The decision to homeschool: potential factors influencing reactive homeschooling practice

While a controversial practice internationally, homeschooling is not uncommon in the United States' educational system. Although myriad reasons exist for choosing to homeschool one's children, a framework highlighting reactive versus proactive motivations has emerged to explain why some families choose to homeschool. Using prospective, longitudinal data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten: 2010–2011 (ECLS-K:11), reports were gathered from 187 homeschooled children, their parents, and their teachers. Aspects of the ECLS-K:11 homeschoolers appear consistent with a reactive model of homeschooling. All ECLS-K:11 children initially began kindergarten in the traditional school system, but subsequently left that system prior to fifth grade to be homeschooled. When assessed shortly before leaving, these children were more likely to be absent and to have parents who did not endorse being very satisfied with their child's school compared to those who remained in the school system. Moreover, these issues appeared uniquely exacerbated just prior to departure from the school system. Additionally, although children who would go on to homeschool within the next year did not score differently on academic achievement tests than their traditionally schooled peers, they were more likely to experience bullying in the year before they began to homeschool. The ECSL-K:11's homeschooling sample is described, and conclusions drawn between it and literature descriptions of homeschoolers. Implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed, particularly given recent changes in the educational landscape. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Educational Review is the property of Routledge and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

The Construction of Intelligent Homework System in Schools under the Concept of Wisdom Education

The mega-scale online education conducted nationwide during the COVID-19 epidemic has enabled online learning to move from individualized participation to full participation, practicing and advancing the development of wisdom education to a large extent. In the post-epidemic era, a new educational order that integrates online and offline learning is gradually taking shape, and online learning has become a new norm from emergency. The popularization and promotion of online education has been the general trend. The "double reduction"policy has led to a trust dilemma, a communication dilemma, a cooperation dilemma and an organizational dilemma in the practice of home-school-society collaborative parenting, and an unprecedented challenge for school education and teachers teaching. This study proposes an intelligent operating system based on big data and adaptive learning traction model, rooted in rich pedagogical theories, to solve the above-mentioned challenges in online education by virtue of "wisdom". © 2023 IEEE.

Home–school communication: what we have learned from the pandemic

Drawing on interview data with school staff and parents from seven primary schools across England, this paper explores how schools and homes worked together during the Covid-19 pandemic, and the impact this had on their relationships with one another. Given that research before the pandemic has indicated that much of the communication taking place between home and school tends to be ‘one way'–from the school to home (Meier and Lemmer 2015;Leenders et al. 2019), this paper demonstrates how enforced school closure meant that schools had to find new, or modified ways of communicating and interacting with children and their families. Forty-nine interviews were conducted with participants including headteachers, classroom teachers, teaching assistants, school office workers and parents. Participants were asked to talk about their own experiences of the pandemic including how they communicated with one another. Findings revealed that the pandemic facilitated a great deal more collaboration and ‘partnership' between teachers and parents. Participants reported that they had developed a better understanding of one another and that this had positive implications for the children's education. Given the lessons learned from this study, this has important implications for all schools about promoting effective communication practices. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Homeschooling Black students during the pandemic

According to the US Census Bureau's biweekly Household Pulse Survey, the percentage of homeschoolers-children whose parents withdrew them from public or private schools and assumed full control of their education-grew significantly during the pandemic. The percentage of households that homeschooled at least one child increased from 5.4% at the start of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 to 19.5% in May of 2021. While homeschooling has long been associated with conservative, religious White families, the most significant increases during the pandemic have been among families of color and, in particular, Black households. Around 3% of Black students were homeschooled before the pandemic;by October 2020, the number had increased by more than five times-to 16%. What is driving the migration from mainstream education is difficult to parse, due in part to the dearth of research and reporting on homeschooling among families of color - both before the pandemic and as it continues to unfold. Although COVID-19 and concern for children's health and safety acted as the impetus for many, if not most, families' decisions, the shift from traditional schooling has also been driven by parents' concerns about the disparities, inadequacies, and racism that run deep in public education. The nation's ongoing reckoning with race alongside COVID-19 has acted as a catalyst for some parents of color to remove their children from mainstream education settings entirely. While do not yet know if new adopters of homeschooling will continue the practice post-pandemic or if they may delay their decision to re-enroll their children in brick-and-mortar schools, there are clear implications for students and the school districts they leave behind. This chapter explores the growth of homeschooling among Black families specifically, providing an overview and typologies, pre-pandemic trends and changes during COVID-19, a review of the literature on Black homeschooling, and concluding with implications. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

