A Brussels Journal (http://www.brusselsjournal.com/node/1389) has 
announced that on 11 September, the European Court of Human Rights ruled to uphold the Nazi ban on homeschooling. You can find it on the court's website at www.echr.coe.int/ehcr - click on Case Law then on List of Recent  Decisions,and find Konrad & others v Germany.
 
Here's the gist of what the reports say, together with what I've learned from a few other sources:
 
Although home education has been illegal in Germany ever since Hitler banned it in 1938, Fritz and Marianna Konrad have recently sought to challenge the law in the EU court of Human Rights. The European court decided to support an earlier German verdict which stated that homeschooling ran 
counter to 'the general interest of society' since it could lead 'the emergence of parallel societies based on SEPARATE PHILOSOPHICAL CONVICTIONS.' In 
order to prevent families raising their children with philosophical convictions separate to that of the state, the EU has said the right to education 'by its very nature calls for regulation by the State.'
 
The Konrad's complaint, which was originally filed with the EU court in 2003, appealed to Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 of the European Convention on
Human Rights.  The article states that,  

"No person shall be denied the right to education. In the exercise of any functions which it assumes in relation to education and to teaching, the State shall respect the right of parents to ensure such education and teaching is in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions."
 
Mr. and Mrs. Konrad argued that Germany's compulsory school attendance conflicted with this statute, in so far as the education being given to
their children was not in conformity to their own religious and philosophical convictions.
 
The EU did not uphold the parents' complaint.  To summarise their ruling:
 
(A) The freedoms guaranteed to parents in Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights cannot be carried out to the extent that it denies a person the right to education. 

 (my comment... okay, so you aren't allowed to keep your daughter ignorant cos all she's good for is marrying off to good advantage and giving you grandbabies once she's big enough and if she got an education she may get "ideas above her station."  I can live with that...)
 
(B) The definition of 'right to education' necessarily excludes home-schooling. 

(because....?)
 
(C) Therefore, by definition, every person that is home-educated is not educated.

(nope, sorry, my poor, school educated brain isn't following this one....)
 
(D)Therefore, the freedoms guaranteed to parents in Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 of the European Convention on Human Rights to not apply to
home-schoolers.

(so we don't have the same rights as a family with, for example, a child sent to a "faith school" who *can* chose which social values and religion code is taught then?)
 
To support the idea that home-education is not education, the court made a curious distinction between 'knowledge' and 'education':

'Not only the acquisition of knowledge, but also the integration into and first experience with society are important goals in primary school
education. . those objectives cannot be equally met by home education even if it allowed children to acquire the same standard of knowledge as 
provided for by primary school education.'

(by which I assume this eminent body thinks that we totally isolate our children from the world, never allowing them to mix with "normal" people -  people who conform to the philosophies and values of the State - and of course, putting 30 children under the control of 1 or maybe 2 authority figures is an excellent way to introduce them to society.... becuase of course, they will all grow up to be good little obedient, unthinking worker bees under the authority of Those-Who-Know-Better whereas our poor, un-educated mites won't understand that you just get on with whatever you are told and don't dare ask questions

And whilst I'm feeling bolshy what's this "even if it allowed children to acquire the same standard of knowledge as provided for by primary school education."  I love the way they subtly suggest that it's probably not as good without saying so, "even if" hey?  I suspect that I am providing a much wider foundation for my child's education to be built on than any State school in this country, in fact, I don't suspect, I KNOW!)

Dr. Allan Carlson, president of the World Congress of Families said, 

'The ban [on homeschooling in Germany] was instituted by the Nazis and it's a device worthy of the Nazis.'
 
Mr. Carlson was particularly concerned that 'German courts ruled that it was in the children's best interests to be indoctrinated in the 
prevailing social order - in other words, to be imbued with what the state considers the correct social values.'
'Hitler himself said that only the state had the right to direct children's education so that youth would be taught the ideology of National Socialism'
Mr. Carlson continued.  'How ironic that a Europe which prides itself on tolerance and diversity has embraced an instrument for social control devised by the Nazis.'

It has just pointed out to me in an email that it is chilling how they subtly change the wording "in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals" to "in the public interest" which could be used to justify just about anything in the noble cause of religious persecution.  They also assume as fact that children are unable to develop as citizens without the state's constant help.  

More worryingly, it has been pointed out, it shows that if our own government (in the UK) should
turn hostile to home education (which is quite possible given its increasing profile and the antipathy in some quarters towards religious
'fundamentalism') then we can expect no help from Europe.


Further comments

I'm very, very concerned about this.  Not just that our right to educate our children in a way we see fit can be brushed aside by the very people who are supposed to DEFEND our human rights but in the way these same people think that it is not just okay but essential that the State can be allowed to ensure that our children are taught exactly what moral standards and values it choses.  I'm sure I remember something like that in Orwell's book 1984 you know, along with control of who makes babies, who does what job and, oh yes, what you think about everything.

I'd emegrate somewhere outside the EU but alas, I have an accident prone child and just for now our health service is free....