Well, we seem to have wound down with “lessons” for the summer, although the girls have got a busy programme of Drama workshops, as well as continuing with Speech and Drama through the Summer.

Stephanie is starting her BHS (British Horse Society) Stage 1 Horsemanship and Stable Management. She can progress up through the stages and level 3 will count towards UCAS points for University.

GCSE and IGCSE Research.

After researching various options, we have come to the conclusion that we are going to be taking IGCSE’s for all subjects, and they will be spread over 2 years. Stephanie is going to do 4 subjects next year- Maths, ICT, Drama and Biology and another 4 or 5, including English Language and Literature the following year.

We have settled on the IGCSE’s for a number of reasons:
1) We have not been able to find an accommodating exam centre for GCSE.
2) We have not been able to find anyone to validate course work, without spending a lot of money on distance learning courses, which I don’t feel we need.

Validation of coursework for GCSEs for Home Educating families is going to get harder because new policies are being introduced which state that coursework has to be done in controlled conditions in a classroom, under the supervision of a teacher.
3) IGCSEs (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) are exam based, so they do not have any course work.
4) We have found a centre where we can take the exams, which is only 45 minutes drive away. (More on exam centres shortly as this can be a real bug-bear)
5) IGCSE’s are closer to the old O-Level in structure, for those of old enough to remember those qualifications.
6) They are a better preparation for A-Level (Advanced Level) than the current GCSEs because they require the student to have an ability to think and reason for him/herself rather than having most of the information spoon-fed to them.
7) IGCSEs are being adopted by more and more fee-paying, independent schools in order to separate their students with 8-10 A* grades at GCSE from students from state schools with 8-10 A* grades.
Most overseas students who want take English qualifications (the system is different in Scotland and Northern Ireland) take IGCSEs. They are very highly thought of by overseas teaching institutions.
9) Universities like and accept them for the same reasons as number 6. Although the UK government does not recognise IGCSEs in any way shape or form.

Pros and Cons.

There are 2 main exam bodies who offer IGCSE qualifications. They are and CIE (Cambridge International Exams) and Edexcel.

On both websites you can access the syllabus for the current year, as well as past exam papers and the examiners reports. That information can also help you to decide which exam board is better for your child. That may also vary from subject to subject, depending on what you want to do.

There are books, audio and visual materials and other resources available that you can buy or access fairly easily. Some have practice answers with them and some don’t.

There is also a fantastic forum for Home Educating Families looking at GCSEs or alternatives. That has been hugely helpful to us in our research.

Exam Centres.

The biggest challenge is finding an exam centre that is a) willing to take your child as a private candidate, b) is within a reasonable travelling distance from where you live and c) is a reasonable cost per subject.

There is a huge amount of useful information in relation to exam centres in the Home Education GCSEs and Alternatives forum. If this topic is of interest to you,I would strongly suggest you join that forum.

I hope this has been useful to you.
With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

Tags: exams by Amanda
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How the time whizzes by!

On Friday evening, we went to see the end of term production of “Honk” ( a variation of the Ugly Duckling) that the girls were part of. This was with the local Stagecoach group.

Jacqueline was a cat and a duck and Stephanie was a Mother Duck, the Farmer and a snowflake.

It was a brilliant production. I am so pleased with the standard in that group. Everyone is included and gets the chance to do something.

There is a huge amount of work goes into putting on these productions, from learning songs and dances to creating costumes.

We had spent a good couple of hours in the afternoon before the show getting Stephanie’s purple and black duck eye make- up right. By the time they had done the rehearsals and actually got to the show, most of it had worn off.

Still I suppose it was a good lesson in face -painting for me!

In a couple of weeks they are doing a week long intensive drama workshop with Stagecoach. In a week they go from a standing start to putting on a fully fledged (and polished) hour long production. That always amazes me how they do that!

More soon.

With abundant blessings.

Amanda Goldston

Tags: drama by Amanda
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Calling all Harry Potter fans!

I am sure you know that only wizards and witches can see Hogwarts Castle.

Are you a Muggle or a Wizard? Can you see Hogwarts Castle?

Click here on this link to find out.

With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

Tags: home education by Amanda
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Hi all,

Following on from my lengthy ramblings on the subject of GCSE’s and exams, I thought it was time to revisit that subject and update you on our findings to date.

Having done further research, it looks as if taking GCSE’s for home educated children is NOT a particularly easy option.

So much for the government’s mantra of “Every Child Matters” – yes well, I have got a few opinions on that subject which we will return to shortly.

I found that out of the 8-10 possible centres in the town where I live, there was only one school that would even consider taking private candidates (which is what home educated children have to register as) but they could not deal with any coursework.

And I would have to go through the LEA (Local Education Authority). Having not got off to a brilliant start with the Head of the “Elective Home Education” department, I don’t think that is a very viable option for us.

Through the Home Education and GCSE’s/Alternatives forum I have found that a lot of parents looking at their children taking exams seem to opt for the IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) route instead.

IGCSE

The reasons behind this are mainly because there is no coursework involved in any of the subjects, with the exception of ICT (Information and Computer Technology), which has a case study with it.

It appears that students usually take an extra written paper instead of practical or oral work. There are courses that you can buy from various organisations, however a lot of people seem to download the specifications and past exam papers, buy the relevant books and study at their own time and pace.

It is then a matter of finding an exam centre, taking the exam and children end up with an internationally recognised qualification, which is held in higher regard than GCSEs by most of the Universities and many employers.

LOL, how funny is that!!!!!

The government makes it hard for home -educated children to take GCSEs, which pushes them towards alternatives. They then end up with the same qualifications as the children from the most expensive private schools (many take IGCSEs) or highly qualified foreign students!!

