Information about Home Schooling …

General Characteristics

• Approximately 1,900,000 United States students (in grades K - 12) were home educated during the school year 2000-2001; this number appears to be growing by 7 to 15 percent per year (Ray, 1997; Lines, 1991).
• Four major reasons people teach their children at home include: teaching specific religious or philosophical values, controlling social interactions, developing close families, and focusing on high-level academics (Ray, 1990, 1992).
• Home educators can tailor their curriculum to their children; group schools (public and private) make the child fit the curriculum.

• A nationwide study of home educated children (Ray, 1997) found home educated children to be scoring, on average, at or above the 80th percentile in all curricular areas on standardized test scores.  The national average for all students on standardized achievement tests is the 50th percentile.
• The state of  Tennessee (1988) reported that the home educated students in that state averaged at the 83rd percentile in reading and the 77th percentile in math on standardized test scores.
• The state of Oregon (1988) found that 73 percent of the home schooled students who were tested scored above average; the national average is for 50 percent to score above average.
• Dr. Howard Richman (1992) and his colleagues found that the home educated in Pennsylvania scored on average at the 86th percentile in reading and at the 73rd percentile in math on standardized test scores.
• Canada's largest study of its kind revealed similar findings on the academic success of the home educated.  Dr. Brian Ray (1994) found the students scoring, on average, at the 80th percentile in reading, 76th percentile in language, and the 79th percentile in math.
• Studies in both the United States and Canada (Ray, 1990; Ray, 1994) show that students whose parents were certified teachers did no better than other home educated students.  The one-on-one teaching method, not the teacher certification, is a prime factor in the success of home educated students.
• The research findings are consistent that the home educated do equal to or better than conventionally-schooled students on standardized test scores.

• Studying actual observed behaviors, Dr. Larry Shyers (1992) found that the home educated had significantly lower problem behavior scores than do their conventionally-schooled age mates, and the home educated had more positive self concepts.  This is probably because the primary models of behavior for the home educated are their parents, not other children in the same age group.
• Dr. John Wesley Taylor (1986) found that the home educated have significantly higher self-concepts than those in public schools.
• Mona Delahooke (1986) found that the home educated are well-adjusted socially and emotionally like those in a private school comparison group.  However, the home educated are less peer-oriented and less peer-dependent than the private school students in the study.
• Dr. Linda Montgomery (1989) found that home schooled students are just as involved in out-of-school and extracurricular activities that predict leadership in adulthood as are those in the comparison private school group (that was comprised of students that were more involved than those in public schools).
• Home educators carefully address the socialization needs of their children in every area studied (i.e., personal identity, personal destiny, values and moral development, autonomy, relationships, sexuality, and social skills) (Johnson, 1991).

• Drs. Paulo de Oliveiro, Watson, and Sutton (1994) studied Christian college-age students at a large liberal arts Christian university.  They compared three groups - those who had graduated from two types of private schools, and those from home schools.  There were no statistically significant differences in various critical thinking skills among the student groups; that is, the home educated did as well as the others in a college setting.
• Public school, conventional Christian school, and home school graduates at a large Christian liberal arts university were examined and compared for their college academic preparedness and college academic achievement.  Dr. Rhonda Galloway (1994) found that the home educated performed as well or better than the others on these measures.
• Dr. Gary Knowles (1991) explored adults who were home educated.  None were unemployed, and none were on public assistance.  94 percent said that home education prepared them to be independent persons, 79 percent said that it helped them interact with individuals from different levels of society, and they strongly supported the home education method.

A subscription to the Home School Researcher ($25/year for individuals, $40/year for organizations and libraries) will keep you abreast of the ever-growing body of research in the area of home education.  An extensive bibliography of home education research and various research papers are available for a fee from the institute.   Donations to this non-profit research institute are tax-deductible (NHERI is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation under the IRS Code).  You can contact NHERI at the following addresses:

Salem OR Home Office

Dr. Brian D. Ray
National Home Education Research Institute
P.O. Box 13939
Salem, OR  97309
503/364-1490
503/364-2827  FAX
E-mail: bray@nheri.org

Washington DC Branch Office

Mr. William A. Lloyd
National Home Education Research Institute
12221 Van Brady Road
Upper Marlboro, MD  20772-7924
301/372-2889
301/372-0086  FAX
E-mail: wlloyd@nheri.org

Visit the National Home Education Research Institute site
on the World Wide Web at http://www.nheri.org