It is estimated that the number of children that are homeschooled is growing every year by seven to fifteen percent. Yet homeschool only accounts for approximately three to four percent of the student population in the United States. Families choose homeschooling for many reasons such as religion, school violence, better socialization, and for some they believe they can do a better job of educating their children than the public schools can. For many parents this is correct, in the 2000 National Spelling Bee home-schooled students held the top three spots, and Stanford accepted 27% of its homeschooled applicants, which is almost double its average. Is it really a question as to why our public schools would want to use regulations to end the option of homeschooling? It is delineating quietly, fluently, a smirch to the powerhouses. (Anderson 2000) Research suggests that homeschooled students have better scores on standardized tests, graduate college at a higher rate, and show more advanced social skills than that of their peers that attend public school.
The average school day for a student attending public school is seven hours with a thirty-minute lunch, and for elementary students an additional thirty-minute recess. There is also time allotted for switching classes as well as morning and afternoon announcements. This gives approximately five hours of classroom time for the public school student. According to Anderson (2000), “We can get accomplished in three hours what it takes public schools days to cover” (p.4). Homeschooled students do not have to spend time on busy work or transition periods allowing for a more focused learning time. Public school classrooms have to gear their focus to the 40th percentile or students who are struggling and tend to ignore the students who can excel. This often leads the brighter students to become bored and disengaged in the classroom. While
References: Anderson, B.C. (2000). An A for Home Schooling. Retrieved from URL http://www.city- journal.org/html/10_3_an_a_for_home.html Cogan, M. (2010). Exploring Academic Outcomes of Homeschooled Students. Journal Of College Admission, (208), 18-25. Koehler, L.D. & Langness, T.J., Pietig, S.S., Stoffel, N.L., Wyttenback, J.L. (2002) Socialization Skills in Home Schooled Children Versus Conventionally Schooled Children. Retrieved from http://educatinggermany.7doves.com/images/koehler-langness-pietig-stoffel-qwyttenbach.pdf Lebeda, S. (2007). Homeschooling: Depriving Children of Social Development?. Journal Of Contemporary Legal Issues, 16(1), 99-104. Patterson, J. A., Gibson, I., Koenigs, A., Maurer, M., Ritterhouse, G., Stockton, C., & Taylor, M. (2007). Resisting Bureaucracy: A Case Study of Home Schooling. Journal Of Thought, (3/4), 71-86. Ray, B. D. (2010). Academic Achievement and Demographic Traits of Homeschool Students: A Nationwide Study. Academic Leadership (15337812), 8(1), Romanowski M.H. (2006) Revisiting the Common Myths about Homeschooling. Clearing House, 79(3), 125-129 Snyder, M. (2013). An Evaluative Study of the Academic Achievement of Homeschooled Students Versus Traditionally Schooled Students Attending a Catholic University. Catholic Education: A Journal Of Inquiry & Practice, 16(2), 288-308. Wichers, M. (2001). HOMESCHOOLING: ADVENTITIOUS OR DETRIMENTAL FOR PROFICIENCY IN HIGHER EDUCATION. Education, 122(1), 145. Winters, R. (2000). From Home to Harvard. Time, 156(11), 55.