And very interesting thoughts they are, Tim!

Your perspective on the American right-wing Christian home-schooling trend reflects what I've read about it. The thing it shares with the situation you describe within the British family is that one of the outcomes is a social disconnect between the home-schooled kids and their peers. In the American case this was part of the reason for home-schooling in the first place; in the British case it seems to have been an unfortunate outcome.

The social dimension of home-schooling is the one which has probably concerned me most. I went to a private Catholic school as a kid, unlike all the other kids in my neighbourhood. They all went to the same local school, and as a result hung out after school together. They had their own social groups and relationships which had nothing to do with me. As an only child, I found this quite isolating. I can only imagine that this would be even more magnified by home-schooling, as at least during the school day I had a peer group, and friends, and rows, and silly games and in-jokes, and all of the other stuff that makes up childhood. I have always felt that those early experiences of navigating social situations at school, good and bad, are at least as important as what you learn in the classroom.

The other issue you've raised, Tim, is children who identify too closely with their parents, rather than their peers. I can only imagine that "re-entry" into the wider world can be fairly traumatic in some cases.

I remember being on a train once, on my way to a conference, and I was sat at a table across from a mother with her home-schooled son. I chatted with them for a while. They were really chatty, and obviously very close, and he was very bright and articulate. They were on their way to a museum visit where they were meeting other home-schooled kids and their parents. She was, as many home-schoolers seem to be, pretty evangelical about it all. On reflection, there were a few things that struck me.

Firstly, his mum was at pains to tell me how, with a few sacrifices and lifestyle changes, I could home-school, too. She was quick to outline all the things I needed to do, who I should talk to for help, pressed phone numbers upon me, etc. When I left the train, it occurred to me that I never said I wanted to home school. In fact, I said that my daughter was doing well at school and seemed to be getting on fine. I was left with a feeling of someone who was maybe a bit controlling, who thought that her choices were right for everyone.

Secondly, the mum was dressed in a funky, slightly folkie way, with a multicoloured, bright stripey jumper and sandals...and the little boy was wearing a really similar jumper and sandals. Now, I'm all for self-expression and kids not running with the pack, but I couldn't help wondering if he was dressed like this genuinely from his own choice, or because he perhaps identified more closely with his mum than with other kids his age. He would have been about 10 or 11, I guess.

I thought it was great that she was taking him on a visit to a museum to meet up with other home-schooled kids, and she said they did these outings regularly, which was the solution to the supposed isolation of home-schooling. But one thing struck me about this as well: kids need time away from parents. They need to form their bonds and have their dramas and fall out and make up again, without being under the constant watchful gaze and supervision of mum and dad. Because, quite frankly, mum and dad won't always be there, and they need to learn these skills for when they eventually find themselves out in the world, on their own.

So despite the fact that this boy was obviously very smart and confident about chatting to a grown-up he'd never met before, the overwhelming impression I got was one of an environment that might be a bit too excessively controlled, where your mum defines and manages your whole world. To be honest, I can understand the appeal for parents in removing a lot of the risk and the danger and the potential for hurt and betrayal and bullying and nastiness from your kids' lives. But the danger is that you're also removing them from a lot of the really good, important life-lessons that will help them to get by as adults. At some point we have to let them go - it's part of our job.