In a previous post, we explored data pointing to a homeschool math gap. What comes next? What can homeschooling parents learn from this information? In this article we use stories from homeschool graduates to examine the things that hold homeschooled students back in math, and to explore what can help them succeed. Our goal is to put a personal face on the homeschool math gap, and to give current and future homeschooling parents pointers on what can go wrong—and what can go right.
We should start with a few caveats. First, we know that public schooled students, like their homeschooled counterparts, can and too often do receive a deficient math education. We are addressing homeschooled students specifically, because that is what we do—we advocate on behalf of homeschooled students and work to bring their interests into the conversation. Second, we are aware that math can be done well in homeschool settings and that some homeschooled students can become especially proficient in math. We will turn to some of these individuals’ stories in the end of this article as we look at what helped them succeed.
We asked a focus group of homeschool graduates whose math education was subpar to tell us about their experiences, and to pinpoint the pitfalls they experienced. The information in this article comes from this focus group. In the last section we will cover the input we received from a smaller focus group of homeschool graduates who consider their math education especially excellent.
Parental Limitations
Many of the homeschool alumni in our focus group reported that their parents’ lack of math knowledge hindered them from being effective teachers. Some recounted not asking for help when they needed it because their parents didn’t know the answers either. In some cases their parents simply gave up. Some alumni reported that their parents became angry when they did not immediately grasp mathematical concepts, or interpreted their failure to learn as a sign of disobedience.
Rebecca: My mom’s narrative was that I was just more of an “English” person . . . . However, maybe it was that I wouldn’t ever ask my mom for help with math because she didn’t know how to do it either? . . . I think she just was unable to teach high school math and blamed me for lack of skill instead of helping me.
Acacia: The math I should have been learning was more than my mom remembered how to do.
Shae: My math experience had a lot to do with the fact that my dad was supposed to teach me that subject in middle and high school. He had anger issues, and would yell at me and my sister if we got problems wrong or didn’t comprehend concepts. Because of that, I resisted doing math in order to delay the anger. . . . I feel like I learned other subjects proficiently because my mom made sure I learned those subjects.
Jerusha: [My] parents gave up teaching me algebra. Mom couldn’t teach it and Dad didn’t have time or patience to explain it.
Bethany: It didn’t help that my parents used Roy Lessin’s spanking rituals when we were disobedient which included my not trying. My mother had a short temper and yelled, screamed, and cried when I didn’t get math. My father wasn’t able to teach me math because he never got it himself. . . . Later—much later—I was tested at a local College. I tested 5th grade level for math and I was 26 years old.
Jai: My mom would look at the [problems] I got wrong, spend about 5 minutes looking over the book and then tell me to go find my older siblings because she didn’t have time to re-learn it in order to help me. I had to take one remedial math class in Community College 6 years later in order to get up to Algebra 1 speed.
Katharina: I was fine with math until geometry—I have a bit of difficulty with spatial reasoning, in life as well as in mathematics. . . . So all the shapes just made me reflexively really nervous! My mom is the same way and I didn’t have access to any adults who could explain it well.
We can draw a variety of lessons from these stories. Responsible homeschooling parents need to either teach themselves the material, along with effective teaching strategies so that they can teach it, or seek out tutors or classes for their children. Parents who don’t feel strong in math need to seek out those who are to serve as their children’s teachers and mentors. It’s also important for parents to ensure that their own frustration with the occasional difficulties of teaching not bleed over to the teaching itself. Homeschool parents need to be careful that their own limitations do not limit their children.
The Limits of Self-Teaching
Some alumni reported that their parents expected them to learn from a textbook or worksheets without any help or guidance at all. In many cases this led to frustration or to a failure to fully understand the concepts.
Savannah: My mother gave me workbooks to go through on my own, which were not well-done . . . . Though I am a perfectionist, the lack of quality teaching, lack of resources to go to for help, and habit of parents to push it under the rug and just explain it away as me just not being good at it, meant I ended up never mastering any mathematical concepts.
Anna-Brit: [From] fourth grade onward, I was given Saxon math textbooks with no other help, which worked well enough until trig and calculus. I missed some key concepts with calculus, and no matter how many times I patiently reworked problems and looked at old lessons, I could never get them to come out right.
Liz: Around junior high or so, when it was time to switch to Saxon Algebra 1/2 or 1 or something, math suddenly became super hard for me. . . . Mom didn’t have time to work on math with me any more at this point, or go over the thousands of problems I missed per lesson, so I struggled on through Algebra 1 in Saxon by myself (pretty much the one constant of school during those years was that I HAD to spend a couple of hours a day “doing math”). . . . My senior year, I worked my way through a geometry and a consumer math textbook with no help, and didn’t understand that either. With incredible optimism, I tried to test out of freshman algebra before my first year of college and unsurprisingly failed that test.
Jessica: Around 9th grade I begged for algebra, it was the only higher math I knew about, I literally did not know there were things called geometry, trigonometry, calculus . . . . My mom ordered Saxon Algebra 1 and the answer key, handed them over and that was my class. I was motivated, I wanted to go to college, I loved science and wanted to have the background in math, but that wasn’t enough to teach myself algebra. I gave myself a placement test a few years ago and my math was at a 6th grade level. I couldn’t even pass the GED practice test.
It’s worth noting that sometimes self-taught math can work. Breanne, a participant in the focus group, wrote that she struggled with teaching herself math but ultimately succeeded. Jeffrey, a homeschool alumnus who received a good math education, gave reasons he feels he was successful in teaching himself math.
Breanne: My mom helped with math in elementary grades, but in high school I was just given Saxon books to teach myself. She’d grade the tests. It took me a long time to do math every day because I had to work hard for it. . . . I did end up with A’s and B’s though, because I actually cared about learning.
Jeffrey: I taught myself Calc I and learned it well. . . . [W]hen you write a terrible paragraph, you might not ever figure out how bad it is on your own. But when you get a math problem wrong, you usually can compare it to the answer and immediately find out that it’s wrong. Not that this makes math easy, but it is a significant factor helping self-taught math to be more doable.
Breanne may have learned the material, but she nevertheless described her self-taught math education as a “struggle.” And while Jeffrey was able to use an answer key to figure out the concepts, this is not always possible. In my own experience, the answer key rarely gives any information about how the answer was arrived at, and it’s that process that is so important when learning math. Similarly, different people have different learning styles.
Homeschool parents should not assume that their teenagers will be capable of teaching themselves Algebra or Calculus out of a textbook. Many students need a parent, tutor, or teacher to provide guidance and motivation, especially for a subject like math. Parents who plan to have their children work through a textbook should make an effort to learn the material alongside their children, answering questions and explaining concepts as they go along.
Other options include hiring a math tutor (or arranging a trade with a homeschooling parent who is particularly good at math), or finding a class. In some states homeschooled children are permitted to take one or two classes at their local public high school without enrolling full time. In other states community colleges are open to high school students at a discounted price.
