Too often it is said by long suffering students, that learning history is soooo boring.
Here is a way to bring history alive to everyone in the family. Historical reality TV shows insert ordinary people and experts into the clothes, the buildings, the smells, the work loads, the food, and the reality of what it was really like to live as our ancestors have lived before us.
Click here for a link to a comprehensive webpage all about historical reality TV shows to really engage your learners.
Help bring history alive in your home.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
This is a reminder for the parents of Australian Home Educated Students that they along with their Distance Education peers can access the nbn Sky Muster Education Port for internet access with up to 3 dedicated 50G download limit separate from the household connection.
It is a big thank you to the Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association for pushing for this equity of access.
This is a huge win for remote home educators. In the past, families would be sharing, on average, 20G per month with speeds under 1mpps on their satellite NBN. This would place a great deal of difficulty of trying to allocate the download resources for all the family’s needs.
Sky Muster Education Ports provide internet access for students without access to wired NBN, which is more expensive, and has only a limited download. The Education Port is only available on the NBN Sky Muster satellite service.
Home Education Students (Pre K -12) who have registered with their State Education Department and are in receipt of the Federal Government’s Geographically Isolated AIC Allowance, may now apply to a Retail (Internet) Service Provider for access to the NBN Sky Muster Education Port.
Equally, Students (Pre K -12) who have a medical condition and are in receipt of the Medical AIC Allowance living in an NBN Sky Muster designated area, may now also apply to a Retail (Internet) Service Provider (RSP) for access too.
Stay tuned for more information on access for other regional home educators. And viewers, please do let us know at contact@edconsult.com.au if there are any changes to this scheme.
Here are some details:
1. Student’s Home Education registration and AIC status will be verified as part of the approval process. Regular audits will be conducted to confirm the status of Students.
2. It is the Parent’s / Carer’s responsibility to advise RSPs when Students complete their education or change their status e.g. move to Distance Education or into non-home based education.
3. Students who have been approved for access to the Education port are allocated 50 Gigs per month. That can be used at any time of the day for Education purposes.
4. Up to 3 students (50 Gigs each) can be connected as standard. 1 Student is approx. $40 – 50 per month, 2 Students are approx. $70 per month, 3 Students are approx. $90 per month. Check the pricing with the individual RSPs as they vary.
5. If there are more than 3 students at a site, special arrangements will be made to accommodate them. This may alter how the tariff is charged.
6. If the school room is in a house with an existing Sky Muster service, the Education port will be attached to that service. If the School House is remote from the house, then a standalone Sky Muster service could be provided at that location. It can have a Standard + Education service or just an Education service.
You cannot have 2 Sky Muster services on the same building.
7. Depending on the number of Students and the configuration of the internet installation, it may be necessary to purchase a Router to connect Student devices to the Sky Muster service.
8. All costs associated with the Education Port are the responsibility of the parents / carers.
For more details about this scheme, please see the information including web links for 6 Rural Service Providers (RSP) who sell the Education Port.
Time to be quiet. Time to stretch and yawn. Time to think. Time to be absorbed. Time to grow. Time to search. Time to imagine. Time to experiment. Time to explore. Time to move. Time to excel.
Home educated kids do not have to wake up at a certain time, or eat at a certain time, or start a learning opportunity at a certain time, or go to the toilet at a certain time.
Home educated kids can speed up their learning or slow it down. They can work while school is on and study on the weekends. Home educated kids can start university as soon as they are ready to. All this without the constraints of the K to 12 standard school system.
Home educated kids have the edge over their schooled cousins. They have time to explore and potentially realise their true, authentic selves and reach their goals, perhaps years before their peers have even finished year 12. In fact, the old notion of staying in school until year 12 is rapidly becoming a disadvantage for many, while the “school drop out” is gaining an edge in an increasingly unstructured and self-directed world.
A great example of the benefits of time was seen with home educated Billie Eilish’s recent sweeping wins at the Grammy Awards on the 26th January 2020. Click here to read more. In the same interview, Baird stressed the flexibility of homeschooling for parents and children alike.
Everybody’s always out doing things, traveling, going places, meeting for classes, and organizing field trips. It’s like going to college. You take what you want, where you want it, and you find what you need…Homeschooling allows us to let them do the things that they really love to do and not have a giant academic schedule on top of it.
