Why Homeschool?
Every;family;has;their;own;unique;com-bination;of;reasons;to;homeschool.;Some
of;the;common;reasons;include;the;op-portunity to offer their child a better-quality;education;than;the;public;schools;
an;objection;to;what;is;being;taught;or
left;out;of;conventional;educational;cur-riculum; a safer learning environment
with;respect;to;bullying,;substance;abuse,
and;inappropriate;sexual;situations;;the
strengthening of family relationships
through more shared experiences; and
the;freedom;to;tailor;instruction;to;best
serve;their;children’s;needs.
Another factor that leads parents to
choose;the;homeschooling;option;is;a;de-sire;to;share;their;worldviews;with;their
children, rather than subjecting their
children;to;constant;exposure;to;world-views;and;values;that;may;run;contrary
to;their;own.
What Are The Academic Benefits,
And What About College?
Ian Slatter of the Home School Legal
Defense;Association;(HSLDA);points;to
a;nationwide;study;of;more;than;11,000
homeschooled students which showed
that homeschooled children score, on
average,;37;percentile;points;higher;than
public;school;students;on;standardized
achievement;tests.
11
Colleges;are;taking;notice.;Princeton
University’s website includes a page of
“Tips for Home School Students.” The
page;states:;“Princeton;welcomes;appli-cations;from;home;schooled;students;.;.;.
Among;the;home;schooled;students;ad-mitted;in;recent;years;was;a;student;who
graduated;as;valedictorian;of;the;Class
of;2002.”
12;A;Wall Street Journal;article
from;February;11,;2000,;was;quoted;by
HSLDA;as;saying,;“Stanford;University…
last;fall;accepted;27%;of;homeschooled
applicants—
nearly;double;its;overall;ac-ceptance;rate.”;Jon;Reider,;Stanford’s;Se-nior;Associate;Director;of;Admissions;at
the time13 said, “Homeschoolers bring
certain;skills—motivation,;curiosity,;the
capacity;to;be;responsible;for;their;edu-cation—that;high;schools;don’t;induce
very;well.”
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What Qualifications Do I Need In
Order To Homeschool?
The;nationwide;study;conducted;by;Dr.
Ray also showed that neither house-
hold income nor whether one parent
had;ever;been;a;certified;teacher;made
a;noticeable;impact;on;their;children’s
academic;success.;A;difference;between
families;where;neither;parent;had;a;col-
lege degree and families where both
parents;had;a;college;degree;was;noted,
with;the;children;in;the;former;group
ranking in the 83rd percentile on the
test;scores;while;children;in;the;latter
group ranked in the 90th percentile.
However,;both;groups;scored;far;above
www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
“A;demographically;wide;variety;of;people;homeschool—these;are;atheists,
Christians,;and;Mormons;;conservatives,;libertarians,;and;liberals;
low-,;middle-,;and;high-income;families;;black,;Hispanic,;and;white.”