Parental Discouragement
When children attend school, they will likely have a range of teachers that vary in quality. Their teacher one year may be terrible at math or may even tell them that they’re bad at math, but the teacher they have the next year may work to inspire them. For some homeschooled students, however, a parent who dislikes math or discourages them from pursuing the subject may be the only math teacher they ever have. This means what a homeschool parent tells their children about their math ability or about the necessity (or lack thereof) of math takes on an oversized importance.
Some alumni in our focus group reported being actively discouraged from pursuing math by their parents. In some cases this was fairly general—the alumni were told that math was unimportant anyway, or simply that they weren’t good at math—but in other cases it had a gendered aspect.
Rebecca: [My mom] also discouraged me from wanting to study [math] by talking about how useless it was, and that practical math for cooking would be better for me anyway.
Melissa: My mother wasn’t good at math and told me I wasn’t very good at math either.
Jennifer: I was told over and over again from about 3rd grade forward [that I wasn’t good at math] by one or both of my parents. Oh my gosh it made me want to quit altogether.
Jessica: I was in public school from first through fourth grade. My lowest grades were in math,but still ranged in the 90s to a low of 88. For some reason my mom took this to mean math was my weakness. She repeated this to me almost daily my first year of homeschool. She even had me start off in a fourth grade math book to help me “catch up”. I was bored out of my mind by all the divide and check.
Jerusha: [My parents] said I wouldn’t need [math] as a housewife anyway.
Heidi: My mom finally stated that, “Hey . . . what do you need algebra for anyway? You are a girl,” and that was that. At the time I felt happy and relieved. After all, I was going to marry and have babies happily forever after . . . what did I need it for?
Breanne: Mom always said [that] girls’ brains aren’t wired for math. That made things worse, it felt like my struggling was futile.
Homeschool parents need to be aware of the oversized input their feedback has on their children’s math motivation and ability. Parents who don’t like math themselves need to be careful not to pass that on to their children, even accidentally. Children need to be inspired to thoroughly pursue each subject as they search for things they like and are good at. Giving children a negative outlook concerning math closes doors that should remain open.
Learning Disabilities
Some children have learning disabilities. Unfortunately, while teachers are trained in recognizing learning disabilities and providing intervention, many homeschool parents may not understand that they are dealing with a learning disability until much too late. Homeschool parents need to educate themselves in warning signs that may point to learning disabilities and be willing to have their children tested for learning disabilities should such signs appear. Once a learning disability is identified, parents need to provide support and look for resources.
Bethany: My learning disability got in the way of my ability to learn math. . . . For a short time when I was in grade school, I had a specialist teach me math and I performed well. . . . He seemed to understand me and my dyslexia. He had me doing math above my grade. I fell behind again when I was homeschooled. Later–much later–I was tested at a local College. I tested 5th grade level for math and I was 26 years old. I went to the class they held as the lowest one could take in college. I felt deep shame. . . . Like my earlier learning specialist, they seemed to get my brain. I aced the class. . . . The bottom line was that I require explanations and practice that are more suited for my manual brain.
Melissa: There is no doubt based on what I do on a day to day basis that I am fairly mathematically inclined, though I think it’s possible I have some kind of learning disability since I can be a bit slow at times to pick certain things up. Based on kids I’ve worked with I think I may have dyspraxia, which would explain why I suddenly seemed so skilled once I had access to computers, since people with this disorder have trouble with writing out equations and that kind of thing.
Jennyfer: I have dyscalculia. My private school couldn’t deal with it, the public school in the area would have put me in the special ed holding tank, so I was homeschooled due to it. I was never able to achieve more than 5th grade, even with lots of tutoring. They eventually just gave up.
Some children are homeschooled due to learning disabilities. In these cases, parents hope to give their children better than what they were receiving in the local public schools. But doing this isn’t easy, and requires a lot of effort and the willingness to look for a new solution when one thing isn’t working. Homeschooling parents of children with learning disabilities need to be careful not to give up before they have sought out and exhausted the resources available.
Choosing a Curriculum
Homeschool parents have a variety of math curriculum available to them, and can easily shop around online or at homeschool conventions. Parents need to work to educate themselves on best practices and ensure that they thoroughly review each curriculum they choose. Some alumni in our focus group spoke of using curricula or math programs that simply did not work for them.
Melissa: My mother’s version of math education was . . . not good and mainly focused on memorization, which never stuck anyway. My mother said I had to do them over and over again because “you won’t always have a calculator.”
Liz: Eventually, Mom purchased this program at a homeschool conference called “Algebra VideoText”, where the instructor explained everything on VHS tapes and there was a hotline to call if you had problems. For the rest of high school I slogged through that program by myself, dutifully watching all the videos and completing the modules, and eventually “completed” it, without understanding much of what was being presented or retaining it at all. The help-line guy was MEAN (“What’s the matter with you? This is basic! There’s no reason you shouldn’t understand this!’) and after a while, I quit calling him.
Once a curriculum has been selected and purchased, homeschool parents need to pay attention to whether or not it is working for their children. This can be more difficult when a child is working more independently, but should be possible through frequent communication and through working through a curricula alongside a child. Homeschool parents need to be willing to changed their curriculum plans when a given program is not working.
Then Came College
In many cases, homeschooled students who struggle with math may have the ability to do well but not the interaction or resources they need to excel. This was the case for a number of alumni in our focus group, who were eager to speak of their experiences in college, where having a class and a teacher turned things around for them.
Jerusha: I tested into a remedial class and loved it. Turns out I’m really good at learning algebra from a teacher.
Jai: I had to take one remedial math class in community college six years later in order to get up to Algebra 1 speed, but I had a teacher that was amazing and spent time to answer my questions and look over my work with me.
Katharina: Having a teacher and college tutors really changed things for me.
Liz: The math course I had to take in college was what my mom called “math for dummies,” but I did OK in it because there was an actual teacher who explained stuff. I think I got an A.
Acacia: The summer before I entered public high school, I had to go to Sylvan Learning Center to catch up on everything I missed, even though I was relatively good at math and picked it up way faster than they expected.
Impacted Futures
Unfortunately, while many homeschool alumni who previously struggled with math may find themselves able to succeed with an actual class and teacher once in college, this does not mean that their deficient homeschool math education does not shape their future and their career choices.
Melissa: I LOVED science, so I wanted to be good at math. But I didn’t have a good background in math or how to study it, so I floundered once I got to school in high school and ended up giving up on my dreams of being a scientist. In college I was finally able to take some remedial classes, but still didn’t quite catch up. By accident I ended up doing tech for a living, which I do OK at, but I feel I regularly get passed up for promotions and have hit a ceiling because of my deficient background.
Anna-Brit: There was 110 point gap between my critical reading and math scores on my SATs. I ended up minoring in statistics in college, but fear of the prerequisite four levels of calculus prevented me from majoring in it, to my shame.
Liz: To this day, I stay far away from math. Maybe I would be good at it if I’d had some actual instruction, I don’t know.
Heidi: I went on to conquer statistics for my Bachelors and am now happily working on my Masters. But to pass the algebra I got help from everyone I could think of . . . school tutor, my drummer from worship team, and my baby brother who also put himself through school.
