This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

What about driver's education?

In the Home School section of the new education bill, House File 215 has no reporting or testing requirements for home school parents. Since this private instruction is not accredited and is exempt from all state statutes and administrative rules applicable to a school district, does this open the door for abuse? Since the child is no longer connected to a school district, I assume that the child will want to take a GED test. Will a GED limit their job opportunities or their college opportunities if they decide to further their education? This lack of accountability is for home school parents who teach not only their own children but also teach up to four other children who are not related to the homeschool parent teacher. Would a court consider it discriminatory not to allow any non-certified person who wants to provide instruction in their home for up to four non-related children? What prevents any parent from challenging the exemption of home schooled children from certified driver’s education? Why should one parent have to pay for driver’s education and another is exempt from providing instruction by a certified instructor just because they are deemed a privileged class by legislation? A home school parent may want to check with their auto insurance company to see if they will be able to add their child to their auto policy or be charged a higher premium. At a time when the lawmakers are piling more and more requirements on certified teachers, does this make sense? Has a Pandora’s Box been opened?

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from Waukee