The Choice to Homeschool in the Age of COVID

Outside of healthcare, no field has been affected more by COVID-19 than the field of education. A year-long lockdown and the threat of widespread infection has put teachers, administrators, parents and students on edge. In the age of the pandemic, many families have made the choice to turn to homeschooling.

According to Education Week, school enrollment has declined. Principals across the country have reported that homeschooling is a key reason. Frustrated parents have echoed the sentiment that their district’s version of remote instruction and hybrid learning made their children feel isolated. While districts tried to figure out the best way to deliver these programs, parents and kids mirrored their confusion.

The US Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey compiled a report that seemed to indicate that the homeschooling numbers increased significantly in 2020. States like Wisconsin, North Carolina and Nebraska saw widespread increases upwards of 10 percent.

There are a multitude of reasons while the “school choice” argument has added homeschooling to the fray. Faster paced learning, relaxed and engaged children and freedom of curriculum are just a few. The stress and uncertainty of the pandemic also left parents thinking about the socio-emotional well being of their children. It makes sense that they would want to intervene.

It is unclear if this trend is here to stay. As schools re-opened this year with their rigid ideas of ‘back to normal’, new variants started to pop up nationwide. In my humble opinion, the way we view systems of education has been forever changed. Private and parochial schools, learning pods, home instruction and homeschooling have entered that conversation permanently. School choice will be the topic at dinner tables and we need to be prepared to offer concrete educational solutions.

Prothero, A, Samuels, C.A., 2020, Education Week, November, 09, Homeschooling is way up with COVID-19, will it last

https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2021/03/homeschooling-on-the-rise-during-covid-19