Maggie Baird – mother of Billie Eilish
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
There is so much to learn about home education in Australia. Since the launch December 26th, 2019, there have been over 20 blog posts and just in case you missed out on some of it, here is a list so you can stay informed and up to date.
NSW In Focus – Learn about the numbers, the registration process and TAFE Update.
Some home educators report not feeling supported with their decision to home educate their children when working with some health professionals. Some practitioners are overstepping their purview enforcing their negative opinion of home education uninvited, rather than giving unbiased professional advice on the condition that is presented by the child. There have been reports that some professionals forcefully advising the child or parents to enroll in a school. It is worthwhile reminding professionals who hold this view that home education is a legal third choice in addition to government or independent schools when parents are deciding on the education for their child.
It is a reasonable premise that positive interaction and collaboration between families and practitioners is in the best interest of the child’s well being. It is important to ensure that all parties involved in children’s wellbeing understand the validity of home education, and respect a parent’s right and responsibility to choose their child’s form of instruction.
Some parents have reported about how their home education environments have helped their children with special needs.
One mum said “My daughter has ASD, SPD, generalised anxiety and is learning delayed. Homeschool has allowed me to reduce sensory overload and sit with her one on one and learn her strengths and frustrations. I can tailor her learning just to her, using any resources that will fit, rather than trying to make certain resources fit her.”
One experienced mother’s advice to other home educating parents working with professionals was to:
“Tell the [Health Professional] you home educate, that is a non negotiable thing that will not be changing, and can they help and advise you within that context…Only once did I encounter a person who said she could not work with my child unless we would put him in school, and … we knew not to go back [to them].”
There were also families that have enjoyed positive experiences with their therapists such as:
“We have been fortunate enough to find supportive medical and allied professionals who have acknowledged that home education is the best choice in our case. It has been worth seeking out the good ones.”
“My son’s therapists weren’t happy about me homeschooling but respected my decision nonetheless. Now, they praise it as they have seen the change in my boy..”
An online resource has emerged called “Home Ed Friendly professionals” to help families find services in every state and territory to help their children be the best they can be and still respecting home education as their choice for their children’s education. Make sure to add to this project any professionals who have contributed positively to your home education experience.
Another mother stated:
“I have dealt with a lot of health professionals and don’t mind at all explaining what home education is. However, I do mind having to defend those choices to professionals who overstep the mark.”
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
There was more mention of home education in Victoria recently talking about the rise in the home education registration in 2019. With 1,108 registered in Victoria in 2013 to 3,232 in 2018 saw a 192% increase. Today, 6425 children were home educated in 2019.
“Parents are best placed to make decisions about the education of their children and Daniel Andrews must ensure that parents who make the choice to educate their children at home are supported.” Victorian opposition education spokeswoman Cindy McLeish.
Click on the link below to read the article in The Herald Sun newspaper in Victoria.
At the current rate of increase of home education registration across Australia, the number of students registered for home education will exceed 1% of the total student population within two years. This increase is chasing the American home education population of over 3% of all students in the USA.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
Democratic Labour Party MP Rachel Carling-Jenkins urged the Andrews government back in 2015 to provide taxpayer-funded vouchers to help the growing number of homeschooling families pay for stationery, curriculum resources, computers and internet access.
Democratic Labour Party MP Rachel Carling-Jenkins urged the Andrews government back in 2015 to provide taxpayer-funded vouchers to help the growing number of homeschooling families pay for stationery, curriculum resources, computers and internet access.
Click on the link below to read the article in The Age newspaper.
It really takes experienced politicians who have home educated their own children to stand up and speak on behalf of home educators and their needs. Ms Carling-Jenkins knows personally how much it costs to choose to educate children at home.
“Opponents of homeschooling cite concerns about the standard of education children receive without a qualified teacher; the lack of socialisation some children might face; and the potential for religious extremism to be imposed. Proponents say it gives children the chance to excel by catering to their individual needs, particularly if a child has a learning disability or is being bullied at school.” The Age Farrah Tomazin
Ed Consult encourages home educators across Australia to write to any politician who talks about support for home educators. However, Ed Consult would never garner votes for any individual politician on that basis alone because their other political agendas may become divisive in our large and wonderfully diverse community.
