This study examined factors related to intrinsic motivation for learning and psychological need fulfillment in the home-school setting. Participating in the study were 60 families who home-schooled at least 1 child between ages 6 and 16. Families were recruited directly at meetings of home-schooling groups in Massachusetts. Parents were…

There is little empirical evidence that home-school education is as academically effective as traditional education, or that average and above-average academic achievement is sustained through high school. A sample of 110 home-schooled students (59 males, 51 females, ages 5 years 3 months to 19 years 6 months) were administered the…

This booklet is the sixth in a series designed to assist parents who are home-schooling their adolescent children and focuses on ways to provide encouragement to home-schooled teenagers. The articles in this booklet are: (1) "First Year Surprises," presenting one home-schooling family's experiences during the first year related to the nature of…

This digest highlights some of the findings of the largest study of home schooling conducted to date (L. Rudner, 1999). For this study, 20,760 students in 11,930 families provided useable questionnaires and corresponding achievement test data. Home schooling parents had more formal education than parents in the general population, and many had…

This document is intended for use in conjunction with "Policies and Procedures for Accommodations and Alternate Assessment to the MEA," and both the "MEA Principal/Test Coordinator's Manual" and the "MEA Test Administrator's Manual." The first section, Enrollment, covers the following subjects: (1) Participation of Enrolled Students; (2) Students…

Education is a fundamental value of the people of Florida, whose state constitution even calls for a "high-quality system of free public schools." But rather than live up to this commitment, the state--led by Governor Jeb Bush and a Republican legislature--has embarked on a series of programs that undermine public education. This report examines…

Home instruction issues involve state laws' implicit or explicit allowance or disallowance of alternative instruction as well as their procedural requirements and their criteria for academic equivalence. Attempts to change laws are being made in Nebraska and Indiana. South Carolina and New Jersey have developed guidelines for home schooling. (RW)

Examines state laws and the actions of various courts on home instruction and unauthorized educational programs. Suggests reforming the regulation of private education through legislative action that requires periodic testing as an alternative to compulsory school attendance. (Author/MLF)

Participation in sports, in some instances, is considered a right which grants students the opportunity to be involved in extracurricular activities. Discusses the potential violation of home-schooled students' constitutional due process and equal protection rights and the pertinent laws regarding students and their ability to participate in…

Discusses the use of public libraries by homeschoolers and gives examples of ways to serve homeschoolers, including specialized tours and using homeschooled children as volunteers for library programs. Homeschooler-initiated outreach programs are described, and a list of resources including Web sites, books, and journal articles is provided. (LRW)

This essay shares a parent's homeschooling discoveries and choices as she taught her gifted daughter through the middle school years and two years of high school, how these learning choices deepened her self-knowledge, and how home schooling interfaced with the location and learning environment transitions her family faced. (Contains references.)…

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…

Since 1982, 34 states have changed their laws or regulations to make it easier for parents to teach their children at home. As the wave of home schooling grows, school administrators can do much to establish a climate of mutual respect, benefit, and cooperation. (MLF)

Rudner's analysis of data from a large survey of home-schooled students provides an inaccurate portrayal of home-schooling families as a white, Christian, monolithic population. Insufficient attention to the data's biases gives an erroneous picture of home schooling. (SLD)

Public schools are facing growing pressures to allow home-schooled and charter-school students to participate on varsity teams. In many western states, home-schooled students are permitted to play sports. In other states, this practice is prohibited, due to strict eligibility requirements for public-school students. Recent litigation discloses no…