Have you noticed what Ive been noticing lately? Homeschooling isnt just growingits exploding! It has moved from the fringe to the mainstream. onsider the following facts! o Homeschooling is now a billion dollar industry " o #he past thirty years have witnessed a $"$% increase in home education & o 'f all school(aged children in the ).*.+ ,% are homeschooled - o #here are over two million homeschooled students in the )nited *tates alone , o Homeschooling has shown an ..-% yearly growth / o Homeschooling enrollment numbers are growing more than seven times faster than traditional school enrollment numbers 0 Why the Explosive Growth? 1hat is fueling this explosive growth? 2or some families+ academics are a 3ey determining factor. Ian *latter of the Home *chool 4egal 5efense 6ssociation 7H*4568 points to a nationwide study of more than ""+999 homeschooled students which showed that homeschooled children score+ on average+ -: percentile points higher than public school students on standardi;ed achievement tests. : 6 report compiled by the <ational =overnors 6ssociation and its partners states! >2our decades ago 6merica had the best high school graduation rate in the world+ but by &990 it had slipped to ".th out of &, industriali;ed countries.? . 6nother factor that leads parents to choose homeschooling is a desire to share their worldviews with their children+ rather than subjecting them to constant exposure to worldviews and values that may run contrary to their own. @arents have recently raised their voices concerning such things as evolution and climate change being taught as undisputed science instead of contested theories $ or teaching about world religions in an unbalanced way. "9
oncern over parents losing their right to be involved in their childs education is a growing one. 6t 5eerfield High *chool+ in 5eerfield+ Illinois+ ",(year(old freshmen were ordered to attend a seminar after signing >a confidentiality agreement promising not to tell their parents.? "" 6 lawsuit brought by parents in Aassachusetts concerning controversial material being taught to their elementary(aged students resulted in a ruling by ).*. 5istrict Budge Aar3 4. 1olf that >essentially adopted the reasoning in a brief C who said+ Dthe rights of religious freedom and parental control over the upbringing of children C would undermine teaching and learning.? "& #he judge went on to say that the parents >may send their children to a private school C EorF may also educate their children at home.? "- Gvery family has their own uniHue combination of reasons to homeschool. 'ther reasons include a safer learning environment with respect to bullying+ substance abuse+ and inappropriate sexual situationsI the strengthening of family relationships through more shared experiencesI and the freedom to tailor instruction to best serve their childrens needs. Homeschoolers Share Why They Homeschool #wo homeschooling families have graciously given us permission to share their personal stories of homeschooling with you. I would li3e you to meet #ia *trasser of Aaple Jalley+ 16+ and Bennifer Holden of *po3ane+ 16. #ia shares! Homeschooling was something that continually pulled at my heart+ and I had struggled with the decision internally before my daughter was even preschool age. <o one I 3new homeschooled. Ay daughter would attend the same school district my husband and I had graduated from+ and it was ran3ed in the top "9% of the nation. I tal3ed about my homeschool thoughts briefly with others only to receive the usual responses such as >I could never do that! How would you have the time? 1hat about sociali;ation?? 2inally the time came when I needed to register my oldest for Kindergarten. I began to listen to the outside voices and convinced myself my daughter needed the interaction and public school experience. 1ithin the first wee3+ I regretted the decision. #he elementary school she attended was extremely focused on test scores for funding+ her teacher didnLt seem to Dclic3 with her or myself+ and she had already begun coming home in tears. I 3ept telling myself it would get better and to give it time. My 5ecember+ things had not improvedI a lady I had met who did homeschool was very encouraging. *he told me that if I felt called to homeschool+ =od would provide what I needed. I decided to pull her out at hristmas brea3+ and we have never loo3ed bac3. #his year we homeschool first grade and Kindergarten+ and we love it. I love it. =od has provided+ not only with strength for me but with grace as well. Bennifer shares! I had my daughter when I was very young 7"0 years old8+ and I was a drop(out who had never finished junior high+ although I did have my =G5. I had no idea that homeschooling was legal and had in fact never met anyone who homeschooled or even heard of homeschooling. 2rom the beginning of 3indergarten I noticed personality changes in my child+ but I assumed that was NnormalN because everyone else I 3new had the same experiences. hildren who begin to Huestion the authority and wisdom of their parents and pic3 up behaviors from other children are pretty much par for the course in public school after all. However+ the deciding factor for us was when my daughter was in fifth grade and came home crying one day at the beginning of the year. Her class was given a graphing assignment for math. #hey were supposed to go home+ find out how old their parents were+ and come bac3 the next day to report the findings so that they could create a class bar graph. Ay daughter replied that she didnLt need to go home and as3 because she already 3new how old her parents were. #he teacher as3ed her how old and she replied+ NAy mom is &0 and my dad is &..N 2irst the teacher told her she was wrong. 