Homeschooling has witnessed an upsurge in the United States since the movement for school choice gained momentum in the 1990s. Most research on homeschooling has been on non-representative samples of median-income white Americans, making it difficult for policymakers to accept its reliability. In addition, homeschoolers now include other ethnic…

Using data from the 2015-16 round of the Private School Universe Survey, I examine the types of private schools that decide to participate in school voucher programs in seven locations: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Louisiana, D.C., and North Carolina. Regression analysis indicates that more specialized private schools tend to be less…

The State of Alaska, by some measures the United States' most rural state, has long supported correspondence schools, a popular school choice option available to all students statewide and used primarily by homeschooled students. This paper first explores Alaska correspondence schools in historical context, and then quantifies capture rate,…

The purpose is to briefly summarize forty years of research on the learner outcomes of the modern homeschooling movement and address whether educators should be promoting home education. Studies show that homeschooling (home education) is generally associated with positive learner outcomes. On average, the home educated perform better than their…

This poll was conducted between January 6-9, 2023 among a sample of 2,200 adults. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on gender, educational attainment, age, race, and region. Among the key findings are: (1) Among those parents reporting a child switching school types,…

This poll was conducted between July 14-July 15, 2022 among a sample of 2,200 adults. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on gender, educational attainment, age, race, and region. Among the key findings are: (1) Parents most frequently reported their children participating…

The 2014 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 50th in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The Digest has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of American…

The 2015 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 51st in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

A concise record of the growth of home-schools and a discussion of associated problems are presented. Results of a current regional study of academic achievement by 94 home-school students are related, as well as a summary of results from three other recent studies. (IAH)

The 2017 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 53rd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

The 2016 edition of the "Digest of Education Statistics" is the 52nd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The "Digest" has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977-78, 1983-84, and 1985-86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field…

U.S. students now have four choices of schooling: public schooling, private-religious schooling, private-independent schooling, and home-schooling. Of these options, home-schooling is the most novel. Since legalization across the states in the last few decades, it has grown in importance and legitimacy as an alternative choice. Thus, it is now…

The National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES), 1999, is a telephone survey data collection program conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Based on NCES data, this report provides an estimate of the number of home-schooled students in the United States, characteristics of home-schooled children and their…

In this report, the extent and nature of education freedom is estimated for each state, using a new Education Freedom Index (EFI). This analysis shows the remarkable differences in education freedom among the states and attempts to make educational freedom a concept that becomes the subject of policy debate. The EFI is composed of measures of five…

Myths concerning home-based education in England are discussed. These include the myths that schooling is compulsory, that there is one right approach in education, that there is such a thing as professionalism, that local education authorities have the right to access and cooperation, and that there is consensus among home educators. (RM)