Savannah: This experience [failure to teach myself high school math from a textbook] has ingrained my fear and hate of all things math and science related, and in turn pushed me away from higher education in embarrassment of my skills.
Final Focus Group Thoughts
While experiential learning can often be extremely helpful, it should not be a replacement for more academic study of math. There is only so much math that can be learned from cooking, or from balancing checkbooks. For most children, higher-level math like algebra will require more than experiential learning.
Jerusha: One year my “math” was to make an answer key for an antiquated book on arithmetic for agriculture. I think it was used by the Amish. Balancing my parents’ checkbooks, paying the bills, and keeping my dad’s business ledger also counted as math.
In some cases, children’s success in other areas may mean that their parents do not notice their struggles and deficiencies in math. Parents need to be proactive and pay close attention to their children’s progress in math.
Katharina: I do remember feeling quite defeatist in high school, and my poor math skills were the reason I never finished my chemistry course either, too much math…but as my outstanding strengths were in verbal reasoning/writing, it never occurred to me or my mom to address those deficits, you know?
Finally, while a deficient math education can hold young adults back and make their lives more difficult, some will push through in spite of it all.
Savannah: I have turned a new leaf and am in my first ever math class (remedial college course) catching up with things I never knew! I am determined because I am sure once I am able to understand it from a qualified teacher, I will cease to be so unnerved!
Successful Stories
And now we turn briefly to our smaller focus group of homeschool alumni with good experiences. Our main focus in this article has been how things can fail, so we want to finish with a brief picture of how things can go well
Emilie: My mom was passionate in teaching all subjects, and mathematics was no exception. In elementary school, she used a conceptual math curriculum which we worked through together using manipulatives and other various real life examples to understand arithmetic. We were not tied to this curriculum, however, as we found its algebra book confusing. For algebra and geometry we carefully switched to another program that was well-reviewed and also emphasized conceptual understanding. For my last two years of high school, I took Precalculus Algebra and Trigonometry, followed by Calculus I and II at the community college, as they were beyond my mom’s expertise. The teaching I received there was excellent and allowed me to take Calculus III and Differential Equations as a freshman. (My younger sister also took calculus-based physics and an introductory engineering class while still in high school.) Mathematics may not have been my mom’s favorite subject, but it ended up being mine, and she opened all the necessary doors for me and my siblings to explore it.
Nathan: I was mostly self-taught from Saxon textbooks, my parents weren’t in a position to teach me anything advanced. I joined a MathCounts team made up of other students from our regional group. There was one engineer dad in the group who really accelerated our progress, and some of the other parents were really good at teaching us to assess every problem from a logical perspective and find not just the solution, but the best, fastest path to that solution. Everybody on that team was a total math dork by the end. We even took turns teaching each other on occasion (with supervision), because it helped us solidify the concepts in our own minds AND helped us all pick up things that the others were good at, which improved both our math skills and our ability to optimally function as a team during the cooperative portions of the competition.
Isaac: In retrospect, I think the mathematical education provided by my parents was highly successful. I think there are two particular aspects of my math instruction that were unique and provided immense benefit. First, my parents had a strong emphasis on understanding my learning style and providing curricula tailored to me. My parents were not tied to a single textbook and were attentive to my feedback, as well as maintaining their own assessments and backing them up with external standardized tests. Second, my parents stringently insisted that I absolute master a concept before moving on. I was able to take Algebra early, but struggled with the abstract concepts and was required to re-take the entire course. With a different curriculum and another semester to work on the material, I began to thrive and even enjoy the concepts. Having now worked with professional mathematicians, I see some of my parent’s weaknesses; they could have focused more on enabling independent discovery as a child and answering my sometimes more probing questions in deeper ways. However, they recognized their limitations and sought professional external math instruction after Algebra, which was also superlative and placed me in the very beneficial relationship with math I enjoy today.
Strong levels of parental involvement, a willingness to change curriculum to suit a child’s learning style, community college courses, math clubs or other extracurriculars—these things can provide children with the guidance and motivation they need to not just succeed at math but actually excell. Yes, all of these take more effort than simply handing a child a textbook and telling them to learn it. But then, whoever said homeschooling would be easy?
Last Updated: 26 October, 2023 by Sarah Henderson
Sarah Henderson: “We did not wish to be home schooled”
“If my parents were required to show some sort of portfolio, they would have needed to make sure that there were books, and show progression through grades (even if the progression was at an individual pace). They would have also needed to obtain and evaluate school work from us.”
I left and went to high school when I was 17, and earned a high school diploma, but I found this difficult due to the high number of significant gaps in my education, including not knowing how electricity works, not understanding the periodic table, and not understanding the relationship between decimals and fractions. I also did not know how to write essays, descriptive paragraphs, or persuasive paragraphs. I also had significant gaps in the knowledge of history; I did not know about the residential schools for Aboriginal people in North America, and I did not know how recently the abolition of slavery and women’s suffrage had occurred. I received no instruction in the arts or technology.
When I was 18, our circumstances resulted in all my younger siblings attending school. One close in age brother attempted high school, but dropped out after one year, because his education gaps and learning disability were too difficult to overcome. One other sister graduated high school. So far, three more siblings obtained some high school credits but dropped out due a combination of factors, including lack of support for education at home, the extreme lack of educational background to support a high school education, and difficulty stemming from having to learn how to learn, in addition to the remedial work that was required to catch up to their grade level. Out of 9 homeschooled children, only 2 have already received high school diplomas, 4 have dropped out, and one more sibling is expected to successfully complete high school (for a total of 3 high school graduates, and 6 drop outs).
I believe that having some form of oversight could have improved the educational outcomes in my family. Because we did not wish to be home schooled, being interviewed by an outside party may have allowed us to express our wishes to attend school; although a safe platform to say this would have been needed, since we would have been severely punished if we had expressed that wish to someone who was in a position to help provide that outcome. Perhaps having a superintendent oversee the homeschooling process would have motivated my parents to be more organized, and to create lesson plans and follow through on them.
If my parents were required to show some sort of portfolio, they would have needed to make sure that there were books, and show progression through grades (even if the progression was at an individual pace). They would have also needed to obtain and evaluate school work from us. Because there was no one to show the work too, and there was no measurement of failure as homeschoolers, my parents were not motivated enough on their own to provide a good education, and there was no one to step in and ensure that a good education was provided between when my oldest brother started being homeschooled in 1992 and 2006 when everyone was finally given the opportunity to go to school. That is 14 years of unsuccessful homeschooling, which could have been avoided with some form of homeschooling oversight.
To read more about my experiences, please go to my writings on the Coalition for Responsible Home Education or on Homeschoolers Anonymous, and my blog.
Sarah Henderson was homeschooled from 1994 to 2002 in Nova Scotia and Ontario. For additional thoughts and experiences from other homeschool alumni, see our Testimonials page.
Last Updated: 16 May, 2016 by CRHE
Jane Smith: “I am haunted by the question of what might have been different”
“Homeschooling students who, like me, are privileged to have the skills necessary to fill in the gaps in our education can often bounce back from sub-standard educations. But others, like my brothers, who lack these skills will forever pay the price. The costs of the lack of oversight are borne by the most vulnerable.”
