Gone are the days when sending your kids to university to follow an academic path was a parent’s biggest dream.
This mom just demonstrated how much our world has changed, particularly when it comes to our society’s interest, as she has decided her daughter is better off focusing on social media than school.
Kat Zoe Clark, a self-described “mom of two sassy queens”, divided the internet this week after revealing she was pulling her 12-year-old daughter, Deja, out of school to concentrate on “work”.
Influencer Kat Clark revealed she was pulling her 12-year-old daughter, Deja, out of school to concentrate on social media “work”
Image credits: kat_clark_
Image credits: kat_clark_
Speaking on the “It’s All Her” podcast with Jordy Lucas, Kat revealed that she thought school was getting in the way of Deja's influencer career.
“Traditional schooling worked [for Deja] in primary school because I had a corporate job,” Kat explained.
She continued: “Since coming into this new career, there is a lot of traveling involved.
"I’m often flying to Sydney … so that nine to five, Monday to Friday schooling isn’t working for us.”
Speaking on the “It’s All Her” podcast with Jordy Lucas, Kat revealed that she thought school was getting in the way of Deja's influencer career
Image credits: kat_clark_
Image credits: kat_clark_
"I honestly love working so closely with my daughters. It's so much fun," the influencer mom said
Kat has already enrolled Deja in a home-schooling system for the next year.
According to the mom, Deja had been missing a lot of school before being pulled and subsequently explained that homeschooling was better suited to the family's lifestyle.
“Deja's even starting to get opportunities as well now, so 9-3, Monday to Friday schooling isn't working for us because we've found that we've had to take her out of school quite a bit,” Kat said.
Image credits: deja_clarkk
She added: “With Deja, if she wanted to be a doctor or lawyer - we'd encourage her to go after those dreams.
“But currently those are not what her goals are.
“We're willing to work with her whatever happens.”
Image credits: deja_clarkk
Kat went on to admit that she loved working so closely with her daughters, adding: “It's so much fun, it's like working with my best friends.”
Taking to TikTok, where Jordy Lucas had shared glimpses of the podcast episode featuring Kat, users flooded the comment section with concerns.
Someone wrote: “She’s 13.
“It is totally inappropriate of them, I think they are just doing a disservice to their daughter’s future!”
Image credits: kat_clark_
Another person wrote: “The reasoning behind leaving school changes a lot of things and if you’re leaving school to pursue social media, no way.”
A separated individual penned: “I think Deja was set up to not thrive at high school, and encouraged/guided/groomed to have to home school to make doing social media/travel easier.”
Another TikTok user chimed in: “I think doing homeschool at 17 is very different to 13.
“Unless you’re a child actor or professional athlete, you shouldn’t be dropping out.”
"With Deja, if she wanted to be a doctor or lawyer - we'd encourage her to go after those dreams," Kat said
Image credits: kat_clark_
Kat said she felt "torn" about the "scary decision" of enrolling her daughter in home school
Nevertheless, Jonathan Clark, Kat’s husband and father to their two daughters, also took to the comment section to clarify the situation, as he wrote: “Deja is not dropping out of school.
“This is a little misleading.
“Deja will be structurally homeschooled and for reasons more than are mentioned.”
Kat has also since defended her questionable decision.
She said on TikTok: "Deja is in her first year of high school … we actually have enrolled her into homeschooling for next year and we think that’s best for her, just because we don’t want her to miss out on these opportunities.
Image credits: kat_clark_
“If she gets to year 10, and she says, ‘Actually, Mum, this isn’t something that I enjoy’ we’re going to be able to put her back in traditional schooling.
“You guys already know Deja hates school, like, she’s very smart, but she does not enjoy it at all.
“For [her other daughter] Tisha, for example, she did finish school and she did end up going to uni … And then we started getting into podcasting.
“And she’s now since dropped out of uni, to kind of follow her dreams.
“If [Deja] wanted to be a lawyer, a doctor, or a surgeon, then obviously we would encourage her … But currently right now, that’s not what her goals are.”
While some criticized Kat's decision, others admired her support for Deja's career
