Personal responses to "Why did you decide to home educate?" survey.

And here are some personal responses to my survey “why did you decide to home educate?” I’ll leave them anonymous.

“I do believe in free speech, but what I don't like is state-funded education that takes our money and uses it to promote the agenda of whoever's in power.”

“It led me on a journey which ended with it being very clear to me that schools do not meet children's needs (in fact they are highly destructive for them in several respects) but that well informed and prayerful loving parents were given the talents to meet them and were in the best position to do so.”

“I have to say the main reason we home educate, is not academic standards, but the fact that God has been completely taken out of state school education and replaced with socialistic humanism.”

“When my first child was about 18 months old I started researching home education. I came across the 'silencing the bell' site, John Holt and John Taylor Gatto, EO and Free-range education. It just seemed so natural to me.”

“I first heard about it when my son was about 12 months old and I knew from then that it was what we were going to do…. I decided because it just felt right.”

“Home education works for my family, my children are healthy and happy and developing appropriately for their ages. I suppose you could say that I've been home educating them since birth really, as most parents do for the first few years, and I see no reason why I should stop just because my oldest is now school-aged.”

“We could put it down to all sorts of things ... neither of us excelled in school, neither of us enjoyed school, but the reality is, and continues to be, we don’t want her to be stuck indoors when there are so many interesting things going on in the world during school time!”

“Initially our reasons were that dd was just not ready to participate in anything en masse and seemed to have stranger anxiety … Now she's nearly six she'd be fine at school and goes to groups on her own but since we've started all the other reasons have come into to play. We talk about her going sometimes but we always seem too busy.”

“My children have never been to playgroup, pre-school, or school. They have friends who are home educated and friends who are at school. Friends from church and from swimming. It is the best decision we ever made and I know I am lucky to have my husband’s full support. We love it and hope to continue throughout our children’s education.”

“Home education provides so many other opportunities to learn things - crafts, cookery, gardening, outings to museums etc. I also believe that school takes children away from their families and I want my girls to feel secure and happy at home, family relationships are for me the most important ones, because family are the people who take care of you throughout your life.”

“One of the biggest (reasons) for me is that I just think it's healthier for families to spend the bulk of their time together, learning, working and living as a family unit.”