As of the 2021-2022 school year, approximately 3 million (6%) students were being homeschooled in the U.S – a figure up from 2.5 million students in 2019, and even less in prior years. More parents continue to opt for control over their children’s education due to increasing concerns about school environments. Furthermore, studies have shown that homeschooled students have better performance in general, with one study showing that homeschooled students score approximately 15 to 30 percentile points above public school students on standardized academic achievement tests. However, many suggest that homeschooling is only damaging to children, preventing them from having experiences and interactions they will need in the future as teenagers and adults. Regardless, homeschooling has certainly become a hot debate and discussion topic.
History
Homeschooling in the U.S has its roots in the early to mid-1800s, prior to the implementation of formal public education systems. Here, parents opted for simple education at home, enabling their children to read, write, and communicate effectively enough for the simple jobs they were expected to work in the future, like farming and factory work. Very few Americans worked in academically oriented jobs then.
By the late 1800s, formal public education was established and parents were weaned off homeschooling. By the 1970s, as parents became frustrated with the systems their children were exposed to and the way their government systems prevented them from even having the option of home education, the idea of ‘homeschooling’ we think of today started to emerge. Multiple legal battles ensued between parents/educators and government officials between the 70s and 80s, with the former pushing for home education to be recognized as a legal option. This was especially advocated for by religious groups who viewed home education as an important part of their practice. These reform actions were not to no avail, and homeschooling became increasingly recognized and implemented pushing into the end of the 20th century. This was evidenced by the legalization of home education in all 50 states by 1992; the Supreme Court decision in Wisconsin v. Yoder, which granted Amish parents to educate their children at home after eighth grade; and the establishment of the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) in 1983.
Today, homeschooling is widespread, especially post COVID. Each state has its own organizations that assist parents as educators (ex., Texas Home School Coalition, Organization of Virginia Homeschoolers, Washington Homeschool Organization, etc.). Some groups are also religiously affiliated, providing families with the ability to center their and their children’s lives around religious practices to a greater extent if they desire.
Advantages
Personalized education
With homeschooling, it is essentially up to the parents to choose what they want their children to learn and be exposed to. They are also able to personalize how their child gets the information they would still be taught in school. For example, in elementary school science classes, students are often taught about the lifecycle of the butterfly. A parent could personalize this lesson and make it more interactive by actually keeping a butterfly in their home with their child and walking through the stages of its life as it lives through them, ultimately creating a more tangible experience that has the potential to improve how well the child retains the information. This could theoretically be done in a classroom too, however it would be much more difficult to manage with a group of children rather than just one. The one-on-one interactive aspect of homeschooling creates a unique experience for the child that adheres to their needs and wants rather than what they are merely required to learn.
Increased Time for Extracurriculars
A typical school day for elementary to high schoolers is roughly 8 hours, leaving only 3-4 hours after school for the student to participate in extracurriculars, do their homework (for the older students), and wind down. This is not enough time for most children, especially younger ones, and it has the potential to lead to extreme exhaustion and even burnout, both of which are very harmful at such a young age. Homeschooling eliminates this problem and allows for a child to have more time in their day. They are able to wake up at later times and not have to rush in the mornings to get out the door, take breaks throughout the day to be active and participate in those extracurriculars that would otherwise be pushed to the very end of the day, and ultimately have more time to relax and enjoy their childhood rather than being exhausted after so many long days. Kids are just kids and cannot be expected to be running on the same schedules as adults; homeschooling thus eliminates that problem and allows for them to have a more relaxed childhood.
Improved Academic Performance
78% of peer-reviewed studies on academic achievement show that homeschool students perform statistically significantly better than those in public schools. These figures are drawn from standardized tests – ranging from those administered to elementary schoolers to the SAT & ACT – and college GPAs. This is due to various reasons, but experts theorize that it is mainly because being at home increases students’ ability to learn material and content in a way that makes sense to them and having more time allows them for better understanding without feeling rushed for time or competition with peers.
Improved Learning Environment
As much as teachers and other educators strive to create the safest, most comfortable learning environments for their students in schools, it doesn’t take away from the fact that they face a vast number of issues relating to being in a community of peers. This includes things like bullying and unhealthy competition, among others, all of which can lead to mental health issues, especially damaging at such young ages. Moreover, there is the grim yet well known fact that school security has become a prevalent issue in recent years. School shootings increase year by year, posing a serious threat to all students. Schools strive to maintain security on their campuses and create safe environments for their students, however, parents may feel much more secure knowing their children are safe with them all day.
Less Expenses
Taxpayers spend roughly $16,446 per student annually in public schools, while the families of the 3 million homeschooled students represent savings of over $51 billion for taxpayers. While it may seem like public school is less expensive as parents have to spend more money on materials for teaching lessons at home – for textbooks, writing supplies, digital resources, etc., that represents just a small fraction of the expense paid as taxpayers for public education.