The Burdened Burdensome Woman: A Poststructural Feminist Analysis of Discussions of The New York Times' Homeschooling Gender (Dis)Parity Article

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept America in 2020, schools closed and families shifted to children learning online from home. This labor was dominantly covered by mothers, many of whom still had careers to maintain. A 2020 New York Times article reporting on the homeschooling shift concluded with the polarizing declaration that while women did most of the labor associated with homeschooling, men did not perceive the gender imbalance. Guided by a critical feminist lens, the authors examined the comments posted in the article's comment section to unpack the discourse. Western society places pressure on women to flawlessly perform motherhood and other tasks simultaneously;as such, the COVID-19 pandemic provided a context rich for further subjugation and subordination of pink-collar work. © 2022 Southern States Communication Association.

Homeschooling in primary school – Norwegian students and teachers describe a changed community of practice

Homeschooling became a well-known concept when schools across the country were forced to close due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study is to explore how this homeschooling in primary school can be understood based on a sociocultural view on learning. Furthermore, we will discuss how experiences from a digitalized school can be taken further in school development. The study is a case study building on 203 texts from primary school students and interviews of 18 teachers. The material is analyzed with codes based on sociocultural theory. The results show large differences in how the homeschool was experienced, both from students' and teachers' point of view. Furthermore, the material highlights how important the physical school is as a social arena and community of practice. At the same time, the home school also changed which mediating tools were used and how they were used. The pervasive digitalization influenced the teachers' choice of working methods, as the role as scaffolder in the students' learning process could not be realized as in the physical school. Both students and teachers in the material highlight digital tools as the prominent mediating tool, while language and conversation stand back. This conflicts with sociocultural theory. © 2022 Ingvill Krogstad Svanes, Emilia Andersson-Bakken & Tuva Bjørkvold.

Homeschooling Black students during the pandemic

According to the US Census Bureau's biweekly Household Pulse Survey, the percentage of homeschoolers-children whose parents withdrew them from public or private schools and assumed full control of their education-grew significantly during the pandemic. The percentage of households that homeschooled at least one child increased from 5.4% at the start of the pandemic in the spring of 2020 to 19.5% in May of 2021. While homeschooling has long been associated with conservative, religious White families, the most significant increases during the pandemic have been among families of color and, in particular, Black households. Around 3% of Black students were homeschooled before the pandemic;by October 2020, the number had increased by more than five times-to 16%. What is driving the migration from mainstream education is difficult to parse, due in part to the dearth of research and reporting on homeschooling among families of color - both before the pandemic and as it continues to unfold. Although COVID-19 and concern for children's health and safety acted as the impetus for many, if not most, families' decisions, the shift from traditional schooling has also been driven by parents' concerns about the disparities, inadequacies, and racism that run deep in public education. The nation's ongoing reckoning with race alongside COVID-19 has acted as a catalyst for some parents of color to remove their children from mainstream education settings entirely. While do not yet know if new adopters of homeschooling will continue the practice post-pandemic or if they may delay their decision to re-enroll their children in brick-and-mortar schools, there are clear implications for students and the school districts they leave behind. This chapter explores the growth of homeschooling among Black families specifically, providing an overview and typologies, pre-pandemic trends and changes during COVID-19, a review of the literature on Black homeschooling, and concluding with implications. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

The Burdened Burdensome Woman: A Poststructural Feminist Analysis of Discussions of The New York Times’ Homeschooling Gender (Dis)Parity Article

