This paper based on an online survey and follow up interviews, is part of a larger study exploring English parents reasons to home educate (H.E.) their children and their pedagogic practices. The 54 survey responses, from a total of 223, showed that 92 children aged 2-18 had never attended mainstream education. Respondents views on the purpose of…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, kindergartens in Hong Kong have sought ways in which to support children's learning at home while schools were closed. We report on a proof-of-concept study: short videos intended to support playful learning at home were distributed to parents/caregivers of preschool children via a smartphone app; toys and a storybook…

Over the first two full school years under the COVID-19 pandemic, K-12 enrollment in public schools fell dramatically (i.e., by more than 1.2 million students) with losses concentrated among the youngest students. Currently, little is known about where these students went and what learning environments they are experiencing. In this research note,…

"Wild Learning" answers a call in the educational community for practical, easy-to-implement activities that bring core curriculum out of the classroom and into the outdoors. Outdoor learning has risen in popularity in recent years, and it has tremendous benefits. Being outside is healthier, helps children form a strong connection to the…

This article examines how personal characteristics contribute to the success of homeschooled students in dual enrollment programs and their transition to higher education, the workforce, or the military. It emphasizes the effectiveness of metacognitive strategies in improving academic achievement and challenges misconceptions about socialization…

This study uses three nationally representative data sets of U.S. school-aged children who are currently homeschooled and two nationally representative data sets of U.S. adults who have ever been homeschooled to empirically document the amount of time homeschooled individuals are homeschooled, how much time they spend in public- or private-school…

Social and emotional learning (SEL) has many benefits to students, and previous studies have focused on public and private, in-person learning environments. The homeschool environment has not been studied to determine the benefits of SEL, including increased academic outcomes. The problem was the poor student academic achievement due to the…

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in interruptions to social, economic, cultural, and educational life, with social distancing measures and well-being concerns leading to widespread restrictions to everyday activities. When COVID-19 first made an impact in 2020, many schools across Australia were closed entirely or provided limited access.…

COVID-19 once again revealed the inherent weaknesses in relying on classroom-based schooling and ICT to sustain learning, a danger already familiar from earlier man-made and natural disasters. A lack of textbooks and lack of guidance for caregivers to support home-based learning limited the effectiveness of efforts to provide continuity of…

Homeschooling is on the rise in many Western countries, reflecting families' growing preference for teaching their children at home, in a family environment. This increasing trend has a social derivative, as learning at home may develop alternative competencies. The objective of this research is to examine the effectiveness of homeschooling by…

A national survey of American families was conducted to ascertain the extent of interest in self-directed education (SDE) in the United States. Our research took place in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic--a moment when we required a much better understanding of what parents need from the US education system. Data were gathered using an online…

In the late 20th century, an interesting phenomenon appeared on the landscape of western education: parents chose to educate their children at home rather than send them to school. Numerous studies were published on the subject in recent decades. However, most of them examine home schooling from the parents' perspective. This study is unique as it…

This paper presents a constructivist grounded theory on the decision-making process that UK home and alternative educators undertake and the related influencing factors. Twenty-one participants from a diverse range of backgrounds were interviewed between one and three times over a two-year period. Some were current home and alternative educators…

Homeschools have grown in prevalence in recent decades in the United States, including an unprecedented increase in homeschooling rates during the COVID-19 pandemic. The present quantitative study sought to add to the growing homeschool research by examining an existing depersonalized data set from the Classic Learning Test [CLT] suite of…

The practice of home education has expanded considerably and international research has shown that different families perform home education in very different ways. Nevertheless, there has been no examination to date of the relationship between the type of home education practised and the emotional and behavioural aspects of children. The research…