Home Schooling in the United States

Home Schooling 1

Home Schooling in the United States:

A Review of Some Related Literature

Home Schooling 2

Home Schooling in the United States:

A Review of the Literature

      In the United States, home schooling is an option for parents to consider.   Increasing

numbers of American parents are keeping their children home for a custom tailored high quality

education they believe is unattainable in schools. Home schooling has been associated with aging

hippies and religious fundamentalist in the past. Recently, the practice also has attracted

thousands of secular, career minded families fleeing the public schools' violence, social stresses

and low academic performance. Critics however, warn parents that home schooling risks

isolating children from other kids and society at large. Pointing to solid academic achievements

by home schoolers, practitioners reply that public schools have much to learn from home

schooling techniques.

      In the past 10 years, the number of U.S. children educated at home has nearly tripled

(Bielick, S. and Princiotta, D. 2006).   As education choices become abundant through a vast

array of educational products and services available, computers, and the World Wide Web, the

idea of home schooling is expanding in popularity and acceptance.   Brian D. Ray (2004), director

of the National Home Education Research Institute states that even as recently as five years ago

home schoolers were considered “granola eaters, bible thumpers, or weirdoes” But now, he says,

“almost anyone you run into on the street will consider it. It’s more common to find support

groups, resources are more available and there is less peer pressure against it these days.” (p. 8)

Families that home school in the U.S. are quite different demographically.   Most home

schooled children come form urban, two-parent families, with one wage earner.   The family

usually has two or more children.   The parents... [continues]

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