bartholet would say the things she's saying about homeschooling if public schools taught an ideology she opposed. Perhaps she would like to see her kids in a Bible teaching church 3 times a week to balance out the influences she has chosen for her kids (if she has any).

The statistics on home school excellence have been in for years but many people aren't aware of them. Most of us don't go around bragging about our kid's test scores.

The questions raised by Bartholet remind me of people who are simply against those who score better than them so they seek to shut it down. She tries to take an angle that has no basis in reality, expressing concerns over too much time outside society...which poses dangers. Really? How about all the kids abused and shot in public schools??

Very scholarly.

That said, this is the world we live in, and what is better doesn't always come out on top. What is right is considered wrong, and what is an abomination to God is heralded as freedom.

Harvard Summit to Discuss Regulating Homeschooling

Harvard Alum and Education Researcher Writes a Letter to the Editor Regarding Harvard's Attack on Homeschooling

Harvard Alum's Letter to the Editor

This is a worthwhile article to read and link to. My prayer is that this call for a presumptive ban on homeschooling that Harvard has waged will be used by God to bless homeschoolers in this nation. Hopefully people will end up seeing how important freedom in education is. God can do that.

The Federalist: More on Harvard Professor Who Wants to Ban Homeschooling Because Christians Primarily Do It

https://thefederalist.com/2020/04/23/harvard-law-professor-wants-to-ban-homeschooling-because-christians-do-it/

Worth reading. Freedom is under attack and so are parental rights. This Harvard prof has rolled out her attacks during COVID-19.

(Another rebuttal by a Harvard Alum: https://annscommunisvita.blogspot.com/2020/04/harvard-alum-and-education-researcher.html)

Al Mohler's Thoughts on Harvard's Anti-homeschooling Article

Homeschooling in the Crosshairs—Harvard Magazine Says Homeschooling Families Are a Threat to Democracy

This paragraph of Mohler's article says much:

Indeed, Bartholet says that homeschoolers have become an incredibly powerful political force. That is undoubtedly true. Bartholet states that parents do have, “very significant rights to raise their children with the beliefs and religious convictions that parents hold.” But, she also argues that “requiring children to attend schools outside the home for six or seven hours a day does not unduly limit parents’ influence on a child’s views and issues.” Professor Bartholet argues, “The issue is, do we think that parents should have 24/7 essentially authoritarian control over their children from ages zero to 18? I think that’s dangerous.” The professor went on to say, “I think it’s always dangerous to put powerful people in charge of the powerless and to give the powerful ones total authority.” Don’t miss what the professor is arguing. She’s stating that our democratic values are endangered by a nation that respects parental authority, where parents actually exercise authority in the lives of their children.

Worldview is always at the core of what people believe.

Bartholet realizes that putting our kids under the authority of curriculum that dishonors God and a system that is not allowed to honor Him has the effect of watering down or counteracting what the parents are trying to teach their kids. Kids are always under authority and God has given it to parents. It is their privilege AND responsibility.

Voddie Baucham's The Children of Caesar on YouTube gives some history of public education. (this is part 1, you'll see a link for part 2 on the side bar of YouTube probably)

****The Federalist has also put forth an article rebutting Harvard's. Worth reading and sharing.

Harvard Attacks Homeschooling in USA Amidst Worldwide Pandemic

4/22/20

While nearly the entire nation is schooling their children at home, Harvard University is launching an attack on homeschooling with their summit to discuss severely regulating the practice.

This is ultimately an attack on parental rights; who gets to decide what is best for children, their parents or the government? Should parents be forced to put their kids in a school they disagree with? Think about these scenarios: Catholics must send their children to a Protestant private school; atheists must send their kids to a Christian school...Christians should not be forced to send their children to government schools, but that is essentially what is being promoted by Elizabeth Bartholet of the Harvard Law School.

Homeschooling: Parent Rights Absolutism vs. Child Rights to Education & Protection is the original article. (love how she says we do this with very little scrutiny...we test ANNUALLY and submit those tests, we are in church 3 times a week, piano weekly, tennis weekly, Civil Air Patrol weekly, work WEEKLY, and they see friends...we're just one family, and we tend to do less than others we know. Question science? My oldest finished with a top score while in 12th gr. college A&P I and II, microbiology...we don't agree with secular humanistic thinking is what she is complaining about, which is POOR science, so she seeks to regulate people she disagrees with...)

The Risks of Homeschooling-Harvard Magazine (agrees with and heavily cites the original article and is being more widely circulated)

The comments at the bottom of this post were in response to the article linked to directly above (The Risks of Homeschooling) and were quickly closed. There is no doubt as to why when you read them--not a single comment agreed with the article and several people listed compelling information as to why the topic is irrelevant.

I realize there are families home schooling is not right for; I'll be the first to tell someone not to home school in certain circumstances. For those who must rely on government-funded education, being aware of the pervasive worldview is critical to helping your children steer clear of it. We cannot pretend there isn't an active agenda in the educational area. Bartholet seeks to be seen as some sort of expert, but one can't help wonder if she would say the same things if the public schools taught from a Christian perspective. Is she interested in rounding out her kid's education by putting them in a Bible teaching church 3 times a week? Why should her worldview trump my worldview?

If you like to read, consider John Taylor Gatto's tome: The Underground History of American Education. Ken Ham's The Relevance of Genesis videos, which can be found on YouTube are also helpful as well as Voddie Baucham's The Children of Caesar. I've linked to part one of each of the videos and you can also view part 2 free on YouTube.

