[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Page 21393]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



SENATE RESOLUTION 183--DESIGNATING THE WEEK BEGINNING ON SEPTEMBER 19, 
1999, AND ENDING ON SEPTEMBER 25, 1999, AS NATIONAL HOME EDUCATION WEEK

  Mr. ASHCROFT (for himself, Mr. Coverdell, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Hagel, Mr. 
Helms, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. Gregg, and Mr. Smith of Oregon) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 183

       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;
       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;
       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
     Resolved, That the week beginning on September 19, 1999, and 
     ending on September 25, 1999, is designated as National Home 
     Education Week. The President is authorized and requested to 
     issue a proclamation recognizing the contributions that home 
     schooling families have made to the Nation.

                          ____________________