ByNathalie Rothschild, Nathalie Rothschild
An orthodox couple must wait four weeks to find out whether they can continue to educate their children at home.
An administrative court in Gothenburg, Sweden, heard Rabbi Alexander Namdar and his wife Leah outline their case for homeschooling their son and three daughters on Tuesday.
The couple, who are originally from Britain, set up Scandinavia's first Chabad house 23 years ago.
They have 11 children and educate the four who are of school age at home with the help of the Shluchim Online School.
But Gothenburg's district council has argued that the family does not meet the legal requirements for homeschooling.
Education laws introduced in 2011 stipulate that there should be "extraordinary grounds" for homeschooling a child, and the parents' faith or religious conviction does not constitute sufficient grounds.
Mrs Namdar said: "Our kids speak four languages and they study between 8am and 4pm.
"They have recess, homework and tests and regular meet-ups with their friends. They receive a good Jewish education and a good secular education too."
The Namdars believe their children will not be able to observe a strict Orthodox lifestyle should they attend a secular school and fear the children may be bullied because of their religion.
None of the Namdars' children have attended a regular school.
Mrs Namdar said: "In court they told us maybe we should try it out but we refuse to experiment with our children. Homeschooling is not illegal in Sweden. What this comes down to is they don't want people who believe in God to educate their children."
The Namdars said they would appeal to the European Court of Human Rights if the local court judgment rules against them next month.