Our family just finished up our 18th year of home schooling. We still have 10 more years left on our journey. Throughout the years, I have had the opportunity to meet many wonderful families and consult with countless others.

It takes a bold pastor to be willing to address what is being taught in public schools. There aren’t many pastors brave enough to tackle the elephant in the room. Upwards of 80 percent of Christians send their children to government schools. Most pastors aren’t willing to offend that 80 percent, lest they leave and take their money with them. It poses the question: What is more important, is it money or souls?

With all the buzz around school choice, I decided to take a look at some of the key points that school choice proponents pose.

I have been very vocal in regard to my concerns with charter schools. I have consistently warned about fraud and the lack of regulation; therefore, I have been closely monitoring HB2833 filed by Rep. Mark White (R–Memphis), which aims to allow charter school corporations to apply directly to the State Charter School Commission, bypassing local school boards.

“For every ten people who are clipping at the branches of evil, you’re lucky to find one who’s hacking at the roots.” — Henry David Thoreau

This month I had planned on highlighting parents in our home-school community that were successfully home schooling despite difficult circumstances. However, due to the arrest of a local educator in our community, I felt compelled to address the issue of abuse in the educational system.

You know how the saying goes: “if it’s important enough you will find a way, or if not, you will find an excuse.”

During the pandemic, when schools shut down, you might have heard people say “we are being forced to home-school.” Parents were left to deal with remote learning, virtual school and work packets. Some signed their children up with online academies through their local public school districts and I often read and heard parents say how hard “home schooling” was and that their child wasn’t doing well. No wonder! None of the aforementioned are examples of home schooling. These are all examples of public school at home.

“School choice” is a term that many conservative politicians have adopted as one of their main platforms.

A teacher recently asked me if I thought being a mother made me more educated in regard to children. My prompt retort was to ask them if they could explain to me the history of compulsory education.