In this article, we identify approaches for understanding more thoroughly the academic and social experiences of homeschooled students. The growth of the homeschooling movement in the United States, questions about the need for additional regulation, and the importance of high-quality education for children motivate this scholarly effort. We begin…

This article gives the demographic characteristics of the U.S. homeschooling population and the reasons that parents choose to homeschool, summarizes the findings of studies on the homeschool learner outcomes of academic achievement, social development, and success in adulthood, and proposes future research on parent-led home-based education. The…

Homeschooling--that is, parent-led home-based education--is an age-old traditional educational practice that a decade ago appeared to be cutting-edge and "alternative" but is now bordering on "mainstream" in the United States. It may be the fastest-growing form of education in the United States. This article describes the…

This article reviews research on homeschool learner outcomes and evaluates opposition to homeschooling. It synthesizes research on learner outcomes related to homeschooling in areas of students' academic achievement and children's social, emotional, and psychological development and the success of adults who were home educated and finds generally…

This is a brief review of research on a variety of topics related to home education and answers the most common questions asked regarding Homeschooling. Examples of the topics addressed are: the teaching parent's education level, academic achievement of students, population growth, philosophy, government (state) regulation and homeschool…

In 2007, the Home School Legal Defense Association commissioned Dr. Brian D. Ray of the National Home Education Research Institute to conduct a nationwide study of homeschooling in America. The study's purpose was to develop a current picture of homeschool students and their families--capturing their demographics and educational background--and…

A survey of 808 Canadian homeschooling families representing 2,594 children examined family characteristics, academic achievement, and students' social activities. Families averaged 3.5 children. Generally, parents were well educated but had below-average incomes. Homeschooled children scored above average on standardized tests and were regularly…

This review of literature compares schooling at home and in school. After definitions of home schooling and conventional schooling are supplied, general characteristics of home schools are delineated. Discussion subsequently focuses on the outcomes of home schooling. With respect to cognitive outcomes, the evidence suggests that youth educated in…

Experience and anecdotes have led many people to believe that homeschool parents were either move-to-the-country anarchist goat-herders, or right-wing Bible-thumpers, and their children were either mathematically-limited, due to Mama's fear of math, or child prodigies in rocket-science who were unthinkably socially hindered. Although one can find…

Whether the constructs of value consistency and social capital can be used to explain the achievement outcomes of home education is explored. It is evident that children exposed to home schooling experience a high degree of value consistency. The values to which such children are exposed in education are those of their families. This would seem to…

The available evidence indicates that home school youth of compulsory education age have been scoring equal or better than their conventional school peers on measures of cognitive achievement and desirable affective traits; the significance of this is discussed. (BJV)

For nearly 20 years, critics and the curious have been asking about the homeschooled: But how will they do in the "real world" of adulthood? As a corollary, they have also asked: What about socialization? This unique study takes a look at the lives of over 7,000 adults from across the United States who were home educated during their…