III

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. RES. 183

Designating the week beginning on September 19, 1999, and ending on

September 25, 1999, as National Home Education Week.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

SEPTEMBER 14, 1999

Mr. ASHCROFT (for himself, Mr. COVERDELL, Mr. DEWINE, Mr. HAGEL, Mr.

HELMS, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. GREGG, Mr. SMITH of Oregon, Mr. THURMOND, Mr. GORTON, Mr. ABRAHAM, Mr. SMITH of New Hampshire, Mr.

COCHRAN, and Mr. GRAMS) submitted the following resolution; which was

referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

SEPTEMBER 16, 1999

Committee discharged; considered and agreed to

RESOLUTION

Designating the week beginning on September 19, 1999,

and ending on September 25, 1999, as National Home

Education Week.

Whereas the United States is committed to excellence in education;

Whereas the United States recognizes the importance of family participation and parental choices in pursuit of that

excellence;

Whereas the United States recognizes the fundamental right

of parents to direct the education and upbringing of their

children;
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•SRES 183 ATS

Whereas parents want their children to receive a first-class

education;

Whereas training in the home strengthens the family and

guides children in setting the highest standards for their

lives which are essential elements to the continuity of morality in our culture;

Whereas home schooling families contribute significantly to

the cultural diversity important to a healthy society;

Whereas the United States has a significant number of parents who teach their own children at home;

Whereas home education was proven successful in the lives of

George Washington, Patrick Henry, John Quincy Adams,

John Marshall, Robert E. Lee, Booker T. Washington,

Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt,

Woodrow Wilson, Mark Twain, John Singleton Copley,

William Carey, Phyllis Wheatley, and Andrew Carnegie;

Whereas home school students exhibit self-confidence and

good citizenship and are fully prepared academically to

meet the challenges of today’s society;

Whereas dozens of contemporary studies continue to confirm

that children who are educated at home score exceptionally well on nationally normed achievement tests;

Whereas a March 1999 study by the Educational Resources

Information Center Clearinghouse on Assessment and

Evaluation at the University of Maryland found that

home school students taking the Iowa Test of Basic

Skills or the Tests of Achievement and Proficiency scored

in the 70th to 80th percentiles among all the students

nationwide who took those exams, and 25 percent of

home schooled students were studying at a level one or

more grades above normal for their age;
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•SRES 183 ATS

Whereas studies demonstrate that home schoolers excel in

college with the average grade point average of home

schoolers exceeding the college average; and

Whereas United States home educators and home instructed

students should be recognized and celebrated for their efforts to improve the quality of education: Now, therefore,

be it

1 Resolved, That the week beginning on September 19,

2 1999, and ending on September 25, 1999, is designated

3 as National Home Education Week. The President is au4 thorized and requested to issue a proclamation recognizing

5 the contributions that home schooling families have made

6 to the Nation.

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