Education Commons^™

A Handbook For Homeschoolers, Sarah Groggs

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

According to the US Census Bureau, homeschooling is on the rise in an unprecedented way in the aftermath of Covid-19. As someone who was homeschooled all the way up until college, I am very passionate about being involved in the homeschooling community. I intend to create a homeschooling handbook that helps consolidate some of the wisdom and will feature two main components: it will provide advice about the actual process of homeschooling from veteran homeschoolers as well as a compilation of resources that homescholers in the area have found to be useful. My goal is to help connect newcomers in …

The Math Self-Efficacy Of Homeschool Parents And The Influence Of Math Self-Efficacy On Curriculum Choice, Kirsty W. Gilpin

PhD in Education

The present study investigated the math self-efficacy of homeschool parents and whether there was a correlation between parental math self-efficacy (PMSE) and parents’ choice of mathematics curriculum. A simple random sample of parents with at least one child enrolled in Classical Conversations (N = 223) completed a survey to measure their math self-efficacy and provide information about their homeschool and mathematics curriculum choice. The PMSE level was a statistically significant 4.17, indicating that the sample has much confidence in their ability to learn and do mathematics. The study revealed a significant though small correlation between PMSE and the level of …

The Journeys Of Six Mom Pedagogues: Enacting Personal Convictions And Disrupting The Status Quo, Macy Halladay

Doctoral Dissertations

Home education or “homeschooling” began to re-emerge in the late 1960’s in the US, parallel to civil rights initiatives and shifting educational policies (Murphy, 2014). Nevertheless, few studies have been dedicated to examining the lives and practices of homeschool parents (Goldberg, 2021; Lois, 2006; Ray, 2021). Rather, topics have centered on homeschool demographics, academic outcomes, and challenges (Hauseman, 2011; Isenberg, 2007; Lines, 2000; Shepherd, 2010).

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the lived experiences of six homeschool mothers’ everyday lives and the meanings assigned to their pedagogical decisions and related feelings in their journeys of becoming Mom …

Homeschooling During Covid-19: A Case Study, Rebecca Z. Johnson

All NMU Master's Theses

The purpose of this collective case study was to describe the lived experiences of homeschool families during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically how they managed their day to include teaching elementary school-aged children in the rural Midwestern United States. This qualitative case study allowed the researcher to analyze the phenomenon of homeschooling during a global pandemic, and the strategies necessary to balance home and schooling during unprecedented times. The data for this case study included a pre-interview questionnaire, an interview, and primary source documents from two homeschool families. The means by which the homeschool families organized their day to include the …

Push And Pull: Factors Influencing Parent Motivation And School Choice In A South Carolina School District, Kelli Passmore

Doctor of Education Dissertations

The demand for school choice options is increasing, as is the number of families selecting to educate their children through alternative means, including homeschooling, faith-based schooling, and charter schooling. As both the number of school choice options and the number of families choosing such options increase, the relationship between the two is worth examining. The purpose of this explanatory sequential study was to determine the factors motivating parents to select alternatives to traditional public schools and to find those similarities and differences existing across the three subgroups (homeschooling, faith-based schooling, and charter schooling). The phenomenon was examined through the lenses …

Parents’ Voices: Virtual Classroom Bridging Homeschooling To Public Schools, Dennis Norman, Tian Luo, Pauline Salim Muljana

Journal of Educational Technology Development and Exchange (JETDE)

This research examined to what extent homeschooling parents believed that virtual classrooms have bridged the home and public-schooling systems via a case study. Data were drawn from an online survey as well as Skype and personal interviews with ten participants who were parents of home-schooled children with an understanding of the virtual learning process. Participants reported both benefits and challenges of virtual homeschooling from parents’ perspectives. Discussion and implications to educational practitioners are included.

Context And Regulation Of Homeschooling: Issues, Evidence, And Assessment Practices, Janet F. Carlson

Buros Center: Professional Staff Publications

The article discusses salient factors that influence the current context within which homeschooling occurs. Individual states have applied various approaches to establish regulations that both preserve the rights of homeschooling parents and fulfill the state’s obligation to ensure that its residents receive the education to which they are constitutionally entitled. Case and ethnographic studies or research involving small and selected samples often appear in outlets associated with homeschool advocacy groups or in outlets that are not mainstream. The paucity of empirical evidence derived from methodologically strong research paradigms has led to little certainty about many aspects of homeschooling including its …

Homeschooling In Rural Northwest Arkansas: An Investigation Of Parent Choices, Kyle West Mallett

Theses and Dissertations from 2019

Homeschooling is an option that is gaining momentum in America today. The practice of homeschooling is not a new or innovative idea but rather one from colonial times. The face and make-up of homeschooling have changed as have the reasons parents choose to homeschool their children. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the reasons parents chose to homeschool their children in Boone and Newton Counties in Northwest Arkansas. Questions regarding the specific reasons driving these parents to homeschool and rationale behind a consortium or group approach rather than traditional stand-alone homeschooling was also considered. Data was collected …

School Shouldn’T End When The Bell Rings: An Exploratory Homeschooling Study, Mackenzie Dukelow

MA Research Paper

Homeschooling has experienced significant growth over the last several decades, yet little to no research has explored the relationship between homeschoolers and the public education system. Being the first to explore this relationship, the current study collected and examined data from 3 semi-structured interviews and 15 online homeschooling blogs in order to understand the growth of homeschooling in Ontario and the relationship between homeschooling and the public education system. The results of this study reveal the relationship between homeschoolers and the public education system varies significantly over time and locale, the challenges within each system and the difficulty of transitioning …

A Phenomenological Investigation Of Homeschooling And The Social Behavior And Peer Relations Of Homeschooled College Students, Angelo Salvo