More on the subject of IGCSE shortly, as this is a topic for discussion in itself.
With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

Tags: exams by Amanda
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Proud Mummy Moment

I got a comment today about Jacqueline that made me realise just how important the aspects of “own personality” are in home education.

She was at a local village fair with the Girl Guides. The leader was telling me what a great Guide she thought Jacqueline was and how she would make a great Young Leader (she is only 12).

She also told me how much Jacqueline helps the younger girls with activities, of her own back and without being asked, and she seems to have an instinctive nose for when someone needs help.

She also told me about a girl who is very quiet and shy, almost mute, who speaks very little. It appears Jacqueline has helped this girl enormously.

I nearly cried. I was so proud of her.

That is her own personality shining through.

It is also something I have not really seem much of, whilst she has been at home. I have seen her squabble with her sister. There is a part of her that she seems to keep for outside the home.

Girl Guides has been brilliant for Jacqueline because it is something she does without Stephanie and she has her own, totally unique set of friends.

There are a huge amount of interest badges she can do and we have used several of them as the base for our “curriculum.”

Jacqueline was made a Patrol Leader a few weeks ago and it seems like she is doing an even better job at Leadership than I thought she would.

That confidence to BE HERSELF, to be spontaneous, to help others because she wants to and to just SHINE is so wonderful.

Perhaps this is also reflected in the growth spurt she seems to have had over the last 6 months. She is only 12 and she is now taller than me!

I don’t seek validation from anyone about our home-education.

Yet, it is really encouraging when someone external and completely unrelated makes a totally unprompted positive comment about your child.

It certainly gave me a HUGE big INNER SMILE.

With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

Tags: home education by Amanda
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Yesterday I did a very interesting radio show with my friend Ken MacLean on the subject of education and home education in particular.

This followed on from a show we did last year on the subject of “Education from a Higher Perspective“, with a fascinating gentlemen called Tony Butcher. That interview is here.

I knew I had become passionate about the subject since we started Home Education in March 2007, but I had not realised how passionate- and knowledgeable- I had become on the subject.

You can heat the full discussion by clicking the link below.

I started out with the very fundamental question of “What is education?”
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, to educate means “give intellectual, moral and social instruction to or to train or give information on a particular subject.”

What was more interesting was looking in the Thesaurus to see what similar words are put together with “education”. What I found was the term “education” as in the “education of young children” with the following words listed after it:

teaching, schooling, tuition, tutoring, instruction, coaching, training, guidance, indoctrination (YES, really!!!!) and enlightenment.

There are certainly a few of those words that are MUCH more applicable than others to our experience of the schooling system.

I got a real fright when I looked in the Oxford Primary Thesaurus, geared at children up to 11 years old. It said, “Education is important if you want to get on in life” and was followed by the words, “Instruction, schooling, teaching, training.”

This was then followed by a list of the people who may help to educate us and a list of the places where we receive education. These included: coach, counsellor, governess, headteacher, instructor, lecturer, professor, teacher, trainer and tutor. Places consisted of: academy, college, kindergarten, playgroup, primary school, secondary school, sixth form college and University.

The people and places that were some what conspicuous by their absence in a child’s education were PARENTS and HOME.

Education derives from the latin “educare” which means to “lead or draw out”. A further expansion of this is the verb “to educe” which means to bring out or develop (something latent or potential) . In other words to draw out the talents, passions and potential that are already there in children and encourage it.

It is not to “put in” or stuff children’s heads full of useful facts and information that they will never need again in their lives. The sole purpose of that being so that they can regurgitate the information and get an A* in the subject at GCSE, without necessarily having any real understanding of or interest in the subject.

Perhaps a more useful skill is knowing where to access the information as you need it.

Hope you enjoy the interview.
I will get of my soap box for the time being. However I am sure I will be coming back to this subject again very soon because the interview brought up loads of topics, which cold each be a whole subject of discussion in themselves.
With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

Tags: home education by Amanda
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Today we went to the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, which is part of the University of Birmingham. We went with the local Home-Ed group and it was really enjoyable.

Guess who forgot the camera!

Mind you, I had an inclination that I was having a forgetful day when I turned my computer on this morning, went to log-in and then promptly turned it off again! I then went to feed the dog and instead of taking his breakfast outside I took his bedtime treats, so I got some very funny looks from the dog.

The focus of the tour was on Sculpture, and we looked at some of the materials that can be used for sculpture, such as stone, bronze and clay.

We had a brief tour of the art gallery and discussed a couple of the paintings in detail. When you know a bit about the history of the painting and the story behind it is portraying, it makes it easier to understand.

I have never really been one for art galleries, however, when I was listening to the passion of the guide, the whole thing really came alive. He talked about lighting in the painting, as well as expression, feelings, clothing and the story.

Afterwards the children and parents had a go at making a head out of clay. I have to say there were some really imaginative ones.

Then we had some lunch in the gardens of the University, which was lovely and the children all played together.

I have noticed how well behaved groups of home educated children are. They seem to know how to behave in public, they have good manners and seem to have a healthy respect towards themselves and each other.

My girls had only met a couple of this group of children once before, yet everyone got along together. There was no bickering or bullying or exclusion or spitefulness. Nine children (6 girls and 3 boys) aged between 9 and 14 all enjoyed a game together.

We mums sat in the sunshine and had a nice chat.

I seem to be coming across more and more families who have experienced both the state and private sector schools and have not really been very enamoured with either.

When we first started home education, we had felt quite isolated because no-one else seemed to have withdrawn their children from a private school.

We had a lazy afternoon when we got home.
It was far too hot to be doing any work.
With abundant blessings.
Amanda Goldston

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