homeschooling

Should parents be

encouraged to home school

their children?







Valerie Meyers

Janelle Mitchell

Kristin Thomas

Definition of Home

Schooling



 The instruction of a student in an

educational program outside of an

established school system, typically in

the home environment

History of Home Schooling

 17th-18th century

 American colonial period, majority of education was home schooling

 Public schools taught trades, these schools were used by the

underprivileged

 Private tutors were used by the wealthy

 1860s

 States began enacting compulsory attendance laws

 Requiring school attendance for all school age students by law of that

declared state

 By 1929, compulsory attendance laws existed in every state

 19th century

 Public schooling dominated, home schooling was not used at this

time

History of Home Schooling

 1957

 Utah was the first state to recognize home schooling as an

educational option to parents

 Idea of home schooling started to reemerge in American

society

 1970s

 Home schooling was objected to by school administrators,

teachers, and teachers unions

 Recent history did not promote home schooling, though it was

obvious that portions of the current population wanted this

option

 Courts decided that children needed to be educated and states

had the right to require education but it was up to the parent to

decide the type of educational program for their child

 1986

 All states adopted laws recognizing that parents had the option

to home school

Relevant Court Cases for

Home Schooling

 1923 Meyer v. Nebraska

 A 10 year old was taught German, when the existing law

stated foreign language could not be taught until 8th

grade

 Ruled that it is the right of the parent to give their child

the education they see suitable

 1925 Pierce v. Society of Sisters

 Questioned the Compulsory Education Act, which

required school aged children to attend public school

system

 Ruled that this violates the rights of parents to direct the

education of their children by enforcing a standardized

system whereby children are forced to be educated by

public teachers only

 This case changed the state compulsory attendance

laws, requiring inclusion of both public and non-public

schools

Relevant Court Cases for

Home Schooling

 1927 Farrington v. Tokushige

 Legality of foreign language schools in Hawaii was questioned

 Ruled “The…parent has the right to direct the education of his

own child without unreasonable restrictions; the Constitution

protects him…”

 1972 Wisconsin v. Yoder

 Amish families challenged the age listed in the Compulsory

Attendance laws

 They believed that sending their children to school beyond the

8th grade level endangered the practices and ideals of their

religion

 Ruled that the First Amendment freedom of religion outweighed

the school attendance laws and if the parental interests were

religious, rather than personal or philosophical, children were

exempt from the Compulsory Attendance law and did not have to

attend school for the required number of years

Relevant Court Cases for

Home Schooling



 1998 Brunelle v. Lynne Public Schools

 The school committee enforced a policy that

included home visits by the superintendent or

school representatives to observe and evaluate the

home schooling process

 Brunelle argued that the home visits were in

violation of his and his family’s rights

 Ruled that the government may not intrude

unnecessarily on family affairs

Home Schooling is

Dependent Upon the

Individual State Laws

 Criteria for home schooling varies across all the states

 States have the right to decide the:

 Minimum qualifications for the home instructor

 Curriculum requirements

 Minimum amount of time spent on instruction (hours/day, days/year)

 Measurement of student progress

 States range from having no regulations on home schooling

(besides compulsory school age) to having strict regulation

requirements for home schooling

 Pennsylvania is a state with strict regulation requirements for

home schooling

Pennsylvania Home

Education Law

 Compulsory school age: 8-17 years

 Attendance: 180 days/year (900 hrs elementary, 990 hrs secondary)

 Parent must have a High School diploma

 The parent must inform their local superintendent of their decision to

home school their child/children by August 1st

 Curriculum:

 English: reading, writing, spelling, language, literature, speech, composition

 Math: general math, statistics, algebra, geometry

 Science: basic science, biology, chemistry

 History: geography, US history, PA history, civics, social studies, world

history, economics

 Foreign language, music, art, physical education, health, safety, fire

danger/prevention

 Evaluation: portfolio of materials used, examples of work completed,

written evaluation by a teacher or administrator, and standardized tests

(submitted yearly)

Reasons for Home

Schooling

 Parent occupations involve extended stays

outside of a school system

 Families live in rural areas where the

educational options are limited or not available

 Parent educational experience influenced their

decision to home school their kids

 Political and/or religious beliefs

 Belief that the “one-size-fits-all” concept used

in public schools is not beneficial to their

children

ADVANTAGES

Of Home Schooling

Main Advantages of Home

Schooling

 The main advantages of home

schooling involve a parent’s increased

control & influence in the following

areas:

 Religious/Philosophical Beliefs

 Socialization

 Academics

 As well as increasing a child’s “family

time.”

Religion

 Home schooling allows a family to weave their

convictions into every aspect of their

"curriculum." They are now in control of the

subject matter and in control of the topics.

 Provides students with “proper” social, moral,

and religious values

 Avoid “problem ridden” public schools

 Some parents are under the impression that public

schools are crime-ridden, drug-filled, dangerous

environments

 This allows them to incorporate a religious basis to

the educational curriculum

 Fastest growing group of home schoolers (2/3 of

families choose it for this reason)

Socialization



 Fewer behavioral problems

 Less negative influences from peers

 More respectful

 Removes them from confinement with their

“age-mates.”

 With students of the same age, opposed to students

at the same academic level.

 Increased interactions w/ parents (adults)

 Promotes more mature and poised youth

Academics

(A) Custom-Designed Curriculum

 Flexible schedule to teach desired curriculum.

 Follow interests with a passion, which provides a profound love

of learning

 Foreign languages

 Music

 Other special skills/academic interests

 Spend as little or as much time on a desired subject

 Learn things when ready

 Encourages & strengthens a child’s individual potential

(B) Children can learn at their own pace.

