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Community Supporting Homeschooling
Why Homeschooling is Still Controversial
By Carma Haley Shoemaker
Ask any home schooling parent about community support of their educational choice and they will share a story of criticism, scrutiny, sarcasm or worse. Such parents are often asked questions related to sports, friends, school functions or college. Acceptance of the children and the parents who choose home schooling over traditional education does not usually extend outside their home.
Nearly half a million school-aged children are taught in a home school environment, reports the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) in Washington, D.C. These children comprise about 1 percent of the total school-aged population and roughly 10 percent of the privately schooled population.
The accuracy of these statistics is questionable, however, as not all home schooling parents are required to report their status.
Since many children are home schooled for only a few years, the percentage of children who reach age 18 with some home schooling experience is actually larger than 1 percent, according to the ERIC.
While popular, the practice of home schooling is still considered controversial. Due to scrutiny of public school systems and organizations such as the National Parent-Teacher Association, home schooling remains under fire.
In 1998, the National Education Association adopted a resolution that placed more "rigorous" regulations on home schooling practices. In addition, the National Association of Elementary School Principals maintains that education is "most effectively done through cohesive organizations in formal settings."
