Do You Suspect Homeschool Abuse?

I recently discussed homeschool abuse and how it negatively affects the child, can hurt the homeschool community, and can also end with the abuser ending up in jail. Homeschool abuse is a serious issue, and anyone who suspects someone of homeschool abuse should ask questions and call authorities if necessary. However, if you suspect someone of homeschool abuse, you should tread lightly for fear of making a groundless accusation.

What makes you suspect homeschool abuse?

Do you have a problem with the hours the child keeps? Does he appear to be up late at night, and then playing in the street when other kids are in school? This is not a indicative of homeschool abuse. The child, and the family may just have an atypical schedule. Now if the child is in the street, all hours, day and night, there may be an overall caretaker issue, and you may have reason to suspect neglect.

Have you found out that your 10 year old neighbor can't read? That's not too strange for a homeschooled child either. Many people unschool and wait for the child to demonstrate reading readiness. The same child, a year later, may be reading 100 pages a day. Homeschooled kids go at their own pace, but once they get started, they tend to go 100 miles an hour. Now, if your neighbor would rather be at your house than hers and she is always hungry, and seems to have a lot of unanswered questions, them maybe you should look into her home life.

Learn the difference between a difference in philosophy and abuse.

My point is that things some people think are homeschool abuse may simply be a byproduct of a family's learning philosophy. Just because a child doesn't do things the same way you would does not mean they are guilty of homeschool abuse. It just means they have a different approach. If you are looking for signs of homeschool abuse, you should look for signs of abuse in general. Filthy (not dirty) kids, frail (not thin) kids, wild undisciplined (not spirited) kids will give you a signal that something is wrong. It is important to be observant and learn the difference instead of making false accusations that can hurt an entire family and even a community.