Disadvantages
Lack of Peer Interaction
Being in school allows for students to be with other kids their age all day, every day. This, in turn, creates memorable friendships and relationships, many of which kids carry for the rest of their lives. Not just for the future, but having peers and friends to interact with daily does wonders for a child’s mental health and wellbeing, removing possibilities of issues like loneliness and depression. While parents may strive to organize activities for their child with other children during the day when they’re homeschooling, it is more difficult to do so, especially because, most likely, most of the children their child is friends with are not homeschooled and have much different schedules. Even having the attention of their parents all day does not match to a child interacting with peers.
Parents’ Work Schedule
As much as every parent probably dreams of staying with their child every day and not having to work, it is not the reality. Most families need both parents to work full time for a dual income to support their household, and it is not realistic for them to have one parent staying home to homeschool their child. Furthermore, some parents are fortunate enough to have the option to work from home, creating a more flexible schedule that allows for them to spend more one-on-one time with their child, but that also is not a reality for most. Parents who choose homeschooling risk losing financial security, especially those who are barely supported by the one income they have. Thus it does not seem like the best option.
Lack of School-Specific Experiences
School isn’t just important for a child because of what they learn there, but also because of all the unique, specific experiences they get from attending. Specific field trips to places that only facilitate admission for schools, schoolwide spirit events like homecoming, football games, and graduation are some of the many unique activities schools organize for their students, all of which homeschooled students miss out on.
Future
As shown – though widely debated and disagreed upon – homeschooling is an educational philosophy that is steadily on the rise. More and more parents are seeing the benefit of educating their children at home in environments they feel comfortable in. The future of this methodology is sure to be a unique one.
Technology
These days, the idea of a sci-fi movie-like future is becoming increasingly realistic. Developments in technology like AI only fuel this as the way we understand and interact with the world radically changes. Students are the ones who are and will continue to be most confronted with this technology. Big changes can potentially be made in homeschooling, as well, because of this development, making it both an easier and more effective learning option. For example, AI platforms can generate customized learning plans and student progress reports, not only making the role of parents as educators easier, but also allowing for better learning on the students’ part as well. Furthermore, technologies like VR (virtual reality) could transform how students get their education by providing more interactive lessons and activities (‘VR field trips’), even more so than what they were getting before, ultimately shaping how academically successful they will be.
Mainstreaming
As homeschooling becomes more accepted, experts suggest that it has the potential to become more mainstream in the public education system. More hybrid and online learning options may become available for students, allowing families to choose and control how much they want their children to physically be in school. Already, many online learning platforms outside of the public education system, such as Khan Academy, are available for students, and so many students already use them such that making the transition to a fully online or hybrid education would not only be easy but would also wbe idely accepted.
Collaboration
As more families accept and adopt homeschooling, collaboration will not only expand but will improve. There is potential for an increase in the number of social media groups centered around specific neighborhoods/geographical/residential areas in which parents can connect and collaborate about lesson plans and activities. Feelings of isolation will be diminished as parents bring their children together into small homeschooled groups rather than centering around one-on-one education.
In conclusion, homeschooling has radically transformed since its early days in the 70s. Students can benefit from having more time to themselves and with their parents as shown by the high performance rates of homeschooled students, yet there are some school-specific things that they will miss out on no matter what. The future of learning beyond the classroom does look bright, though, but it is ultimately up to parents to choose what they think is best for their child.
References
- Babwell. “Homeschooling Statistics in 2024 (Latest U.S. Data) | Babwell.” Babwell, 29 Aug. 2024, babwell.com/homeschooling/.
- Gilbert, Katie. “How Homeschooling Evolved from Subversive to Mainstream.” JSTOR Daily, 8 Sept. 2021, daily.jstor.org/how-homeschooling-evolved-from-subversive-to-mainstream/.
- HSLDA. “State Homeschool Organizations.” HSLDA, 7 Mar. 2025, hslda.org/post/state-homeschool-organizations#texas. Accessed 18 Mar. 2025.
- Miaplaza, Inc. “The Future of Learning: Our Top 10 Predictions for Homeschooling Trends in 2023.” Linkedin.com, 31 Dec. 2022, www.linkedin.com/pulse/future-learning-our-top-10-predictions-homeschooling-trends-2023-/. Accessed 19 Mar. 2025.
- Northgate Academy. “The History of Homeschooling in the United States – Northgate Academy.” Northgate Academy, 12 Jan. 2022, www.northgateacademy.com/the-history-of-homeschooling-in-the-united-states/.Ray, Brian. “Research Facts on Homeschooling.” National Home Education Research Institute, 16 Jan. 2021, nheri.org/research-facts-on-homeschooling/.
