Should children be considered neglected by law if not attending school or enrolled in an accredited homeschool program?

Question

I was talking to a teacher friend who was going over the new restrictions due to Covid that are going to be put in place when school reopens in the fall. A lot of parents have unenrolled their kids from school and aren’t planning on sending them back because they either don’t feel it’s safe or don’t agree with the heavy restrictions. Some of the restrictions being: no recess, masks on all day regardless of age, desks 6ft apart, no group activities or close interactions with peers, etc. Basically, kids are at their desks all day with their masks on. 
I said I agree with the parents not sending their kids back to school with these new rules, because I personally feel it’s cruel and traumatizing for young kids as well as completely unrealistic. Especially for kids with special needs. I said I’d keep my kids at home until restrictions are lifted. 
She went on to say most parents aren’t equipped to properly teach their kids at home and if they’re not enrolled in some kind of homeschool program it’s legally considered neglect and social services could step in. According to compulsory education laws in the US, you truly do have to have some sort of program set in place for your kids:

Do you agree that not schooling your children in compliance with federal curriculum should be considered neglect? Should there be an exception in the current state of pandemic? Why or why not?

Answer

As an educator, I agree. It isn’t easy to be a teacher. There is a reason teachers need a bachelors degree, many go in for advanced degrees, and continuing training and education is required to maintain a license. It isn’t the fault of parents that they don’t know what they don’t know. Being enrolled in a digital program allows parents and students to both received support while homeschooling. I am not against homeschooling but it needs to be a priority for the parents and it takes a lot of work. I’ve seen first hand a family member homeschool her daughter with a program and it was not successful. She worked nights and didn’t take the time to learn the curriculum or prep for lessons. she “homeschooled” for the year but only made it a few weeks of actual school. Her daughter went to a school the next year and is significantly behind.

Answer

If the law didn’t require students to be educated in some fashion, many would never be taught anything and left home alone all day. It’s currently happening. I have students who haven’t engaged in their learning in over two months. Doesn’t matter that our principal goes to their house - the parents don’t care so the kids don’t care. 
States have different homeschool requirements and expectations so parents choosing to unenroll their child from public school may be in for a large surprise. Some states require very little while others require immense documentation of curriculum as well as standardized tests.

Answer

This is tough. Under normal circumstances: of course it’s neglect. 
But with the pandemic? Hmmmm. I’m thinking it’s still neglect. If you don’t want to send your kids to school then enroll them in an accredited homeschool program. 
If we don’t enforce this, we’re going to have a generation of kids that aren’t that educated. And any gap in education can also actually set kids back with their learning. 
However - as a former CPS worker, I have no idea how they’d enforce this. There’s already too many cases and not enough workers. So adding a ton more educational neglect cases seems like it would be impossible to manage/regulate.

Answer

It's not neglect to not use accredited homeschool curriculums 🤦 my child is not neglected because I choose to use eclectic methods and Easy Peasy(mostly as a guide) to teach my ADHD child that has proven to not learn much with busy worksheets that most of not all accredited curriculums use. And it's hard to find a nonsecular curriculum that works for specific families.  
However, you sb

Answer

If parents who were public school educated cannot be trusted to educate their children then how is that not seen as a failing of the public school system?
I have been successfully homeschooling my children for 5 years without any government oversight. My soon to be 7th grader (who has dyscalculia) will be starting pre-algebra next year after being a year behind grade level when he was in public school. My 8 year old is making animations with Toon Boom and learning how to code using Python. My 6 year old is reading at a 3rd grade level and does multiplication and division for fun.
Our home is a learning-rich environment where our children are free to deep dive into their passions while still keeping up with the studies I require of them. They have extra-curricular PE classes, cub/boy scouts, piano lessons, art lessons, and anything else that they want to explore. We have the time and the freedom to do it all.
Additionally, the Jr. High schools here are questionable at best. Their GreatSchools score for standardized testing for white students is a 7/10. Good, right? Their score for Hispanic students is 1/10. My boys and I are Mexican. Why would I expose them to that kind of discrimination when I know I can do a better job at home? I will not allow the public schools to fail my children. And I'll be damned if someone tries to force us back into the broken system that we have chosen to leave.

Answer

Children need a proper education. It doesn’t have to be in a traditional school setting. I learned a lot when my mom homeschooled me from 1-2nd grade that I still use today, including basic grammar (the differences between your/you’re, too/to/two, they’re/their/there, which lets face it, most adults still can’t even grasp). When I was re-enrolled in school in the gifted program in 3rd grade, I did very well because of my mom’s teaching me. 
It’s completely understandable that parents would prefer to homeschool during COVID19, but there are multiple homeschooling options for kids of all ages, including online k12 schools that are accredited. Parents are welcome and encouraged to supplement this standard education, regardless of how it takes place (online vs in schools) specifically because enrichment at home leads to more successful education for children.
Not enrolling your child in school, either online / following proper homeschool guidelines or in-person classrooms, is definitely neglect.

Answer

Yes. I understand how it may feel for some parents for not being able to make that choice for their own kids, but this is not about the parents anymore, it's about their kids future. 
I do think that a parent that does unschooling (which is what this is essentially- there's no way a parent can successfully keep up with the curriculum of all subjects), they're taking out their children's choice in the future. They will be behind than most kids their age regarding their schooling, and it will narrow down their career choices down the line.
Yes, in aware not everyone wants to go to get a degree or similar, but if your kids is the one that wants to, you're taking that choice out of them OR making it extra difficult, which is why these type of decisions shouldn't be only up to the parents. Not every parent knows what's best for their kids.

Answer

Not right now.  
If their safety cannot be reasonably guaranteed at school, and until we learn more about covid I think that’s impossible, the scales ⚖️ of what is neglectful become shifted imo.

Answer

I am a teacher and I initially said it is neglect. However, there is an exception in our current condition. Kids and their families are going through varying levels of trauma right now and there isn’t one right answer for all kids. Parents need to do what’s right for their families and in some cases that means lowering stress and not completing the provided learning or homeschooling.

Answer

I would agree if they weren't educating them at all, but not that it needs to be federally approved or accredited.  That's a bit overboard

Should children be considered neglected by law if not attending school or enrolled in an accredited homeschool program?

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