Unfortunately, in the recent past a home educator linked a national association to the suggestion that home educators should vote in the Federal elections 2019 for a particular small party Candidate because of their support for a section of the home education community in the NSW parliamentary enquiry into home education in NSW in 2017. This candidate failed to secure a seat. This voting direction caused pain and concern within our LGBTQI Community and the larger home education community as well.
Lobbying for an issue or support for home education is quite OK and open to anyone to do. This is distinct from lobbying for a candidate’s election who is supportive of only a section of the home education community. Linking a diverse home educating community with a socially and politically divisive individual candidate in any parliament has had the effect of dividing and destabilising the home education community in Australia.
Dr Carling-Jenkins said she would continue to lobby Premier Daniel Andrews to give parents “a fair go”.
A voucher suggestion is a wonderful start.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
The NSW Minister for Skills, John Barilaro, announced in 2017 that home educated students 15 years and over registered with NESA as secondary students could enrol in Smart and Skilled funded courses at TAFE and private RTOs in NSW. This greatly reduces the fees to access these courses and ensures that this remains a viable pathway to work or further education.
The fees that students pay vary widely depending on a variety of circumstances. Students with a disability do not have to pay any fees. Students in low income households (in receipt of the full Family Tax benefit A or youth allowance), or who are Aboriginal, have low fees. If students do not fit into these categories their fees will be more – up to several thousand dollars depending on the course. TAFE has a fee calculator on their website that you can use to help determine what the fees will likely be.
It is no longer a requirement for registered home educated students to have a year 10 certificate for admission to Smart and Skilled funded NSW TAFE courses. If you are asked by TAFE or the private RTO for a year 10 certificate, explain that the student is registered for home education and meets the requirements for eligibility for a Smart and Skilled funded course.
There have been some stories in 2018-2019 where home educated kids were being rejected as not eligible for Smart and Skilled funded placements. This was usually down to poorly trained staff and the best ways to deal with a difficult gatekeeper is to ask:
If that doesn’t work, ask to speak to the supervisor.
If that doesn’t work, contact Smart and Skilled directly on this link and tell them the branch of TAFE or the RTO you are dealing with and get the answers your child deserves.
If you have experienced discriminatory practices in your state or territory with regards to higher education access, please email at contact@edconsult.com.au or leave a comment below this blog or the YouTube video.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
The latest numbers of students registered for home education are from a report March 2019 from NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority). From 2014 with 3298 to 2018 with 5429 home educating students. The number of unregistered students is unknown but anecdotal evidence suggests it could be a similar figure.
“New South Wales has experienced a 24% growth between 2014-2016, following a dip after the introduction of new regulations in 2014. At the time, there were 3,327 students registered for homeschooling with the NSW Board of Studies [now NESA], which has now grown to 4,100 respectively.
This graph is interesting as it shows the percentage of home educators who are being given shorter registration periods. Using 5,429 as the 2018 figure, the students registering for the first time who got the full 12 months initial registration was 78% with renewal of registration receiving the maximum time period of 24 months was up at 87%.
It would be interesting to see what plans or reporting is being rejected or given shorter registration periods by NESA so that we can all learn what not to do when registering.
How many schools would it take to educate 5,429 students in NSW?
Not home education.
Approximately 105 Primary School classes just like the one above, and 90.5 high school classrooms to accommodate all the home educated students with a 50/50 spread of primary to high school students. This is just a representation of what that many students may actually look like with the average primary school class of 26 students and high school class of 30 students. Financially, at an average of $16,000 per student for tuition (not accounting for additional learning support funding or infrastructure funding) would cost the Federal Government approximately $86,864,000 if all home educated students were to enrol next week.
If we were to acknowledge the 1/4 of all registration applications in NSW that choose to state that they home educate with a child with special needs, including levels 1-6 of $6,400 to over $60,000 per student per year, this could equate to a total funding for all home educated students to over $115,000,000 per year.
Just as soon as the latest numbers from NESA on registration for home educated students are available they will be shared with you here. Don’t forget to subscribe.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
Registering for home education in NSW is straight forward and easy. If you know how.
