Ruffled Feathers

I spend time reading and posting on a board dedicated to homeschooling. On this board a bunch of people are up in arms over an article on the National Education Association site about homeschooling.

You can read the article here .
There is even a petition you can sign, although I am not sure what they hope to accomplish with this petition.

As usual it seems that people are just looking for a reason to get their feathers ruffled. The letter in question was written by a head custodian at a private school. Does the opinion of a support staff person really represent the opinion of the whole NEA? If the lunch lady said that homeschooling is the best way to educate children would we count that as a win?

Yes, the NEA has made it clear that they do not think homeschools can offer students "a comprehensive education experience". Still, they have been pretty silent on the subject since 2002. That's five years! Why are we still worried about what they said five years ago? Actually why are we worried about what they say at all?

This is America. Let me say that again. This is AMERICA!!! Aren't we all entitled to opinions that make sense to us? Is it a surprise that the people who earn their living from teaching don't think untrained people should be able to take their jobs? Not to me! Of course, homeschoolers looking for a cause are also welcome to argue with them through petitions, letters to their representatives, or whatever other means they decided. I'll skip this petition though because if I'm going to join a cause it will be one that combats a real problem.