My family’s experience with homeschooling and outside supervision demonstrates just how high the stakes can be. The first time my family homeschooled was in the mid-1980s, well before homeschooling was mainstream. My older sister, my younger brother, and I avoided contact with outsiders during school hours, gave our home school a name in case anyone ever asked where we attended, and were very conscious of the transgressive nature of what we were doing.
As I recall, my parents notified the superintendent of the neighboring school district since that was the location of the church school we had been attending prior to homeschooling. As a result, my mother kept records to ensure we completed the required number of school days and at the end of every year we were tested by the school psychologist in academic subject areas. There were few surprises—we often struggled to keep up with our grade levels in math, but all excelled in reading. The testing procedure was noninvasive and it was very reassuring to my mother to have evidence that she was not failing us academically. (She was far less enthusiastic about homeschooling than my father was.)
By the time I was approaching 7th grade, my parents were in the process of adopting two brothers. I was completely bored at home, begging to go back to our church school. I finished high school there, using the same curriculum we had been using at home. Because the curriculum was so utterly lacking in academic rigor, I was able to graduate before I turned 16. By this time, my younger brothers were showing substantial difficulty succeeding in school due to serious mental health issues, behavioral difficulties, and apparent learning disabilities. So in the early 1990s, my parents turned to homeschooling once again.
This time, homeschooling was more widely recognized as an educational alternative so my parents contacted the superintendent of our own school district. There was now a requirement that homeschooling parents should have a high school diploma. Since neither of my parents had one, they drove me and my church school diploma down to the superintendent’s office, hoping it would suffice. It did. This time around, however, there was no annual testing. No oversight at all, as I remember.
My younger brothers used the same curriculum we older children had used; however, where we had been very motivated readers, they were not. Where we were enjoyed relatively good emotional and mental health, they did not. But this time there was no oversight and no desire on the part of my parents to seek out outside help. They were convinced that they could “fix” my brothers’ emotional, behavioral, and educational difficulties through prayer and corporal punishment. My older sister and I begged them repeatedly to get professional help, but they always insisted they had just had a breakthrough or ignored our pleas altogether.
Today the contrast between the lives of my older siblings and me on one hand and the lives of my younger brothers on the other could not be greater. My sister is a homeschooling mom of four brilliant children who are not only academically successful but also have the opportunity to exercise their abilities in art, music, and drama in a way that my sister and I only dreamed of. My brother just younger than me has proven to be very upwardly mobile in his job. I earned a PhD and am now a tenure-track college professor. In contrast, my younger brothers have struggled to maintain stable, law-abiding lives and have done time in prison.
I am haunted by the question of what might have been different if there had been someone on hand to urge my parents to acknowledge the failure of their methods and get professional help. Homeschooling students who, like me, are privileged to have the skills necessary to fill in the gaps in our education can often bounce back from sub-standard educations. But others, like my brothers, who lack these skills will forever pay the price. The costs of the lack of oversight are borne by the most vulnerable.
Jane Smith was homeschooled in Pennsylvania in the mid-1980s and her brothers were homeschooled in Oklahoma in the early to mid-1990s. For additional thoughts and experiences from other homeschool alumni, see our Testimonials page.
Last Updated: 16 May, 2016 by CRHE
Cynthia Jeub: “I wasn’t really taught anything after I was ten years old”
“In the state of Colorado, homeschooled students are required to take placement tests every couple of years. There’s an exemption for parents who are certified teachers. My dad had a bachelor’s degree in English, and had taught it briefly, so we never took any tests.”
For most of my K-12 education, I studied three subjects: homemaking, business, and competitive forensics. I had more than a dozen younger brothers and sisters, who I was expected to babysit and care for whenever my parents were busy. I kept the house clean, bathed children, and I cooked and baked. I learned business because my dad gave me a microloan at age 9, and failure to pay him back was not an option. At age thirteen, I became the main administrative assistant for the family business. Every spring semester, speech and debate competition was my top priority, so I spent that time researching, practicing, traveling, and performing.
I learned only very basic math and science, and when I got to college, I couldn’t make it through a basic chemistry class because I couldn’t do the algebraic equations. At this point, I’m taking a break from college so I can teach myself middle-school level math, science, and history from Internet resources and books.
In the state of Colorado, homeschooled students are required to take placement tests every couple of years. There’s an exemption for parents who are certified teachers. My dad had a bachelor’s degree in English, and had taught it briefly, so we never took any tests. The first tests I ever took were my driver’s permit test and the SAT. As such, when I got to college, I struggled with scoring well on tests I’d studied for, because I’d never been trained for the pressure of the test layout and format. My homeschooled friends who did take the tests didn’t have such a difficult time with the organization of college when they graduated.
I’m not convinced that standardized testing reflects intelligence or learning. You know what would have helped? Prioritizing my education, instead of filling my time with so many other things. I was expected to put everything else before school—the family business, keeping the house in order and watching my siblings, staying competitive in speech and debate. I often got in trouble for trying to study while I was supposed to be doing something else. If someone had just told me it was okay to want to read all the time, instead of feeling like educating myself was a waste of time and a distraction, that would have been fantastic.
There was also the problem of religious stigma, and I was afraid to read about evolution, other religions, and atheistic philosophy. If someone had just told me, “You can read about science and philosophy without fear of betraying your family’s faith and reputation,” I would have done so much better.
Cynthia Jeub was homeschooled form 1996 to 2011 in Minnesota and Colorado. For additional thoughts and experiences from other homeschool alumni, see our Testimonials page.
Last Updated: 19 May, 2020 by Chelsea McCracken
Opacity in Data Reporting: A Look at Cardus (2011, 2012)
This post summarizes our research review, which provides a critical analysis of Pennings et al. (2011, 2012). Click HERE to read a more in-depth version of the arguments presented.
In 2011 and 2012, the Canadian Christian think tank Cardus published reports on their study of adult graduates of Christian private schools in North America. (The 2011 publication focused on schools in the United States and the 2012 publication focused on Canada.) Though the authors of the report, Pennings and his team of researchers, did not set out to analyze homeschooling, best research practices required that some incidental data also be collected on homeschool graduates.
The Cardus publications relied on random samples of homeschool graduates whose responses to various surveys were weighted based on the number of respondents and then weighted again for a variety of demographic factors. As such, the Cardus survey is one of the only studies of a representative sample of homeschool graduates—and one of the only studies whose results can be applied to the larger population of all homeschoolers.
The major findings of the study relate only to religious homeschoolers (or, as defined in the study, homeschoolers whose mothers frequently attended religious services) in the US and Canada. The researchers found that homeschool graduates were less academically prepared for college and had less higher education than public school graduates; that they had a strict and legalistic moral outlook; and that they reported more feelings of helplessness and a lack of clarity about their life goals. In addition, American religious homeschool graduates reported more divorces and fewer children than public school graduates, as well as a lack of interest in politics and charitable giving; however, these characteristics were not shared by Canadian respondents.
