Audrey is the mother of a three year old girl. She chose home schooling in order to avoid, among other things, being confronted with bullying at school. Today she criticizes Emmanuel Macron's decision to end homeschooling.
A strongly contested decision
By unveiling his plan to fight separatism on October 2, Emmanuel Macron angered many parents. The President of the Republic has in fact announced the imminent end of home schooling, except in cases of health imperatives. While education is compulsory from the age of three, instruction in school is also expected to become so soon. According to him, one way to stop the phenomenon of school dropout.
In France, an estimated 50,000 children are home schooled, half of them for medical reasons. This means that around 25,000 children will have to enroll in schools, even if their parents have made the choice of family education (IEF). Following this shocking announcement, many families expressed their dissatisfaction on social media. Aufeminin has also received numerous testimonies from parents who teach at home and do not wish to change their daily life.
Audrey is one of them. She is the mother of a 3-year-old girl and has decided with her husband since the start of the school year to use family education. A choice carefully considered and one that she does not wish to question because of the announcement of Emmanuel Macron. She explains why.
Testimony
"The choice of home education is not because we are against schooling in a school in the French Republic, but because we want to develop and develop our daughter as a family.
We lost our boy in excruciating conditions, where the doctors ignored a mother's plight. After this painful step, we decided to rebuild ourselves with this project to educate our daughter. We made all the necessary arrangements with the academy and the town hall where we live and we started home school in September.
Today we do not wish to change our minds. The government can come and see that our daughter is indeed receiving real education in very comfortable conditions with all the necessary equipment. She is registered for future group activities (horse, swimming pool) with plans to meet children in IEF.
I myself was bullied during my schooling with, finally, a school phobia. I was insulted, knocked down and teased. My husband's son was harassed and beaten for 2 years and the academy and establishment closed their eyes until the Juvenile Judge acted … so I say NO NO and NO for my daughter to suffer that!
Furthermore, she is allergic to milk proteins (we have not yet started introducing it into her diet). My stepson has a simple intolerance and it was very difficult for the diet without milk to be respected. Consuming milk protein can be fatal for her and I don't want to take that risk.
No one can take away our family balance
My daughter follows the school program, goes on educational outings, she has a fulfilling life without constraints. It is largely at the level of the school program between the small section and the middle section, at 3 years and 2 months it is not bad. She has no delays or gaps. She even lives school very well at home, and is very demanding. We recently had an appointment with a pediatrician who told us that she has a very enriched vocabulary and that she is very fulfilled.
Even more so, I refuse to send my daughter to school with the coronavirus epidemic. My husband has an unlabeled orphan disease which results in paraparesis of the lower limbs. This disease is progressive and not reversible. We have had testimonials from people without pathology not recovering their health before after being infected with Covid. Compulsory education would therefore endanger our home and my husband's health.
No one can take away our family balance.
Emmanuel Macron’s announcement made us feel like a cold shower. This calls our whole life project into question. I don't want to put her in school and I am ready to make an unreasonable choice or to leave France if necessary. I find it a violation of freedom, quite simply. "
A regulated procedure
Family education in France is highly regulated:
- The procedures must be made with the town hall and the direction of the departmental services of national education.
- The mayor must carry out a control survey from the first year of IEF and renew it every two years until the child is 16 years old.
- At the same time, a pedagogical control is put in place to ensure that the child is taught by an inspector from the National Education Academy. This check takes place at least once a year.
- Sanctions have been put in place in the event of failure or lack of instruction. Children can be brought back to school.
The bill announced by Emmanuel Macron will be debated in the Council of Ministers on December 9. It is not yet clear what the exceptions will allow families to have recourse to home education. One thing is certain, those who have already made this choice do not intend to let it go. A petition has also been launched on the Mes Opinions platform to say no to compulsory education at school.