You will need to follow a few steps as listed below in order to successfully register for the maximum first registration period of 1 year. Upon re-registration in 12 months time, you can apply for a two year maximum registration period. NSW home educators register through NSW Education Standards Authority also known as NESA.
How to make the big bad government Authorised Person smile on your home visit. Only joking!
Step 1 – Alert the authorities that you are leaving the reservation
Go to the NESA homeschooling webpage and download Form 1 for initial registration. Fill one out for each child separately and then email them back signed. An AP (Authorised Person, usually a teacher) will then call you to make an appointment for the purposes of sighting your children and to read a written program for each child.
The program can be as simple as cutting and pasting the stage statements from each Key Learning Area (KLA), and then list any resources you intend to use to cover those skills sets in the stage statements.
I wouldn’t write any education philosophies down. Stay away from mentioning unschooling or natural learning and save yourself an unnecessary headache. Just list resources or activities that will tick what each stage statement will need.
You only need to register for primary or secondary school. You do not need to list a grade level. This gives you the freedom to alter the skills levels for each KLA to suit where your child is upto. If they are more advanced in Mathematics you may select the stage statement for stage 3 instead of stage 2. This is your opportunity to truly tailor your child’s education. Click here for all the stage statements in a single document for Early Stage 1 to Stage 5. Stage 6 is separated due to the volume of subjects and different requirements in the Curriculum. https://educationstandards.nsw.edu.au/…/stage…
If you are using work books, your list of resources under the stage statements for English and Maths KLAs may look something like this:
Mathematics stage 2 – Targeting Maths grade 3, Life of Fred, online multiplication games.
English – All About Spelling level 4 – 5, First Language Lessons, Writing with Ease, The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings for literature, readers from the library, Audio books, speech at home school group.
If you are using a child led approach or unschooling, you will still need to write something down and that may look like this:
English – Public speaking at the home school meet-up, writing a journal, creating a recipe book, creating an ad for selling a bike on Gumtree, memorising poetry from a nursery rhyme book, writing some short stories, doing some copy work, keeping a word index book of words learnt with meanings, reading list appropriate for their interest and age.
Mathematics – focusing on using measuring equipment especially in cooking, online maths games, chalk and cement for practice problems, building with lego, sorting colours and quantities and following instructions, shopping adding up the purchases, planning a family trip with public transport, playing math based card games like Gin Rummy, playing board games like Ticket to Ride or Rummikub, singing along with the times table song disc.
It really isn’t very hard. Do the simplest paperwork such as listing of resources above is all you need to write. Be polite to the Authorised Person and then get the government out your front door. What you do in your home is your business. The longest registration period you will get for the initial registration is 12 months. Some home educators have really great APs and they are a welcome resource during home visits, but some have reported APs who expect school at home setups and can be highly rigid in interpreting their jobs. Do let Ed Consult know if you have had an experience such as this at contact@edconsult.com.au
Step 3 Get re-registered for your next home education adventure together
In 12 month’s time you print off the second form on the above mentioned NESA webpage and then have some work samples for each KLA, a photo album, diary entries or some form of record keeping of their learning and the new plan for the next two years. You are not required to compare your registered plan with what work was actually reported on. The AP is simply noting that you have a plan that is consistent with the NSW Curriculum. If you do nothing that you planned to do, that doesn’t matter at all. Just report what was done. Not hard really.
What if I don’t register?
Under the Education Act (see my other blog on this topic) in NSW you are required to register with NESA to home educate. If you are not registered, the only thing that will happen is that you will be asked to register with NESA. If you persist to fail to comply with the above steps, then the end worst case scenario is that you could be charged with “educational neglect”. This is very very rare and reserved for those who repeatedly refuse to register under the act.
If you are reported, simply register your children. Children who have never attended any schools are not on any lists. Children who unenroll from a school will be on the list of the school or a home school liaison officer and you can expect a phone call enquiring why your children are skipping school without a note.
Just say what the government wants to hear.
Yes we use the NSW Curriculum
Yes we keep records of the learning
Yes I considered my child’s learning needs and interests
Yes we have resources and space available to facilitate the learning of my child.
Job done.
Ed Consult. Supporting Home Educators Across Australia.
Ed Consult 