Though the study lacked significant methodological flaws, its lack of focus on homeschooling limits the conclusions it allows us to draw. For example, the small sample size limited the number of statistically significant results. The researchers did not define ‘homeschooling’ or distinguish between different types (for example, umbrella schools, correspondence programs, etc); nor did they account for differences in the number of years children spent being homeschooled. The study was limited to religious homeschoolers and defined them by their mothers’ attendance at religious services—this may not be the most precise definition. The homeschool graduates who were surveyed were mostly in their late 20s, which may not have provided a complete picture of their lifetime outcomes.
If the study was more or less sound, the write-up was less so. For some reason, Pennings et al. chose not to report their statistical data in a meaningful way. The dozens of graphs they include in their publications are not labeled in units or with a scale on their y-axes. This makes it impossible to translate data from a graph into a statement like “Group X had 3.4 more children than Group Y.” At best, we can only say that “Group X had more children than Group Y.” Furthermore, though Pennings et al. describe performing significance testing and state that the p-values are represented on the graphs, this does not appear to be the case.
For these reasons it is difficult to draw any direct conclusions from this study. The soundness of the methodology makes some of its findings suggestive of larger trends, but the study’s lack of focus on homeschoolers and opaque methods for reporting data hinder its explanatory power. Apparently the authors plan to follow up on their previous study with one that more directly targets homeschoolers—hopefully this future study will illuminate some of the more murky aspects of Cardus (2011, 2012).
Last Updated: 15 November, 2018 by CRHE
A Timeline of Homeschool Legislation
This timeline highlights a trend toward loosening oversight of homeschooling over the past two decades. While most major changes are included, this timeline is a work in progress and is more complete from 2011 to the present than it is before these years.
Last Updated: 26 October, 2023 by CRHE
Sierra S.: “My mom … was obviously overwhelmed”
“If there had been more oversight, my mom may have been able to get more motivated to get organized and give me and my sisters the education we needed. My sisters and I would not be in the very difficult place we are right now because of being under educated.”
My parents decided to homeschool me and my 2 younger sisters because they believed it was the will of god. California law only requires parents to notify state or local officials of the intent to homeschool. No testing or further assessment is required.
I believe my parents’ decision to homeschool was motivated by fear that my sisters and I would be exposed to the world too soon. My parents were very big on letting their kids be kids, which is good—except we were never challenged and we weren’t ready for adulthood. I do believe my parents had good intentions with sheltering us, and they’ll say to this day they don’t regret their decision to homeschool. However, I regret being homeschooled immensely.
I was about 10 or 11 when my mom started homeschooling me and my sisters, and it actually started out okay. My mom started out excited and organized; however, she quickly ended up becoming neglectful. I was a month from being 12 when my life-long sick brother died. We were all grieving. My mom would spend hours at a time in her room and sometimes all day. My sisters and I pretty much did whatever we wanted all day.
My mom had severe anxiety. Her motivation to educate us went in cycles; she would try to get organized and would talk about her plan for the school year, but she never followed through. She was obviously overwhelmed. Not only were there were 3 of us in different grades, but my sister is dyslexic. The pressure of having to juggle all of our educations must have been extreme. I also think my mother expected us to be more motivated and teach ourselves. But how many kids want to do school/homework over playing and talking?
When I was 13, my family and I moved to Florida. Florida law requires assessment with some exceptions. My mom said she put me and my sisters in an umbrella school, which is basically homeschooling through a private school. I actually recently asked my mom what umbrella school we were in, but she doesn’t remember.
Through all the curriculum we started, I don’t think we ever finished one. As a teen, I remember reading through almost my whole psychology book and trying to teach myself multiplication a few times. That’s how often I did school. My self-esteem was very low. Many times I felt too stupid to even try and I felt like my parents didn’t care anyway.
As a teenager I was depressed. Doing nothing day after day, having nowhere to go, and having no real direction in life only made me feel more hopeless. I had a lot of goals for adulthood about future careers and college, so I’d often feel depressed about being nowhere near my goals, and many times I would try to talk to my parents about feeling stupid and under-educated. They would just blame me for not doing my school work and, more times than not, my mom would say “Well, sorry I’m such a bad mom.” Then I would have to spend the rest of the conversation reassuring her that she was a good mom. My intention was never to make her feel like a bad mom. I needed someone to push me and believe in me. To this day I still feel like my parents gave up on their children because they didn’t believe in us.
Sometimes when I would get worried about not being ready for college, my mom would tell me that I was on a “different path.” I guess it was supposed to make me feel special, but I wanted to be ready for college. I wanted to choose my own path.
When I was 18, and my church friends graduated, my mom threw me a graduation party, which made me feel guilty because I know I had hardly done any school since 4th grade and I was not even close to where I needed to be. I expressed feeling guilty to my mom about having a party when I’m not really graduated, and getting gifts and money from my friends and family. She replied, “But you do have a diploma.” For a second, I got my hopes up and said, “Really?? Where is it?” Then she got mad at me because I couldn’t just take her word for it. I never saw a diploma. But what was worse is I felt like everyone at the party knew I wasn’t really graduated. Like everyone could see right through.
Not only do I not have a diploma, I don’t have any records of anything about my homeschooling. I don’t know how my mom did it. She managed to get us through our teenage years without having us analyzed by a teacher or tested. I even contacted someone at the Florida Department of Education to see if they would have any record of what umbrella school I was in, but they couldn’t help me. So, basically I have zero proof that I was homeschooled.
When I was 18, I got a job as a preschool teacher aide/afternoon teacher specifically so I could afford getting a high school education. With the money I earned, I signed up for a school that could get me a diploma in 6 months or less, which I would find out too late that it was a scam. The very little work the school sent me was very easy. Then I got the diploma, I cried tears of joy. It took me several months to realize I’d been scammed. I should have known because I didn’t learn anything from that school.
I’ve let go of a lot of bitterness against my parents, although I’ll admit that once in a while it still hurts a little. I love them and I understand that my mom and dad were grieving and my mom had severe anxiety. The thing is, they had 3 kids that they neglected in a big way.
Today my education is my own responsibility. I’m 23 and I have to learn elementary math, just so that I can qualify for high school. Not being properly educated (yet) makes being successful much harder, but I can’t let what someone else did to me in the past determine what I do now. As easy as it would be, I can’t spend my life playing the blame game. I am determined to succeed in my goals.
If there had been more oversight, my mom may have been able to get more motivated to get organized and give me and my sisters the education we needed. My sisters and I would not be in the very difficult place we are right now because of being under educated. More oversight would’ve helped not only educationally but also, in my family’s case, emotionally. I believe having motivation to get out of bed and a daily goal of doing school would’ve given my mom, my sisters, and I more purpose.
Sierra S. was homeschooled in California and Florida, 2002-2009, grades 4 to 12. For additional thoughts and experiences from other homeschool alumni, see our Testimonials page.
