Local homeschooling flourishes without regulatory barriers

Alternative learning is on the rise in and beyond California: independent study programs, small group “pods,” and homeschooling. Vince Bielski reports on RealClearInvestigations that as states lift (or, in some cases, fail to establish) stringent regulations regarding homeschooling, parents flock to this method to know what their children are learning.

As states have eased requirements for parents, the number of homeschooled students has expanded significantly, from an estimated 850,000 in 1999 to about 1.7 million in 2016, or about 3.3% of the school-age population, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics. While experts agree that homeschooling grew quickly during the pandemic and will probably continue to do so but at a slower pace, there is no reliable national data, with some estimates that exceed 3 million students in 2021 considered to be inflated. 

Homeschooling took off in the 1960s, fueled by religion and ideology. Christian conservatives wanted to imbue their children with religious doctrine away from the temptations of public schools, and progressive anti-institutionalists sought to nurture the kind of free thinking in their offspring that rote education stifled. 

In recent years a more diverse group of families, including a notable percentage of black parents, have turned to homeschooling for more practical concerns: to escape poor performing public schools, unsafe campuses, bullying, progressive ideology, and racism….

Whatever the motive for homeschooling, deregulation has made it a much easier choice for parents.

“The movement to reduce regulatory barriers has definitely opened up homeschooling to growth for people from all socio-economic walks of life,” says Brian Ray, co-founder of the National Home Education Research Institute and a longtime advocate. “I don't think there's any doubt about that.” 

This article originally appeared in RealClearInvestigations. Read the whole thing here.

Follow Opportunity Now on Twitter @svopportunity

Image by Wikimedia Commons