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Title: Home Schooling's Net Effect
Abstract: The internet has revolutionized our country's growing home-schooling movement. While the core purpose of home schooling is parent-child interaction, 'e-teachers' and cyber-schools are supplementing parental inadequacies. Parents realize online courses fill the needs of specific disciplines, especially with high school age students. Also, the Internet eases the hours required of parents for preparation and development of curriculum. In the past decade, the number of children educated at home in the United States has more than tripled to 1.7 million. Parents find both public and private schools both unsafe and unresponsive to children's individual needs. And, some schools are now hiring more and more uncertified teachers and are themselves unaccredited. Critics point out a widespread complaint that homeschoolers are not properly socialized. Critics also caution the temptation for homeschoolers to 'slack off' while at home and suggest that children should not be sitting alone at a computer for hours at a time. Still, parents are flocking to the programs.
Source: Nancy Trejos, The Washington Post, June 17, 2000
Keywords: Home Schooling, Internet, Online Courses

Title: Scholastic Achievement and Demographic Characteristics of Home School Students in 1998
Abstract: This report presents the results of the largest survey and testing program for students in home schools to date. The study describes the academic achievement levels and some basic demographic characteristics of a large sample of students and their families

Summary of Major Findings: Demographics

1. Home school parents have more formal education than parents in the general population; 88% continued their education beyond high school compared to 50% for the nation as a whole.
2. The median income for home school families ($52,000) is significantly higher than that of all families with children ($36,000) in the United States.
3. Almost all home school students (98%) are in married couple families. Most home school mothers (77%) do not participate in the labor force; almost all home school fathers (98%) do work.
4. Home school students watch much less television than students nationwide; 65% of home school students watch one hour or less per day compared to 25% nationally.
5. The median amount of money spent annually on educational materials is about $400 per home school student.
6. The distribution of home school students by grade in grades 1-6 is consistent with that of all school children. Proportionally fewer home school students are enrolled at the high school level.

Summary of Major Findings: Achievement

1. Almost 25% of home school students are enrolled one or more grades above their age-level peers in public and private schools.
2. Home school student achievement test scores are exceptionally high. The median scores for every subtest at every grade (typically in the 70th to 80th percentile) are well above those of public and Catholic/Private school students.
3. On average, home school students in grades 1 to 4 perform one grade level above their age-level public/private school peers on achievement tests.
4. The achievement test score gap between home school students and public/private school students starts to widen in grade 5.
5. Students who have been home schooled their entire academic life have higher scholastic achievement test scores than students who have also attended other educational programs.
6. There are no meaningful differences in achievement by gender, whether the student is enrolled in a full-service curriculum, or whether a parent holds a state issued teaching certificate.
7. There are significant achievement differences among home school students when classified by amount of money spent on education, family income, parent education, and television viewing.

This report was supported with a grant from the Home School Legal Defense Association, Purcellville, Virginia. The opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the Home School Legal Defense Association.

Source: Lawrence M. Rudner, ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation, College of Library and Information Services, University of Maryland, College Park. March 23, 1999.
Keywords: Home Schooling, Internet, Online Courses
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