Posted: 30 October, 2014 by Rachel Coleman
Why We Need Accountability for Portfolio Evaluators
Suppose John Smith Construction Inc. is building a bridge near your home. They file a safety report with the local government, showing they have passed all requirements with flying colors and that the bridge is structurally sound. Then you find out that the safety inspector who wrote the report was an independent contractor hired by John Smith Construction Inc.—John Smith’s brother-in-law. You further find out that the local government will accept the report at its word, and doesn’t ask for copies of the original measurements or any other documentation. How safe will you feel driving over that bridge?
Unfortunately, most states that require homeschooled students to have portfolio reviews rely on this exact system—the parents choose and pay for their own evaluators, who may be relatives or friends, and the school district that receives the evaluations takes them on faith without ever looking at the portfolios themselves. The result is a system that invites corruption. At stake is not bridge safety, but children’s educations.
We have been covering Pennsylvania’s HB 1013 since last February. (See HB 1013 and Accountability and HB 1013 Is Bad for Homeschooling.) In a nutshell, the state’s current homeschool statute requires parents to first create a portfolio of their child’s work and have it evaluated by a certified teacher or other qualified individual, and then turn both that portfolio and the written evaluation in to the local school district for review by the superintendent. HB 1013 would remove the superintendent’s review, requiring parents to turn in only the written evaluation. We have had several homeschooling parents email us surprised that we oppose HB 1013 when it only removes what they argue is a redundant extra step. Because accountability for portfolio evaluators is included in our policy recommendations, we feel it is worth taking the time to explain why this extra step is not only not redundant but actually critically important.
Portfolio evaluations by teachers or other individuals play a role in homeschooled students’ assessments in 10 states. Evaluators are usually certified teachers, though some states may also allow other professionals or individuals who have taught in private schools but may not be certified to serve as evaluators. In each of these 10 states, the parents choose the evaluators, and they also pay them. There is no required training for being an evaluator, and in all states except for Pennsylvania there is nothing to ensure that evaluators are doing their job. In other words, there is nothing to prevent an evaluator from pocketing the parents’ money and signing off on their children’s portfolios without even glancing at them. And as we will show, this absolutely does happen.
Conflict of Interest
In some cases, portfolio evaluations are conducted by relatives or close friends, who will likely feel pressure to sign off on the students’ portfolios regardless of their quality. As Kieryn Darkwater remembers:
My home state, Florida, required an annual portfolio review by a certified teacher. We had one portfolio review done by a teacher who was a neutral third party, and she started asking me questions about my education that year. My mom became upset and we never went back. Instead, one of my relatives who is in the adult education field and has been a certified teacher for as long as I can remember “reviewed” our portfolios for us. I say review lightly, because no thorough review was expected or given—if that had been the case, my math and my siblings’ writing and reading comprehension skills would have been noticed. Instead, we presented our portfolios, and they were signed off on without a glance.
No state specifies that portfolio evaluators should not be relatives or close family friends. As a result, in too many cases, those trusted to look over homeschooled students’ portfolios to determine whether they have made sufficient progress have major conflicts of interest. This may not be ethical but it is completely legal.
The Financial Incentive
The fact that the evaluators are paid by the parents can also create a problem. As Teresa M. remembers:
At the time my parents were homeschooling us in the state of Ohio a certified teacher was needed to sign off that the children were being educated. They were supposed to look over the last year’s work to verify. The woman who did ours was also a member of our church and homeschool support group and never even looked at the stuff mom brought her, which wasn’t much. I even remember mom commenting that ‘P only cared about her check clearing.’
Homeschool alumni have reported hearing their parents and others sharing the names of the evaluators who go the easiest and ask the fewest questions. This creates a financial incentive to have a reputation for being an easy evaluator, someone who doesn’t look too closely.
Closing Ranks
Homeschooling communities’ tendency to close ranks around their own also contributes to these problems. In the wake of the passing of HB 1013, a homeschool alumni from Pennsylvania wrote this:
I do not know what would have become of my education if HB 1013 had passed while I was still a homeschooled child. I suspect that our already fragile standards would have plummeted. While I can imagine my evaluator raising the alarm (privately, of course, to my parents) if I were literally unable to perform basic addition, it’s more difficult to imagine her refusing to approve us to continue homeschooling. After all, she was one of us, and saw homeschooling as a moral imperative, not just an education option. More than likely, she would have admonished us to do better and signed the forms. Even if she hadn’t, what would have prevented us from simply finding another person to sign?
During the annual review itself, my evaluator went through my portfolio and read selectively. She glanced at the grades my mother had given me on the tests we chose to include, and maybe read through one of them in detail. It would have been blindingly easy to fake our way through an evaluation. All we would need were a couple of inflated tests. Without the superintendent review, an already easily-corruptible process would have had no teeth at all. We could count on our evaluator to put in some effort because her license was on the line if the school board contradicted her review. If nobody had checked her work, how could we trust her to check mine?
It is a common practice for a homeschool parent who has a teaching certificate or otherwise qualifies to be an evaluator to conduct portfolio evaluations for other homeschooling families in her community. Many homeschooling parents feel the need to prevent outside intervention in homeschooling families even when there are concerns and to make sure homeschoolers look good regardless of the cost to the children in question. As a result, homeschool parent evaluators are likely to sign off on every portfolio, including those with severe deficiencies.
Yes, But Is It Common?
By now the problem should be obvious. Without accountability, there is nothing to stop an evaluator from signing off on a homeschooled student’s portfolio without looking at it, or to prevent an evaluator from signing off on a portfolio they know is substandard. How often does this happen? The Testimony of the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators gives us some idea:
Under current law, the school district receives the evaluator’s report and student portfolio. We work to provide the parents with appropriate feedback that is designed to assist them in their role as their child’s teacher. . . .
We view this work as a core responsibility, not just because it is the law, but because we think it helps those parents who choose home schooling and protects those children whose parents may not have the best motives in mind. It is not unheard of for a few parents to use the home education law as a way to have their child avoid discipline, truancy charges or other consequences. We urge you to leave the accountability and oversight provisions of the home education law as is. We believe the relatively minor burden placed on parents and school districts to assure that appropriate education is being provided is worth the price. We do not know how many home schooled students will be harmed should their direct oversight be removed.
We do know from the last public report on home education issued by the Department of Education that, of the 22,136 students who were home educated in 2006-07, 14 had affidavits returned by the superintendent, 108 were identified by the evaluator as having inappropriate educational programs, and 228 were identified by the superintendent as having inappropriate educational programs. In 2006-07, 12 formal hearings were held regarding inappropriate programs.
While the responsibility of reviewing the evaluators’ reports and students’ portfolios each year is extra work for school districts, it is work that goes to the core of what we have sworn an oath to do. It is work that is appropriately assigned to us. By removing the requirement that student portfolios and evaluations undergo an annual review by the superintendent, home education students would no longer be subject to independent, unpaid review of each student’s academic progress. . . . We strongly oppose removing the responsibility of the superintendent to review the annual evaluation and portfolio and instead place this responsibility solely with the paid evaluator.
