This article by American Psychological Association Monitor staff writer Bridget Murray, details how psychologists look at families that have chosen to school their children at home. It is a good example of the negative stereotypes and biases towards homeschoolers that can be found in mainstream society. This is a negative critical look at homeschooling, with a bias on looking at what is considered by the educational and medical establishment as the sheltered nature of homeschooling, perceived lack of exposure to diversity, and lack of participation in greater society. This attitude clearly contradicts the experiences, research, and results that the homeschooling community has seen for decades.

Families opt for homeschooling for various reasons, including worries about the school environment, dissatisfaction with academic instruction, and a desire for religious and moral guidance absent in traditional schools. The decentralized homeschooling population makes it challenging for researchers to pinpoint the precise impact on outcomes like academic achievement. Nevertheless, assessments reveal that homeschooled students excel in this academic setting.

A new study from Concordia University and Mount Allison University has found that homeschooling -- as long as it's structured or follows a curriculum -- can provide kids with an academic edge. "Structured homeschooling may offer opportunities for academic performance beyond those typically experienced in public schools," says first author Sandra Martin-Chang, a professor in the Concordia Department of Education, noting this is among the first nonpartisan studies to investigate home education versus public schooling.

One way to examine how student, family, and household characteristics are related to homeschooling is to compare the characteristics of homeschooled students to different populations of students. This study provides a comparison of homeschoolers to non-homeschoolers, both public schooled students and private schooled students, by student, family, and household characteristics.

Home Schooling Achievement provides a concise look at home school achievement test score data, followed by a more in depth comparison of student's scores with parent education levels, money spent on home school curriculum, government regulation, and race, and gender. In all categories, home school students' successes defy the standard predictors. The final chart examines activities and community involvement and resoundingly explodes the myth that home schooled children lack adequate socialization opportunities.

This report represents the latest survey information from the National Center for Education Statistics on the prevalence of homeschooling in the United States. Homeschooling in the United States: 2003 uses the Parent and Family Involvement Survey of the 2003 National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) to estimate the number and percentage of homeschooled students in the United States in 2003 and to describe the characteristics of these students and their families. It reports on the race and ethnicity, income level, and educational attainment of students’ parents; compares the characteristics of homeschoolers to those of public and private schooled students; examines how homeschooling rates have changed between 1999 and 2003 for different segments of the student population; and describes parents’ primary reasons for homeschooling their children, as well as the resources and curricular tools homeschooled students use in their education.

The Home Education Foundation has several reports detailing statistics on home education in America.

Richard G. Medlin, a psychology professor at Stetson University, continues a line of inquiry he began in one of the landmark articles of the original 2000 Peabody Journal homeschooling special issue. Since that article he has published several pieces in the journal Home School Researcher, all of which find very positive results for homeschoolers’ social and academic development. In this piece his goal is to review research on homeschooler socialization that has appeared since his 2000 article.

This technical paper provides an estimate of the number of children in homeschooling.

This technical paper provides an estimate of the number of children in homeschooling. Of particular note is their estimate of the numbers of children with any type of homeschooling experience. Based on an estimate of an average turnover rate of 2 years, this study estimates that the number of children with some homeschooling experience, by age 18, would be around 6 to 12 percent of the population. The study also looks at the filing status of homeschoolers in various states and the possible under-estimation of non-filers.

A comilation of data from 2010-2011 school year to 2013-2014 school year showing enrollment and family unit trends in homeschooling, classified by CESA.

Many studies over the last few years have established the academic excellence of homeschooled children. Includes summaries of studies and state Department of Education statistics on homeschoolers.

