A home-schooling parent in Maine ran for, and was elected to, the local school board. His goals were to educate other board members about home schooling and serve as an example of a home schooler and a public school board working toward the common goal of educating children. (MLF)

Discusses concerns with reliance on virtual classrooms to educate home-schooled students. (PKP)

Describes development and implications for public schools of cyber (online) charter schools such as Ohio's Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (eCOT). (PKP)

Public schools and home-school advocates have moved closer in tolerance. All 50 states now allow some kind of home schooling. Four states (Oregon, Washington, Vermont, and Iowa) allow home-schooled children to take part in public school extracurricular activities. One California district provides funds to home-schooling families to purchase…

A family-friendly school incorporates many aspects of school reform going on throughout the country. Parents would be allowed choice in selecting the school, the teacher, calendar, and schedule. Normal operation hours for a school could become 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Lists 12 sources for additional information. (MLF)

Parents applying for home schooling should be informed about such matters as curriculum options, testing procedures, teaching qualifications, and opportunities for socialization. Home-schooled children should be allowed to participate in as many of the regular school offerings as schools can legitimately accommodate. Provides statistics about home…

School board members should undertake thoughtful and informed deliberations on the issues involved in home schooling. (MLF)

Home schoolers have much to offer their school board and administrator colleagues. Parents who teach their children at home can offer lessons in the following: (1) children setting their own reading goals and achieving them; (2) using vertical age grouping in instruction; (3) children forming friendships with adults; and (4) using student…

Legal battles are being waged over standards and regulations governing home schooling. Boards of education are advised to work out any accommodations they can with parents but to be prepared to consult with the school attorney. (MLF)

Technology is making home schooling easier on parents as well as more interesting for students. In addition to taking classes online, home-schooled children are researching projects on the Internet and communicating with other home schoolers. (MLF)

Controversy surrounds Michigan's first charter "school"--a distance-learning network of home schoolers that may come online this fall with some 1,200 students and about $6.6 million in state aid. The school could make a $4 million profit by its third year of operation. An alternative curriculum that promotes creationism has the Michigan…

Discusses policy implications of cyber (online) charter schools, including cost and control, standards and records, participation in special programs, and graduation requirements. (PKP)

A Florida community college dean deplores the dual standard for dual-enrollment classes. Nongrading parents commonly assign their kids a 4.0 GPA to meet enrollment qualifications. Although some states require standardized testing for home-schoolers, others lack guidelines for evaluating home-education programs. This attitude must change. (MLH)

Discusses three federal cases: "Hall v. Board of School Commissioners of Mobile County, Alabama," involving distribution of union literature in school; "Board of Education of Rogers, Arkansas, v. McCluskey," regarding student discipline policies; and "Duro v. District Attorney, Second Judicial District of North…

Home-schooling is a growing movement that rejects many practices and premises of public education. District attitudes are softening toward the movement; home-schoolers are increasingly allowed to participate in physical education, music programs, and other courses. Programs in Palm Beach County, Florida, and Des Moines, Iowa, are profiled. (MLH)