Homeschooling in America

Homeschooling in America
By Vicki Bennett

I began homeschooling in 2003. My reason was simple. I did not like the environment my children would be learning in. I never had any past experience teaching, so I was a bit apprehensive. I began by doing research. I wanted to find a program that I thought would benefit my children and also not bore them. I also did research on homeschooling in the USA. I wanted to see for myself how many children were being homeschooled in this country and how they stood next to public and privately schooled children.



Photo: nytimes.com

I found that according to NCES(National Center for Education Statistics) in 2003 an estimated 1.1 million students were being homeschooled in the United States. This amounted to 2.2 percent of U.S. students, ages 5 thru 17, with a grade equivalent of kindergarten thru 12.

Parents gave a variety of reasons for homeschooling. These reasons included being able to give their child a better education at home, for religious reasons, and because of poor learning environment at public schools. Also, according to research done by NCHE(National Center for Home Education), the average 8th grader who is homeschooled performs four grade levels above the natonal average. One in four homeschool students(24.5%) are enrolled one or more grades above age level. Students who have been homeschooled their entire lives have the highest scholastic achievement.

A good article on homeshooling was done by a staff reporter, Daniel Golden, for "The Wall Street Journal Atlanta". This was on the front page in the February 11, 2000 edition. Read it. Especially if you are a little apprehensive about teaching. I have found that it is not as hard as it sounds. It is actually fun and rewarding.

My name is Vicki Bennett. I am a full time wife and mother. I homeschool my children. I enjoy reading and writing short-stories in my spare time. I also enjoy cooking, singing, and gardening. If you want to read information on an average family homeschool and their day to day routine go to http://www.writingup.com/blog/vicki-bennett.