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept America in 2020, schools closed and families shifted to children learning online from home. This labor was dominantly covered by mothers, many of whom still had careers to maintain. A 2020 New York Times article reporting on the homeschooling shift concluded with the polarizing declaration that while women did most of the labor associated with homeschooling, men did not perceive the gender imbalance. Guided by a critical feminist lens, the authors examined the comments posted in the article's comment section to unpack the discourse. Western society places pressure on women to flawlessly perform motherhood and other tasks simultaneously;as such, the COVID-19 pandemic provided a context rich for further subjugation and subordination of pink-collar work.

The effect of parental involvement through conjoint behavior consultation on academic skill attainment for students diagnosed with high functioning autism spectrum disorder

The present study examined whether parental involvement within the framework of the parent-teacher relationship as established through Conjoint Behavior Consultation (CBC) enhances the academic achievement of students diagnosed with High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder (HFASD). Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, this study began with the intervention group learning via a hybrid model and control group learning virtually. Unavoidable complications mid study caused an alteration of the instructional model for some students in the control group which altered the variables for that group and overall results showed growth in academic achievement from May to June. Through visual analysis, results revealed additional progress of the intervention group beginning in February. This demonstrates that by addressing interfering behaviors of students diagnosed with HFASD, this increased their availability to learn which resulted in increased academic progress on math, reading and writing goals, as compared to a control group who did not receive the CBC intervention. For students in the intervention group, out of 18 total goals,10 were mastered compared to the control group that mastered only five goals by the end of the school year. This study provides teachers and consultants with sufficient evidence that CBC is an effective intervention to increase the academic achievement in students diagnosed with HFASD and of the importance of establishing a collaborative home-school relationship. Future research can utilize the results of this current study to determine whether the addition of CBC as an intervention added to the program for students with HFASD could result in future mainstreaming opportunities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Bringing the home into school: learning and connecting through mathematics education during the time of a pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought with it a new way of being in a changed and uncertain world. Aotearoa/New Zealand took a well-being approach and in turn, we share the positive outcomes which resulted for some low socio-economic schools and communities in relation to teacher learning and relationships with families. In this article, we report on how teachers and schools connected with diverse students and their families during the period of remote learning. We draw on the responses from 20 teachers and school leaders who participated in interviews. Following the wider government focus, schools took a well-being first approach which led to increased connections and positive home/school relationships. The results highlight how a disruptive event such as COVID-19 can also be a time to focus on strengths of diverse communities and gain insights. We demonstrate that while focusing on mathematics, teachers and school leaders gained insights related to their students' funds of knowledge and saw opportunities for learning for students, parents, and the teachers themselves.

At Home and on the Brink: U.S. Parents' Mental Health during COVID-19.

Though the COVID-19 pandemic required significant changes and adaptations for most Americans, parents faced acute challenges as they had to navigate rapidly changing schooling and child care policies requiring their children to spend more time at home. This study examines the effects of COVID-19 school and workplace policies as well as environmental and economic characteristics on parental mental health, worry, hopelessness, and anxiety. Using data from four waves of the Socio-Economic Impacts of COVID-19 Survey and regression analysis, we explore associations between parents' mental health, worry, hopelessness, and anxiety and school learning environment, child grade and learning disability, employment characteristics, and sociodemographic factors. We find that having a child attend a private school or school with above average instructional quality was associated with better mental health of parents. Hybrid schooling options offering both in-person and online learning was associated with poor parental mental health, as was working from home. Being female or experiencing job or income loss were associated with worse mental health while having older children, a bachelor's degree, or high income were associated with better mental health. Results can help inform school and workplace family supports as well as opportunities to reduce mental health strains at home from various policy options.