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Homeschooling is a rapidly-growing educational phenomenon in the United States that has attracted much attention. Parents who home school their children do so for a variety of reasons. Multiple studies have demonstrated that homeschooled youth performed academically at similar or better levels than students educated in mainstream schools. There is a dearth of studies which describes the social adjustment or socialization of homeschooled students when they reach college. The hermeneutical phenomenology presented here explored the social and academic experiences of college and university students living away from home who received a home education at some point during their K-12 educational …

The Effects Of Social-Connectedness And Self-Esteem On The Resiliency Of Homeschool Students, Nicole Jones

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this bivariate regression study was to determine if social-connectedness and self-esteem are good predictors of resiliency in homeschool students. Within the study, two research questions were asked: (1) How accurately can resiliency, as measured by the Child and Youth Resilience Measure, be predicted by social-connectedness, as measured by Lee and Robbins Social Connectedness Scale, in homeschooled students? (2) How accurately can resiliency, as measured by the Child and Youth Resilience Measure, be predicted by self-esteem, as measured by Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale, in homeschooled students? To best address these questions, a quantitative approach was used to determine if …

Teach Me The Write Way: A Multiple Case Study Exploring The Impact Of Homeschooling On The Formation Of Writing Self-Efficacy, Katherine Todd

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the impact of a homeschooling context on the formation of writing self-efficacy among adolescent students. The formation of self-efficacy beliefs was defined according to Bandura’s four theoretical sources: mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, social persuasion, and physiological state. Thus, this study sought to investigate the following central question: What impact does a homeschooling context have on the formation of writing self-efficacy among adolescent students? And its related sub-questions: How are Bandura’s theoretical sources of self-efficacy evidenced in the formation of homeschooled adolescents’ writing self-efficacy? How do the instructional practices of homeschooling …

To College They Go: A Multiple Case Study Of Seven Homeschooled Graduates' Transition From Home To College, Shellie Fink-Glass

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore and capture how Pennsylvania homeschooled graduates transitioned from their homeschooled academic environment to a collegiate one. This research was founded on the need for further research addressing homeschoolers and their transition into college. Existing literature falls short which not only documents the first-hand, personal experiences taken directly from homeschooled graduates, but from their mothers, as well. Five research questions were developed to guide this study. Questionnaires and oral interviews were used to capture the unique personal experiences from both the students and their mothers. During the analysis phase, five recurring …

To Build A Better Textbook: Developing A Literature Curriculum For Today’S Christian Schooling, Abby L. Cockrell

Senior Honors Theses

This thesis explores the educational philosophy and the creative process behind the creation of a new textbook and curriculum. The goal of this new textbook and curriculum is to help persuade high school students to view literature as an avenue of life-long learning. The plan to develop this textbook and curriculum is built on five objectives: a recognition of the need for holistic education, the implementation of differentiated teaching methods, the cultivation of student interest, the reflection of diversity within classrooms, and the integration of modern technology. This plan will be proposed in the creation of a textbook for use …

Theatre Education For Homeschooled Children, Jonathan A. Martin

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

In recent years, the push for theatre education from arts education advocates has been increasingly prevalent, especially in the face of substantial budget cuts from many public schools’ arts programs. While there is still a long way to go before theatre education will be integral to school curricula, there are clear steps being taken to promote theatre education in the United States.

Similar to the recent push for theatre education is a rise in homeschooling in America. Homeschooling has been on the rise domestically for several years now, continuing to grow between 2% and 8% annually. It is now estimated …

Relationships Of Parental Homeschooling Approaches Including Technology Integration, Letitia Annette Walters

Dissertations

This study examined the factors influencing parental selection of homeschooling approaches for their children and the utilization of technology integrated. Factors explored were parental motivators for selecting homeschooling approaches, parental reasons for choosing to homeschooling, technology device usage, and instructional technology integration. The population consisted of parents with at least one year or more of experience in teaching homeschooling and the primary educator being involved in answering the survey. Participants in this study responded to items from a researcher-adapted questionnaire using. The majority of the participants were from Louisiana, Mississippi, and Kentucky. A Bachelor's degree was reported as the highest …

Grown Unschoolers’ Evaluations Of Their Unschooling Experiences: Report I On A Survey Of 75 Unschooled Adults, Peter Gray, Gina Riley

Publications and Research

Seventy-five adults, who had been unschooled for at least the years that would have been their last two years of high school, responded to a survey about their experiences. Their responses indicated that their parents generally played supportive, not directive roles in their education and played bigger supportive roles for those who started their unschooling early than for those who started later. The great majority of respondents reported that they were very happy with their unschooling. Nearly all of them valued the freedom it gave them to pursue their own interests in their own ways, and many reported that unschooling …

Accommodations In Homeschool Settings For Children With Special Education Needs, Patricia Koelsch Stoudt

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This qualitative study was designed to examine how homeschooling parents in Pennsylvania make the determination to engage with public school districts to accommodate the special education needs (SEN) of their children. This phenomenological study used direct interviews with 30 Pennsylvania families who are homeschooling children with SEN. Data were analyzed by using the constant comparative method. The study found that even though Pennsylvania's law allows families and school districts to work together to provide services to address the children's SEN, this does not happen often. Most families in this study utilized services from private resources. These private services were paid …

Compulsory Education In Maine : A Brief History 1821 To 1996, Maine Department Of Education

Maine Collection

Compulsory Education in Maine : A Brief History 1821 to 1996

Edited from Department Documents from 1985 by Frank J. Antonucci, Jr., Consultant Truancy, Dropout, and Alternative Education. Maine Department of Education, (July 1996).

Printed under appropriation number 014-05A-7156-01