Most people who have never met a homeschooling family imagine that the kids are socially isolated. But some new research by Brian Ray of the National Home Education Research Institute suggests otherwise. Indeed, Ray's research helps to explain why the number of homeschoolers in America continues to grow. Ray reports the typical homeschooled child is involved in 5.2 social activities outside the home each week. These activities include afternoon and weekend programs with conventionally schooled kids, such as ballet classes, Little League teams, Scout troops, church groups and neighborhood play. They include midday field trips and cooperative learning programs organized by groups of homeschooling families. For example, some Washington, D.C., families run a homeschool drama troupe that performs at a local dinner theater. So, what most distinguishes a homeschooler's social life from that of a conventionally schooled child? Ray says homeschooled children tend to interact more with people of different ages.

While homeschooling has grown by 1,500 percent in Wisconsin in the past 15 years, it is not a threat to traditional education in the state. Analysis of Wisconsin respondents in one national study indicates 85 percent describe themselves as "Born Again" Christians; were largely middle-class, white, two-parent families, with instruction provided by at-home mothers; and exhibited average extracurricular participation rates. Recent homeschool families are more secular, primarily motivated by academic concerns. Influential homeschooling lobbying organizations helped defeat legislation weakening parental control and increasing state regulation. Recent policy debates involving supporters and opponents of homeschooling focus on three issues: (1) access to public-school courses and services for students primarily schooled at home, welcomed by many, but opposed by others concerned about undermining opportunities and increasing costs for traditional students; (2) opposition by parents to efforts to subject their children to state academic testing requirements; and (3) the impact of homeschooling on colleges in Wisconsin. Opponents of homeschooling express concerns about accountability and denial of social benefits of public schools. Proponents argue the majority of homeschooled students who return to traditional schools during middle-school years do not experience transition difficulties. Sentiment for more restrictive homeschooling legislation does not currently exist. Little evidence suggests homeschooling threatens traditional schools or is socially or academically harmful to students. Although the absence of significant data on performance should be addressed, policymakers should consider homeschooling an effective alternative to traditional education.

Homeschooling was growing rapidly in the 1980s in the United States, after starting from a very small base.

This Canadian study has confirmed what has been known for over two decades, much to the chagrin of public school officials: Homeschoolers perform better than public school students in the crucial core academic disciplines of reading and math. The study, published in the Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, compared the standardized test scores of 37 homeschooled students between the ages of five and 10 to those of 37 public school counterparts, finding that while public school students typically tested at or slightly above their grade level, homeschooled kids performed about a half grade higher in math and 2.2 grades higher in reading.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has compiled statistics on students who are home educated. Enrollment for the Home-based Private Educational Program is available by CESA, grade level, and by public school district. Data is available in Excel or Portable Document Format (PDF). Home-based and public school enrollment by school district is available on a year-by-year basis.

Homeschooling parents commonly express three key criticisms of public schools: the perceived lack of academic rigor, concerns about maladjusted graduates, and an anti-religious atmosphere. Advocates of homeschooling assert that this educational choice effectively addresses these issues, claiming that homeschooled students excel, regardless of one's educational philosophy. Furthermore, proponents argue that private schools share similarities with public schools, albeit less pronounced, and are subject to similar criticisms. The arguments in favor of homeschooling can be examined through personal case histories and scholarly analysis, with this paper concentrating on the numerous studies conducted on various aspects of homeschooling.

More than 1.2 million students are now being taught at home, more students than are enrolled in the entire New York City public school system. Paul T. Hill reports on the pros and cons of learning at home—and the effects home schooling will have on public schools.

Contains data from the school year 1984-1985 through 2006-2007 of homeschooled students classified by grade level.

This Digest discusses the extent of contemporary homeschooling and its legal status, describes available resources, presents evidence on the performance of homeschoolers, and notes how public opinion regarding the practice has changed over time.

Deciding how your child will receive his education is a choice that can impact the rest of his life. While your decision may depend on personal factors such as your time and availability and your child's personality, evaluating studies and statistics can also provide information you can include in your decision making process.

A comparison of enrollment in the home-based private educational programs and public and private school enrollment is available in a multi-year listing for the years 1984-85 to 2005-06.