It causes headaches, for sure. Makes you understand why media reporting on homeschooling is sometimes so sloppy -- it takes a lot of care to get it right (and I definitely make mistakes sometimes, too!).
Well, and as you have referenced before, homeschoolers are not exactly volunteering a lot of data in general. The group tends to want to fly under the radar and/or provide the minimum amount of documentation required for a huge variety of reasons, which I’m sure makes things tricky.
Many years ago (before it was as popular as it is now) I seriously considered homeschooling because the public school not only could not, but would not meet my son’s learning requirements. He was brilliant but had a divergent learning style that didn’t fit with how he was being taught. Fortunately we were able to do a work around and he turned into a very successful adult. I have a real heart for kids who don’t fit into the boxes. Public schools (for the most part) are better equipped to handle these kinds of issues now, but there is still a long way to go. I could add more examples but this is probably not the place for it!
I am so glad you found a good solution for your son; sounds like it worked out really well. I have encountered a high number of families who homeschool largely because this better fits the needs of a special needs (of all different kinds) child. Some school districts will allow homeschoolers to access public school special needs therapies while also homeschooling, and that is also a good solution for some families. And then some families find the school meets special needs better than they can at home! I do think that generally speaking, kids with uncommon needs often benefit from the tailored, "tutorial" style that homeschooling can offer. (But it asks a *lot* of the homeschooling parent, too.)
I think the key here is choice and flexibility -- it's really distressing when your child is caught in a system that is not serving him and will not serve him. It's a good argument for school choice!
I wonder how much the difference between homeschooler ACT scores and private schooler scores has to do with things like prep courses and such. I was private schooled and everyone I knew took an SAT prep course (including myself). It was remarkable how much my score improved just from one 6 week course! I know many homeschoolers may not have the money to enroll in these kinds of elite courses.
That's a great point. I think it's also likely that private schoolers as a whole are more likely to be white and to have professional parents/parents with high education levels, which generally corresponds to higher performance. I do know that homeschoolers are on average slightly poorer than the general population (but only slightly more white).
Still just chuckling about the car fenders 😅. Your data set must be a sight to see 😂.
It causes headaches, for sure. Makes you understand why media reporting on homeschooling is sometimes so sloppy -- it takes a lot of care to get it right (and I definitely make mistakes sometimes, too!).
Well, and as you have referenced before, homeschoolers are not exactly volunteering a lot of data in general. The group tends to want to fly under the radar and/or provide the minimum amount of documentation required for a huge variety of reasons, which I’m sure makes things tricky.
Yes, pretty much every count of homeschoolers is an undercount.
Many years ago (before it was as popular as it is now) I seriously considered homeschooling because the public school not only could not, but would not meet my son’s learning requirements. He was brilliant but had a divergent learning style that didn’t fit with how he was being taught. Fortunately we were able to do a work around and he turned into a very successful adult. I have a real heart for kids who don’t fit into the boxes. Public schools (for the most part) are better equipped to handle these kinds of issues now, but there is still a long way to go. I could add more examples but this is probably not the place for it!
I am so glad you found a good solution for your son; sounds like it worked out really well. I have encountered a high number of families who homeschool largely because this better fits the needs of a special needs (of all different kinds) child. Some school districts will allow homeschoolers to access public school special needs therapies while also homeschooling, and that is also a good solution for some families. And then some families find the school meets special needs better than they can at home! I do think that generally speaking, kids with uncommon needs often benefit from the tailored, "tutorial" style that homeschooling can offer. (But it asks a *lot* of the homeschooling parent, too.)
I think the key here is choice and flexibility -- it's really distressing when your child is caught in a system that is not serving him and will not serve him. It's a good argument for school choice!
Thank you for your work! I also really appreciate the difficulty you must have in sorting through all the data.
Aw, thanks, Leah! It's worth the hard work.
I wonder how much the difference between homeschooler ACT scores and private schooler scores has to do with things like prep courses and such. I was private schooled and everyone I knew took an SAT prep course (including myself). It was remarkable how much my score improved just from one 6 week course! I know many homeschoolers may not have the money to enroll in these kinds of elite courses.
That's a great point. I think it's also likely that private schoolers as a whole are more likely to be white and to have professional parents/parents with high education levels, which generally corresponds to higher performance. I do know that homeschoolers are on average slightly poorer than the general population (but only slightly more white).
But this is speculative, so don't quote me on it!