While evaluators identified 108 inappropriate educational programs for the 2006-2007 school year, superintendents located 228 additional inappropriate educational programs that evaluators had signed off on. These evaluators may have been friends or relatives, or they may have been more interested in getting paid than in properly carrying out their responsibilities, or they may have had more concern for the reputation of the homeschooling community than for the education of the community’s children. That the portfolio review system needs accountability is verified both by the testimony of homeschool alumni and the records kept by the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators.
Conclusion
We need a system of accountability for portfolio evaluators. Whether it be a conflict of interest or the financial incentive or a desire to close ranks and keep other homeschoolers free from outside intervention at all costs, evaluators have many reasons to be less than honest in their evaluations—and it is the children who suffer. Evaluators should not be able to sign off on insufficient progress without having to worry about getting caught. Many homeschooled children rely on portfolio evaluations to ensure that they receive an education, and when evaluators fall down on the job it is these children’s education that suffers. When evaluators are not held accountable, parents are not held accountable, and when parents are not held accountable there will be homeschooled children who receive substandard educations.
At this point, there is likely no stopping HB 1013, as it is unlikely that the current governor will veto the bill. What we can do is raise awareness about the importance of accountability for portfolio evaluators. We would not allow a construction company building a bridge to hire and compensate their own safety inspector. Why would we think this system any less given to corruption when applied to homeschooling? Accountability is important whatever is at stake, whether bridge safety or children’s education.
Please join us in promoting accountability for portfolio evaluators.
Last Updated: 26 October, 2023 by Rachel Coleman
Statement on Pennsylvania’s Passage of HB 1013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Coalition for Responsible Home Education Executive Director Rachel Coleman issued the following statement regarding the passage of House Bill 1013 by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives:
“Today, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives has sold out homeschooled children. By removing superintendents from the evaluation process, they have removed a critical level of accountability, leaving too many homeschooled children at the whim of neglectful parents and derelict evaluators.
“Homeschooled children have the right to an education. Pennsylvania’s current homeschool law — one of the best in the country — protects this right with a two-step process. First, parents put together a portfolio of their child’s progress and have it evaluated by a teacher or other individual. Second, both the portfolio and the evaluator’s written report are submitted to the school district for additional review. This ensures accountability for portfolio evaluators.
“This accountability is critical because portfolio evaluators are selected and paid by homeschool parents, and are frequently relatives or friends of the family. Further, homeschooling parents often shop around for the evaluators with the lowest standards. The Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators has reported that inadequate homeschool educational programs are twice as likely to be identified during the superintendent review stage than during the initial evaluation stage.
“This measure is part of the Home School Legal Defense Association’s mission to systemically weaken homeschooling oversight state by state, sacrificing the interests of homeschooled children on the altar of parental convenience. Homeschool alumni from Pennsylvania have told us that Pennsylvania’s homeschool law improved the quality of education they received. House Bill 1013 removes this safeguard of educational quality and leaves children open to educational neglect. We urge Gov. Tom Corbett to support Pennsylvania’s homeschooled children and veto HB 1013.”
The Coalition for Responsible Education is a national organization dedicated to raising awareness of the need for homeschooling reform, providing public policy guidance, and advocating for responsible home education practices. For more information, contact Ryan Stollar at media@responsiblehomeschooling.org or (617) 765-7096.
Last Updated: 20 October, 2023 by Rachel Coleman
Statement on the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai
October 14, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Coalition for Responsible Home Education Executive Director Rachel Coleman issued the following statement regarding the Norwegian Nobel Committee’s awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai:
“In its decision to honor two key figures in the fight to empower children, the Nobel Committee has signaled that children’s right to an education is a critical battleground in the global struggle for justice. CRHE’s belief in this same important global cause is what drives our efforts to promote and protect the educational rights of homeschooled children.
“Pakistan and India are not the only places where children’s right to an education is not guaranteed. There are children in the United States today who are being deprived of an education through laws that enable homeschooling parents to legally neglect their children’s educational needs. In some cases, homeschooled children have been subject to gender-based educational discrimination or exploited for their labor. CRHE believes that safeguarding children’s right to an education is critical to ensuring their access to an open future, no matter what country they live in.
“I am excited that the Nobel Committee has chosen to bring attention to this crucial issue. Like Malala Yousafzai, many young homeschooled Americans are struggling today to have their educational needs met. This award should inspire Americans to guarantee that all homeschooled children have access to an education.”
The Coalition for Responsible Education is a national organization dedicated to raising awareness of the need for homeschooling reform, providing public policy guidance, and advocating for responsible home education practices. For more information, contact info@responsiblehomeschooling.org or (617) 765-7096.
Last Updated: 20 October, 2023 by Rachel Coleman
The Homeschool Math Gap: The Stories
In a previous post, we explored data pointing to a homeschool math gap. What comes next? What can homeschooling parents learn from this information? In this article we use stories from homeschool graduates to examine the things that hold homeschooled students back in math, and to explore what can help them succeed. Our goal is to put a personal face on the homeschool math gap, and to give current and future homeschooling parents pointers on what can go wrong—and what can go right.
We should start with a few caveats. First, we know that public schooled students, like their homeschooled counterparts, can and too often do receive a deficient math education. We are addressing homeschooled students specifically, because that is what we do—we advocate on behalf of homeschooled students and work to bring their interests into the conversation. Second, we are aware that math can be done well in homeschool settings and that some homeschooled students can become especially proficient in math. We will turn to some of these individuals’ stories in the end of this article as we look at what helped them succeed.
We asked a focus group of homeschool graduates whose math education was subpar to tell us about their experiences, and to pinpoint the pitfalls they experienced. The information in this article comes from this focus group. In the last section we will cover the input we received from a smaller focus group of homeschool graduates who consider their math education especially excellent.
Parental Limitations
Many of the homeschool alumni in our focus group reported that their parents’ lack of math knowledge hindered them from being effective teachers. Some recounted not asking for help when they needed it because their parents didn’t know the answers either. In some cases their parents simply gave up. Some alumni reported that their parents became angry when they did not immediately grasp mathematical concepts, or interpreted their failure to learn as a sign of disobedience.
Rebecca: My mom’s narrative was that I was just more of an “English” person . . . . However, maybe it was that I wouldn’t ever ask my mom for help with math because she didn’t know how to do it either? . . . I think she just was unable to teach high school math and blamed me for lack of skill instead of helping me.
Acacia: The math I should have been learning was more than my mom remembered how to do.
Shae: My math experience had a lot to do with the fact that my dad was supposed to teach me that subject in middle and high school. He had anger issues, and would yell at me and my sister if we got problems wrong or didn’t comprehend concepts. Because of that, I resisted doing math in order to delay the anger. . . . I feel like I learned other subjects proficiently because my mom made sure I learned those subjects.
Jerusha: [My] parents gave up teaching me algebra. Mom couldn’t teach it and Dad didn’t have time or patience to explain it.
Bethany: It didn’t help that my parents used Roy Lessin’s spanking rituals when we were disobedient which included my not trying. My mother had a short temper and yelled, screamed, and cried when I didn’t get math. My father wasn’t able to teach me math because he never got it himself. . . . Later—much later—I was tested at a local College. I tested 5th grade level for math and I was 26 years old.
