Home Schooling Families Cite Major Reasons for Education Choice

March 1, 2024 – More and more families are turning to homeschooling. Families who made the switch during the pandemic have not returned. Experts expected the rates to return to pre-pandemic levels, but this has not been the case. It appears that the homeschool movement shows no signs of stopping.

Parents are providing new reasons for continuing their education efforts. At the top of the list is safety concerns for their children. Although traditional schools are the pinnacle of academic learning, it’s hard to say that they’re completely safe for all kids. More often than not, kids get bullied or harassed by their peers and even academic staff. Middle school and high school age children are the most likely groups to be educated at home.

Another top concern provided by families points to children with special needs. Families feel their students may not get all the support they need from traditional public school.

What used to be a fringe community now has more extracurricular opportunities for student. What about sports? Some school districts allow homeschool children to participate on their sports team. UIL rules allow districts to decide their own policy on this issue. For the most part, homeschool parents do not consider extracurricular opportunities as a major factor in their choice.