Al Mohler's rebuttal to Bartholet is excellent. Worth reading.

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Kim Cheney Wayman 2 days ago

This article is sad in its total inaccuracy. First of 90% of homeschoolers are not Conservative Christian. I have homeschooled for 8 years and we are atheists. In my state of NC only 60% of homeschoolers are christian and only a small percentage are Conservative fundamental christian homeschoolers. The reason they do not have lots of regulations on them is because homeschoolers have proven over and over again that the majority are above in academics, social skills and life skills of public schooled children. You can get around the mandates if states wanted to by asking every homeschool to turn in a well visit dr visit every year honestly. I believe you know nothing honestly about homeschooling or homeschoolers and i would happily invite you to my state and introduce you to the world of homeschooling. You might also want to look at statistics on how many homeschool children not only go to college yes including Harvard but get scholarships thrown at them because they are so advanced.Your knowledge in this area is so bad that i could do an equally bad article on Quantum Physics because my knowledge in that area is about as extensive as yours is in homeschooling.

Cait Blakley 2 days ago
This article and others like it stun me and show a true lack of understanding of what homeschooling is. It's sad to see such a one-sided, uninformed article on Havard's website.
TJ 2 days ago
Um. Ok. I was homeschooled from pre-K through highschool graduation. Went to college and got double degrees. Homeschooling is amazing. The kindest, most intelligent people I know were homeschooled. I loved it. Every other homeschooler I've known/met loves/loved it. Way to intolerantly attack a minority group here though.

And what's with the picture? Contradictory. It clearly shows a kid imprisoned in their public school while the homeschoolers run around having fun. Doesn't fit the article.
bdbaugus 2 days ago
Fascinatingly out of date. I would urge the author and the professor to do some research and homework and check their internal inconsistencies. Putting a government bureaucrat called a teacher in charge of the children is also authority figure with much poser (see numerous teacher student sex scandals as exhibit A). But the research shows that a) home school students do better academically, b) home school students are more community and politically aware and active, c) are more likely to involved in the arts, politics and entrepreneurs. This is nothing more than a desire for government to extend its reach into the family and home, an area it has proved incompetent to manage as various public relief programs have destroyed families over the last 50 years.
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David E. Shellenberger 2 days ago

Government school-prisons are the worst means of education. They should be abolished and a free market achieved.

Larissa 2 days ago
This is, by far, the most vapid and poorly researched article I've ever read. I am a public educator. Children in public schools are penned in for 8-9 hours a day with MAYBE a 20 minute recess built in with another 25 minutes for lunch. Time is constantly wasted trying to corral and transition from one arbitrary class to another. They MAYBE experience 1 or 2 field trips a year. Homeschool children, on the other hand, are often doing their school outside. They are active. They are given specialized instruction instead of a one size fits all curriculum. Field trips take place as often as they want, many once a week or more. When a child is sick, they don't miss instruction. They are given the time to recuperate and pick up where they left off. Co-ops offer group learning atmospheres where they can learn from specialized experts in certain fields. When a child masters a concept, they can move forward instead of sitting around waiting for their peers. When a child is struggling, they can slow down without feeling like they are holding everyone back or worse being forced to just trudge ahead without the skill. Children have more time to participate in activities like 4H, music lessons, team sports, and internships since their life is not dictated by a government institution. Furthermore, homeschool students outperform public school students on the ACT, SAT, and in areas of college readiness. They are better at discussions, better at asking questions and providing analysis.This idea that homeschool children are isolated and under authoritarian rule is antiquated and shows a lack of research by this author. Public schools dictate the way a child should dress, the way a child behaves, the way a child eats, the way they play, and the way a child should learn. They dictate who gets to be successful and who gets left behind. They funnel children into groups based upon arbitrary quantifiers of potential. They dictate the number of hours a child must sit. They dictate what a child should say. They dictate what days are school days and what days are for family. The public school system literally has control of a child and his family from age 5-18. And you say they provide freedom? Absolutely tone deaf and an embarrassment to this publication.
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Daina Ball 2 days ago

In the image picturing one child locked up while others play freely outdoors, please realize that the child locked in the house is most definitely representing a child who attends school and not a homeschool child as you may first assume.
aikimoe

This is really tired stuff. And thoroughly illiberal. In the utter absence of any evidence whatsoever that kids who are homeschooled are more likely to be abused or less likely to enter adulthood ready for college or trade-school, there is no logical or even ethical reason to suggest that homeschooled kids face more "risks" than kids who attend public school.

I'm a secular liberal and secular liberals are increasingly choosing to homeschool their kids. Lazy attempts (I can only hope they're not dishonest) to create an impression that the vast majority of homeschoolers are religious fundamentalists indicate the kind of desperation one sees from conservatives warning against the dangers of sex education and gay marriage.

You should know and strive to be better than this.
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Russ Westbrook 2 days ago

So..... The State can't have spies in the family structure, and can't force feed children what to think? Sign me up for homeschooling.5

The Purples and Blues are Blooming (with Yellow...) April 22, 2020

My color-scheme blooming pattern isn't perfect by any stretch, but right now several of the blues and purples are showing their loveliness. The pinks have done their big debut (dogwood, cherry, azalea). note--my pics should show all the blues and purples to start, but well, they don't...