#elear

Originally published in Rockfire News about  Online Education | An Investment Opportunity for Someone

A small percentage – less than 0.4% – of school children in the UK are home schooled. [1]  But that number is rising and the list of accomplished people who were home-schooled  goes some way to explaining why.  It is easy to dismiss the domestic education of 13 US Presidents, Thomas Edison and Virginia Woolf as a 19th Century social norm but not quite as easy to explain the success of Condoleeza Rice or Emma Watson on that basis.  Like him or loathe him, it is also difficult to deny that Julian Assange is smart and he is another product of home schooling.

Emma Thompson and Greg Wise removed their daughter from the ‘sausage factory’ pressures of her London school at 15 and have been educating her at home since.  It is not a way of life for the faint of heart and requires an endless supply of creative ideas from the parents and willingness and diligence from the children.  It is very popular and widespread in the USA and Canada, illegal in Germany and frowned upon in Spain but tolerated in the UK where parents do not have to adhere to the National Curriculum although most work towards GCSEs and A levels and many send their children to school at some point.

Like anything, home education has its disadvantages and detractors but it suits children who are too quick or too slow for their class, are bullied or inattentive or whose parents live too far away from schools that satisfy their academic, cultural or other requirements. Local councils can direct families to groups of likeminded home educators and these provide some of the social interaction that critics claim home schooled children miss.

As the trend grows, so does the requirement for learning material.   Although home education is permitted in the UK, the Government is uncharacteristically restrained on the subject.  Responsibility has been devolved to local councils and not all provide much information regarding study groups or even resources.  Surrey is an exception and provides a helpful list of organisations that can provide remote tuition via correspondence, video or Internet.[2]

Whilst many home schooling parents undertake the daunting task of educating their children themselves, others, with busy jobs or unpredictable routines (presumably Emma Thompson and husband Greg Wise fall into this category) choose to place the tuition in the hands of experts.  My Tutor and other sites such as Tutor Hunt are popular sources of teachers, often undergraduates paying their way through university.

But if there is lots of suitable content available online, it is poorly organised and promoted.  There is an opportunity there for someone.  Certainly, the founders of Azoomee created their child-friendly Internet product when they found one of their children looking online for a nursery rhyme and coming across something quite different.  Though Azoomee was not designed specifically with home education in mind, it will certainly be a tool of interest to parents and perhaps inspire a new round of investment in products and platforms that can serve this growing market.

[1] BBC.  Rising numbers of pupils home educated.  21 December 2015.   www.bbc.co.uk

　Adrendil- tea merchant who died really horribly but came back to punch molag bal in the face. Really powerful mage, who’s kind of an ass, just wants to rest.

　Casymel- eccentric drunk cobbler who buys body parts and bones and has a creepy half sunken hut/bunker in Hjaalmarch. They have a nice cosy upstairs save for the bone decorations. Downstairs is really freaky . They also have a boat that they use to patrol Hjaalmarch. Kind of a witch and may consider helping you but might also FUCK you UP. Partially maormeri.

　Daechir- necromage who has a weird thing for Mannimarco. Real shitlord.

    Ruyonar, traumatized thalmor son who’s been brainwashed into staying with the people who partially caused his traumas. Really deserves better.

　Sinyon- actually trash. Ru’s shit cousin who would stab him in the back to get a sideways glance from Elenwen or her superiors.

    Elear- Really sad ex-soldier who’s been through too much and really wants the empire to die but doesn’t want to deal with the consequences. Really loves her orc wife. Studies the dwemer and falmer. Lowkey hates the dwemer.

     Adheril- Adrendil’s smuggler cousin who was estranged for stealing tea from the company.

     Cirtawe- Mean ex thalmor who wants to destroy the nords and human races for their eradication of elves in the past. Got thrown out of the thalmor and damn near killed for attacking a nord prisoner. Barely survived. Gets punched (rightfully) very many many times.

      Myramel- works too damn hard at the whole poet thing and says the dumbest shit. Really nice and loving in his way, parents died in the oblivion crisis so he was basically raised by two vampire dudes.