Successful Homeschooling

1Homeschooling is an educational option that allows parents to teach their children at home instead of sending them to school. There are today a wealth of resources and opportunities available to homeschooling families, and in a landscape of increasing school choice, homeschooling has become more and more accepted by the general public.

2In some countries, such as the UK, any homeschooling arrangement must, by law, satisfy inspectors that the children's education is appropriate. This is because the law requires parents or guardians to send children to school. While homeschooling is legal throughout the United States, the level of oversight for homeschools varies from state to state. Most states require parents to notify state or local education officials of their intent to homeschool, and half of all states have some form of assessment requirement.

3Families choose to homeschool for a variety of reasons. Some parents have concerns about the social environment or academic quality of local public schools. Some parents want to ensure that their children are educated in accordance with their religious beliefs. Some argue that homeschooling enhances relations between children and parents and among siblings. Others have children who were bullied in school or have health problems. However, the most common argument is that the home-educated achieve more academically than in schools. Homeschool students typically score 15 to 30 percentile points above public-school students in standardised academic achievement tests.

4The quality of a child's homeschool experience depends almost entirely on the parents' efforts to provide a functional, enlightening environment with optimal conditions for education and healthy child development. Being qualified is not the most important factor. In fact, most homeschooling parents are not certified teachers. Homeschooling parents above all else are committed. The commitment to their children, above any type of qualification, is what makes the difference.

5Homeschooling isn't the cure-all, by any means, for a culture that barely recognises a young person's need for identity and meaning. But homeschooled teens are not limited by the restrictions of a same-aged peer culture or weighed down by a test-heavy form of education. They also have more time. This provides lots of opportunities to stretch and explore in ways that can benefit them for life.

6Long-term homeschooling families know that self-directed young people really take off in their teen years. Comfortable with their ability to find out what they need to know, they often challenge themselves in their own ways. You'd be mostly, or fully, a self-directed learner and colleges love that. Increasingly, high profile universities are actively recruiting homeschooling graduates because they recognise traits they believe will make successful students: highly motivated, determined self-starters, with supportive family backing.