Parent practices in homeschooling children with autism spectrum disorder who demonstrate problem behaviors

There is a gap in literature regarding parent practices in homeschooling children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who demonstrate problem behaviors during instructional sessions. Research literature showed that children with ASD demonstrate problem behaviors during instructional sessions in educational environments. The problem is a gap in the literature regarding how parents who homeschool their students with ASD address the same behaviors. The conceptual framework-social learning theory. The research questions were focused on parent practices of managing problem behavior during homeschool instructional sessions and the support they received. Qualitative research was used to explore the experiences of homeschool parent practices in a specific social environment. Open-ended interview questions were used to gain understanding of the parents' perspectives regarding the management of problem behavior in homeschooled students with ASD. Thematic analysis, which emphasized patterns of meaning within qualitative data, depicted themes that developed from the interviews of the parents. Data showed that these parents experienced the same student behavioral challenges as educators in public/private schools, but often get different results using different behavior management strategies. The results of this study filled three gaps in the literature: 1) understanding the reasons behind parents' choice to homeschool, 2) understanding the practices these parents use to manage their child's behavior, and 3) the generalization of this data to practices in the discipline. Social change aspects include providing information regarding more effective instructional planning, increased student engagement, and improved behavior management for children with ASD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

A Two-Sided Lockdown? Social Class Variations in the Implementation of Homeschooling During the COVID-19 Lockdown.

The COVID-19 pandemic deeply affected how schools and families functioned through most of 2020. In particular, school closures meant parents took on a more central role in their children's learning. This study analyzed social class variations in the quantity and quality of homeschooling during the lockdown. Through an online questionnaire, 360 parents reported (1) their digital equipment and use, (2) the perceptions of their ability to homeschool their children, (3) how they handled homeschooling and (4) the extent to which they supported other activities considered more or less "profitable" from an educational point of view (e.g., reading, watching television). A social position index was used as a proxy of social class. The results indicated that all parents were highly involved in setting up homeschooling and that the lower the parents' social position, the more they spent time homeschooling their children. However, in line with the digital divide literature, the lower the parents' social position, the lower the digital equipment and the less the parents felt capable of homeschooling. Finally, the higher the social position of the families, the more children spent time doing activities considered to be "educationally profitable," and the less they spent time doing "unprofitable activities." Thus, even if all parents were highly involved in homeschooling, higher social position parents were better equipped both materially and psychologically to face the challenge of homeschooling. The long-term impact of these processes on the perpetuation of social class inequalities are discussed.

Health-Related Physical Fitness and Activity in Homeschool: A Systematic Review With Implications for Return to Public School.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this systematic review is to summarize what is known about health-related physical fitness (cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength and endurance, flexibility, and body composition) and physical activity among homeschool youth. Findings from this study have implications for all American youth as they return to public school from mandated schooling at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Database engines identified over 22,000 articles with 82 abstracts screened for further review. Of these, 18 full-text articles were additionally screened with 10 cross-sectional articles included in the final review. Articles were condensed into a standard review template and findings were summarized by topic. RESULTS: Cardiovascular endurance findings were inconsistent. Abdominal, but not upper body, muscular strength and endurance were significantly lower in homeschool students. There were no reports on flexibility. Body composition was generally healthy in homeschool students and no differences in physical activity were seen. CONCLUSIONS: Research on health-related physical fitness in homeschool youth is limited and descriptive. Further testing and potential remediation may be needed for cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength and endurance, and flexibility in homeschool youth and their public school counterparts as they return to campus. However, existing literature supports healthy body composition and physical activity in this population.

Rethinking Home-School Partnerships: Lessons Learned from Latinx Parents of Young Children During the COVID-19 Era.