 Move as fast or as slow as needed

 Encourages self-motivation

 Encourages thinking for themselves

Academics

(C) Working with the Child’s Learning Style

 Many parents are under the impression that public

schools are graduating illiterate students who are

unprepared for the work force due to a lack of

individualized attention

 Students of average ability, who are able to input &

process information according to their natural

learning style, become great learners

 a parent is better able to discover the child's

learning style

 The traditional classroom is teacher-driven, whereas

the home school can be student-driven, and the child

allowed to master areas in the best way at the best

time for the best results

Do home schooled children

actually do better than

public school children?

 On most academic measures, home schooled students

outperform public school students on standardized tests.

 The largest study so far, authorized for the Home School

Legal Defense Association, by University of Maryland

statistician Lawrence M. Rudner, examined 20,000 home

schooled students from 50 states.

 The data gathered in this study is consistent with information

found in the Education Policy Analysis Archives.

 These students scored higher on standardized tests than

public and private school students in every subject and

at every grade level.

 The longer their parents had home schooled them, the better

they did.

Results

 Standardized national tests of skills & achievement:

 Home schoolers scored better than 70-80% of all test takers

 By 8th grade, the median performance of home school

students is almost 4 grade levels above that of students

nationwide.

 By 12th grade, home schooled students scored in 92nd

percentile in reading.



 In 1999, when the SATs began tracking its scores, home

schooled students scored an average of 1083, 67 points

above the national average

 They also scored an average of 22.7 on the ACT, which is higher

than the national average of 21.

Home Schooled Students

Attending College

 69% of home schoolers go on to college

 Parents put together portfolios w/ samples of

work & lists of accomplishments

 More then 2/3 of American colleges now accept

such transcripts

 If other standardized tests are required, students

simply take them

 Harvard, for example, accepts approximately

10 each year

Home Schooled Students

Attending College

 Home schooled students do well in college, after the initial

adjustment

 A 1997 study reports that home school students are in fact

academically, emotionally, & socially prepared to excel in

college.

 Also in 1997, for example, a four-year study of students at

Bob Jones University found home schooled children

scored higher in campus leadership activities than

students from either the public school system or private

schools.

 Home school graduates average a 3.3 GPA their freshman

year, compared to the average 3.12 GPA received by

public school graduates

 "Home schoolers bring certain skills -- motivation, curiosity,

the capacity to be responsible for their education -- that

high schools don't induce very well," says Jon Reider,

Stanford's senior associate director of admissions.

“Family Time”

 Brings families closer together.

 Parents feel that children need to learn from

people who care deeply about them.

 After a child enters the public school system,

they begin spending more awake time with

peers than parents.

 Less emphasis on parent-child relationship

 Parents become the main role-model in a home

schooling environment.

 Easier to instill values & morals

 Improved language development

 Minimizes friction between teens & parents

What Can Public Schools

Do?

 In a study conducted in Kentucky in

1998, the question, “What can public

schools do to re-attract families who

home school their children?” was asked.

 The #1 answer received was:

 “Infuse religion into the practices and

curriculum of the public schools.”

Five Main Disadvantages

of Home Schooling

 Time and Effort

 Limits of the Teacher

 Lack of Recognition

 Financial

 Socialization

Time and Effort



Time consuming for parents

 Designing the curriculum

 Getting the materials

 Teaching the curriculum

Effort

 Energy to stay informed

Limits of the Teacher



 Feel inadequate to teach subject in coherent

and skillful manner.

 Sciences

 Languages

 Multicultural awareness

 Lack of resources

 Enrichment activities

 Books

 Fundamental Materials

Lack of Recognition from

Public/Community

 Academically

 SAT scores

 Spelling Bees

 Athletics

Financial



 School Districts

 They are funded by the number of students

enrolled. When students are pulled out, the

school loses that funding.

 Without funding, other effects could happen

 Extra curricular programs like sports, music, and arts.

Financial



 Parents/Family

 They have to buy the materials

 Provide transportation for field trips

 Lost of income since one parent stays home.

Socialization



 Diversity

 Not exposed to diversity

 Religious views

 Cultures

 Customs

 Languages

 Political

Socialization



 Becky Martin, 17, stated:

 “I feel the school setting is providing a ground for

what lies ahead.”

 She was home schooled, went to catholic school,

then home schooled again because she couldn’t

conform to the teacher’s method of teaching.

Group’s Conclusion



 As a group, we feel that parents should

not be encouraged to home school their

children; however, we do acknowledge

that home schooling is a viable option for

parents.





 Questions?

Resources

 http://www.oakmeadow.com/resources/articles/Social.htm

 http://www.epc.msu.edu/issues/homeschool.htm

 http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry?id=h025305

0

 http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0112617.html

 http://www.iatdp.org/Articles/Journal%20Article%20Attendance%2

0Violations.htm

 http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/JWCRAWFORD/me

yer.htm

 http://www.oyez.org/oyez/resource/case/305/

 http://www.mainstream.com/nhpolitics/getcase.farrington.html

 http://www.oyez.org/oyez/resource/case/449/

 http://www.txjf.org/mschs.html

 http://www.hslda.org/

Resources

 http://www.city-

journal.org/html/10_3_an_a_for_home.html

 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-

bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1999/01/2

9/NB66774.D.html

 http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v7n8/

 http://www.cato.org/cgi-

bin/scripts/printtech.cgi/pubs/pas/pa-294.html

 Homeschooling: Parents’ Reactions by:

Margaret Martin