Are parents really equipped to homeschool?

OPINION:

As public education continues with record declines in reading and math scores, the homeschooling community has seen its biggest increase since the 1990s. Many parents are teaching their children at home for the first time, and that has led to concerns that large numbers of children are being taught by novice parent-teachers who often doubt their own abilities.

To investigate whether this criticism is well-founded, the Home School Legal Defense Association recently conducted a study to examine how effectively new homeschool parents can teach their children and how much those children learn over the course of a school year. The preliminary findings (with the full study to be released in 2025) showed even inexperienced parents can be effective teachers for their children.

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To do this, we selected volunteer homeschooling families with third- and fourth-grade students. Half of the families were new to homeschooling and the other half were what we consider veteran homeschoolers.

The new homeschooling students were matched with longtime homeschooling students based on a combination of demographic factors and scores from an achievement test taken at the beginning of the school year. In the middle of the study, trained observers monitored the reading, spelling, and math instruction happening at home. Then, as the school year came to a close, the students were tested again to determine how much progress they had made since the beginning of the year.

The new homeschooled students learned more than is typically expected for third- and fourth-grade students in reading and spelling, but slightly less than expected in math. However, the test results showed that the veteran homeschool students learned more than the new homeschoolers — and thus, more than would be typically expected — in all three subjects.

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The results suggest that novice homeschool parents can effectively teach their children, even without prior teaching experience. Furthermore, because the longtime homeschoolers in the study experienced more improvements than their first-time peers, the results also imply that the new homeschool parents could expect their teaching to become even more effective as they gain experience.

So, what should we take away from this?

Well, as the first study of its kind, more research should be done on the topic. However, parents who have just started to homeschool, or are considering it, should be encouraged by the findings.

Not only is there now evidence to suggest inexperienced parents can effectively teach their children when they begin to homeschool, but the findings also suggest that (as is the case with most skills) the longer you homeschool your child, the more proficient you will become.

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HSLDA is a non-profit advocacy organization that makes homeschooling possible by protecting homeschooling families and equipping them to provide the best educational experience for their children. We have been trusted for over 40 years to care for homeschooling families as we safeguard their freedom and secure the future of home education.

After working as a public school psychologist for 21 years—during which he served students, parents, teachers, and administrators—Dr. Steven Duvall spent the next 19 years teaching as a university professor while directing school psychology training programs. During this time, he also served as a consultant for homeschool families across the country. He is currently works as the Head of Research at HSLDA and is licensed or certified as a school psychologist in three states (Kansas, Oklahoma, and Washington) and has earned degrees from Wichita State University (BS), Pittsburg State University (MS and EdS), and the University of Kansas (PhD in developmental and child psychology).