1hen she insisted that she was correct the teacher told her+ N'h. Oou were a mista3e.N *o I told her to go bac3 and tell the teacher that no matter what he thought about the wisdom of having a child as a teenager+ she was definitely <'# an accident and that we had tried for months to have a baby before we found out I was pregnant. #hat at least made her feel a little bit better. *he did not want me to go tal3 to the teacher because she was afraid that there would be repercussions to that+ and my experiences in school told me that she was probably correct. #he next day she came home sobbing again. *he had told the teacher what I said. #he teacher responded by telling my ten(year(old child that I had lied to her to ma3e her feel better and that no teenagers+ ever+ had a baby on purpose. <eedless to say I went to the school. I was told that it was against policy for me to be allowed to tal3 to the teacher without the presence of the principal and a mediator and that the appointment for that could ta3e several wee3s. I as3ed to have her switched to a different class because I did not feel it was appropriate to as3 my daughter to continue in his classroom with the issue unresolved. I was told that the district also had a policy against changing teachers for personal reasons and that she would absolutely have to stay in his room for the entire year no matter what happened. 2ortunately+ I had already researched my options and stumbled across the homeschooling law for my state. I informed the school that I was going to pull her out and would file my declaration of intent to homeschool on my way home. @ulling a child out after several years of public school reHuires a lot of adjustment and patience+ but we never regretted ta3ing her out of that situation. Homeschooling round the World #he explosion in the growth of homeschooling doesnt stop at the )nited *tates border. onsider these facts from around the world! o anada! 6n estimated 09+999(.9+999 homeschoolers in &990 has risen to approximately "99+999 today ", o )nited Kingdom! <umbers of homeschoolers range from &9+999 to "99+999 children "/ o 6ustralia! 6n estimated &9+999 homeschooling and distance education students in "$$/ has risen to approximately -9+999 families in &9"- "0 o Israel! Hundreds of families across the entire country have chosen to homeschool+ and the movement is growing ": o Bapan! 6s many as "+999(/+999 families were thought to be homeschooling as of &9"" ". o hina! <umbers range from an estimated &+999 to ".+999 homeschooled students "$ o Mulgaria! 5espite extreme opposition+ families in Mulgaria attended the Gighth <ational Homeschool onference in Buly+ &9"- &9 o India! #wo hundred people from across the country attended an Indian homeschool conference in 2ebruary+ &9"-+ and the movement is growing rapidly &" o @oland! #he number of homeschooled students has increased from approximately ,9(/9 students in &99$ to approximately "+/99 in Aay+ &9"- && o Aalaysia! In a recent article+ a representative of 4earning Meyond *chooling told H*456 that >Aalaysia is experiencing a vibrant Dexplosion of alternative education+ especially homeschooling? &- #he next time you sit down around the table or at the des3 to homeschool+ remember that families just li3e yours are doing the same thing all around the world. 6nd wherever you homeschool+ remember that your friends at The Old Schoolhouse
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help you bring your children home where they belong. Gndnotes! ". www.cbsnews.comPstoriesP&99.P9$P",PsundayPmain,,,:.&-.shtml &. visual.lyPhome(advantage -. visual.lyPhome(advantage ,. www.<HGQI.orgP /. nces.ed.govPpubsearchPpubsinfo.asp?pubidR&99$9-9 0. nces.ed.govPfastfactsPdisplay.asp?idR$" and http!PPnces.ed.govPprogramsPprojectionsPprojections&9&9PtablesPtableS9&.asp :. www.hslda.orgPdocsPnewsP&99$9."99.asp and http!PPwww.hslda.orgPdocsPstudyPray&99$Pdefault.asp .. www.corestandards.orgPassetsP9."&MG<HA6QKI<=.pdf $. www.foxnews.comPscienceP&9"-P9$P&:Plawsuit(filed(in(3an(to(bloc3(science(standardsP? intcmpRlatestnews "9. radio.foxnews.comPtoddstarnesPtop(storiesPstudents(ta3e(field(trip(to(mosHue(receive( 3oran.html "". www.wnd.comP&99:P9-P,9/$.P "&. Ibid "-. Ibid ",. www.hslda.caPassetsPpdfPsummary(final.pdf and correspondence with Aember *ervices+ H*456 anada+ *eptember 0+ &9"- "/. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalP)nitedKingdomPdefault.asp "0. learninfreedom.orgPhomeschoolSgrowth.html and www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalP6ustraliaPdefault.asp ":. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPIsraelPdefault.asp and israelhomeschool.orgP ".. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPBapanPdefault.asp "$. blogs.wsj.comPchinarealtimeP&9"-P9.P&:Phomeschooling(becomes(more(popular(in( chinaP?modR1*BMlog and www.globaltimes.cnPcontentP.90&$$.shtmlT.)i3u5uU5(A( &9. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPMulgariaP&9"-9."/9.asp &". hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPIndiaP&9"-9.",9.asp and www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPIndiaP&9""9$-99.asp &&. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPpolandP&9"-9/9$9.asp &-. www.hslda.orgPhsPinternationalPmalaysiaP&9"-9/9.9.asp opyright &9",+ used with permission. 6ll rights reserved by author. 'riginally appeared in the &9", 6nnual @rint issue of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine+ the family education maga;ine. Qead the maga;ine free at www.#'*Aaga;ine.com or read it on the go and download the free apps at www.#'*6pps.com to read the maga;ine on your mobile devices.