The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly impacted families from low-income backgrounds. The shift to remote learning has required parents with preschool-age children to adapt to new ways of collaborating with teachers. Given the longstanding inequities in the education of children from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, exacerbated by the pandemic, it is critical to learn about the challenges that parents encountered and how they supported their children's learning. This knowledge will help to identify ways to better serve these communities during times of crisis and beyond. This study examined how Latinx parents from low-income backgrounds engaged in their children's early education during the COVID-19 crisis. The term Latinx is used in an effort to be gender inclusive when referring to people of Latin American descent. We explored: 1) How do Latinx parents perceive and apply teachers' suggested activities to support children's learning during the early childhood education program closure? 2) What parent and child-initiated learning opportunities do parents report? 3) What challenges with remote learning do parents encounter? Twenty parents of preschoolers in a mountain state metropolitan area participated in a 30-45 min. phone interview. All parents spoke Spanish at home to a different degree. Findings revealed the emergence of more authentic parent-teacher partnerships and parents' extensive engagement in teacher-suggested activities. Importantly, families created a variety of practices to support children's learning and well-being. Yet, a vast majority of parents expressed feeling stressed with the demands of remote education, particularly keeping their child interested in remote learning. Implications for home-school partnerships are discussed. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10643-021-01210-4.

Supporting Young Students' Word Study During the COVID-19 Quarantine: ABC Scavenger Hunt.

The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically affected U.S. schools since March 2020. K-12 schools have put in place various forms of remote learning to continue the education of students. In trying times like these, young students face unique unprecedented challenges. Often, they need parents' and/or guardians' supervision and guidance at home. How can teachers work with young students and their parents or guardians to ensure high-quality and equitable teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic? More specifically, how can teachers support young students' word study from home during trying times? An ABC scavenger hunt can be a great activity to support young students' word study while bridging home and school and fostering a positive home learning environment. We share teaching tips developed by a first-grade teacher over the past several months.

Parenting activities and the transition to home-based education during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study reports on parent-child dynamics during initial COVID-19 related school closures, based on cross-sectional analyses of a survey that utilized a convenience sampling approach. Data were collected in April 2020, approximately five weeks after the World Health Organization declared that the Coronavirus was a pandemic. Participants (N = 405) were adults recruited throughout the U.S. This study examines data from parents (69% mothers and 31% fathers) with at least one child 0-12 years of age. The majority were White (71%) and 41% had at least a bachelor's degree. The majority of parents (78%) were educating their child at home due to COVID-19. Most (77.1%) reported use of online tools for at-home education, including educational apps, social media, and school-provided electronic resources. More than one-third (34.7%) of parents said their child's behavior had changed since the pandemic, including being sad, depressed, and lonely. Most parents were spending more time involved in daily caregiving of their children since COVID-19. Two out of every five parents met the PHQ-8 criteria for major depression or severe major depression (40.0%) and the GAD-7 criteria for moderate or severe anxiety (39.9%). Multivariate analyses indicated that, compared to non-depressed parents, parents who met criteria for probable major or severe depression (B = -0.16, 95% CI = [-0.29, -0.02], p = .021) and parenting stress (B = -0.37, 95% CI = [-0.47, -0.27], p < .001) were negatively associated with parents' perceived preparation to educate at home. Compared to parents with minimal or mild anxiety, parents with moderate or severe anxiety reported higher child anxiety scores (B = 0.17, 95% CI = [0.06, 0.28], p = .002). Parenting stress was also positively associated with higher child anxiety scores (B = 0.40, 95% CI = [0.32, 0.48], p < .001). Content analyses of open-ended questions indicated that school closures were a significant disruption, followed by lack of physical activity, and social isolation. Overall, study results suggested that parents' mental health may be an important factor linked to at-home education and child wellbeing during the pandemic.

Literacy in Lockdown: Learning and Teaching During COVID-19 School Closures.

Across the globe, students have been away from schools and their teachers, but literacy learning has continued. In many countries, students' literacy proficiency is often measured via high-stakes assessment tests. However, such tests do not make visible students' literacy lives away from formal learning settings, so students are positioned as task responders, rather than as agentive readers and writers. The authors explore the fluidity and diversity of literacy events and practices for students and their teachers observed during the recent period of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.

Reflection: The Personal Is Public.

In this article, the author from Rochester General Hospital reflects on COVID impact: "Communication has sometimes suffered cold and automated relationship outcomes but there are oases in this dessert." Personal signals in a public world are humanizing artifacts in a new sterile and hypercontrolled virtual reality.