Jai: My mom would look at the [problems] I got wrong, spend about 5 minutes looking over the book and then tell me to go find my older siblings because she didn’t have time to re-learn it in order to help me. I had to take one remedial math class in Community College 6 years later in order to get up to Algebra 1 speed.
Katharina: I was fine with math until geometry—I have a bit of difficulty with spatial reasoning, in life as well as in mathematics. . . . So all the shapes just made me reflexively really nervous! My mom is the same way and I didn’t have access to any adults who could explain it well.
We can draw a variety of lessons from these stories. Responsible homeschooling parents need to either teach themselves the material, along with effective teaching strategies so that they can teach it, or seek out tutors or classes for their children. Parents who don’t feel strong in math need to seek out those who are to serve as their children’s teachers and mentors. It’s also important for parents to ensure that their own frustration with the occasional difficulties of teaching not bleed over to the teaching itself. Homeschool parents need to be careful that their own limitations do not limit their children.
The Limits of Self-Teaching
Some alumni reported that their parents expected them to learn from a textbook or worksheets without any help or guidance at all. In many cases this led to frustration or to a failure to fully understand the concepts.
Savannah: My mother gave me workbooks to go through on my own, which were not well-done . . . . Though I am a perfectionist, the lack of quality teaching, lack of resources to go to for help, and habit of parents to push it under the rug and just explain it away as me just not being good at it, meant I ended up never mastering any mathematical concepts.
Anna-Brit: [From] fourth grade onward, I was given Saxon math textbooks with no other help, which worked well enough until trig and calculus. I missed some key concepts with calculus, and no matter how many times I patiently reworked problems and looked at old lessons, I could never get them to come out right.
Liz: Around junior high or so, when it was time to switch to Saxon Algebra 1/2 or 1 or something, math suddenly became super hard for me. . . . Mom didn’t have time to work on math with me any more at this point, or go over the thousands of problems I missed per lesson, so I struggled on through Algebra 1 in Saxon by myself (pretty much the one constant of school during those years was that I HAD to spend a couple of hours a day “doing math”). . . . My senior year, I worked my way through a geometry and a consumer math textbook with no help, and didn’t understand that either. With incredible optimism, I tried to test out of freshman algebra before my first year of college and unsurprisingly failed that test.
Jessica: Around 9th grade I begged for algebra, it was the only higher math I knew about, I literally did not know there were things called geometry, trigonometry, calculus . . . . My mom ordered Saxon Algebra 1 and the answer key, handed them over and that was my class. I was motivated, I wanted to go to college, I loved science and wanted to have the background in math, but that wasn’t enough to teach myself algebra. I gave myself a placement test a few years ago and my math was at a 6th grade level. I couldn’t even pass the GED practice test.
It’s worth noting that sometimes self-taught math can work. Breanne, a participant in the focus group, wrote that she struggled with teaching herself math but ultimately succeeded. Jeffrey, a homeschool alumnus who received a good math education, gave reasons he feels he was successful in teaching himself math.
Breanne: My mom helped with math in elementary grades, but in high school I was just given Saxon books to teach myself. She’d grade the tests. It took me a long time to do math every day because I had to work hard for it. . . . I did end up with A’s and B’s though, because I actually cared about learning.
Jeffrey: I taught myself Calc I and learned it well. . . . [W]hen you write a terrible paragraph, you might not ever figure out how bad it is on your own. But when you get a math problem wrong, you usually can compare it to the answer and immediately find out that it’s wrong. Not that this makes math easy, but it is a significant factor helping self-taught math to be more doable.
Breanne may have learned the material, but she nevertheless described her self-taught math education as a “struggle.” And while Jeffrey was able to use an answer key to figure out the concepts, this is not always possible. In my own experience, the answer key rarely gives any information about how the answer was arrived at, and it’s that process that is so important when learning math. Similarly, different people have different learning styles.
Homeschool parents should not assume that their teenagers will be capable of teaching themselves Algebra or Calculus out of a textbook. Many students need a parent, tutor, or teacher to provide guidance and motivation, especially for a subject like math. Parents who plan to have their children work through a textbook should make an effort to learn the material alongside their children, answering questions and explaining concepts as they go along.
Other options include hiring a math tutor (or arranging a trade with a homeschooling parent who is particularly good at math), or finding a class. In some states homeschooled children are permitted to take one or two classes at their local public high school without enrolling full time. In other states community colleges are open to high school students at a discounted price.
Parental Discouragement
When children attend school, they will likely have a range of teachers that vary in quality. Their teacher one year may be terrible at math or may even tell them that they’re bad at math, but the teacher they have the next year may work to inspire them. For some homeschooled students, however, a parent who dislikes math or discourages them from pursuing the subject may be the only math teacher they ever have. This means what a homeschool parent tells their children about their math ability or about the necessity (or lack thereof) of math takes on an oversized importance.
Some alumni in our focus group reported being actively discouraged from pursuing math by their parents. In some cases this was fairly general—the alumni were told that math was unimportant anyway, or simply that they weren’t good at math—but in other cases it had a gendered aspect.
Rebecca: [My mom] also discouraged me from wanting to study [math] by talking about how useless it was, and that practical math for cooking would be better for me anyway.
Melissa: My mother wasn’t good at math and told me I wasn’t very good at math either.
Jennifer: I was told over and over again from about 3rd grade forward [that I wasn’t good at math] by one or both of my parents. Oh my gosh it made me want to quit altogether.
Jessica: I was in public school from first through fourth grade. My lowest grades were in math,but still ranged in the 90s to a low of 88. For some reason my mom took this to mean math was my weakness. She repeated this to me almost daily my first year of homeschool. She even had me start off in a fourth grade math book to help me “catch up”. I was bored out of my mind by all the divide and check.
Jerusha: [My parents] said I wouldn’t need [math] as a housewife anyway.
Heidi: My mom finally stated that, “Hey . . . what do you need algebra for anyway? You are a girl,” and that was that. At the time I felt happy and relieved. After all, I was going to marry and have babies happily forever after . . . what did I need it for?
Breanne: Mom always said [that] girls’ brains aren’t wired for math. That made things worse, it felt like my struggling was futile.
Homeschool parents need to be aware of the oversized input their feedback has on their children’s math motivation and ability. Parents who don’t like math themselves need to be careful not to pass that on to their children, even accidentally. Children need to be inspired to thoroughly pursue each subject as they search for things they like and are good at. Giving children a negative outlook concerning math closes doors that should remain open.
Learning Disabilities
Some children have learning disabilities. Unfortunately, while teachers are trained in recognizing learning disabilities and providing intervention, many homeschool parents may not understand that they are dealing with a learning disability until much too late. Homeschool parents need to educate themselves in warning signs that may point to learning disabilities and be willing to have their children tested for learning disabilities should such signs appear. Once a learning disability is identified, parents need to provide support and look for resources.
Bethany: My learning disability got in the way of my ability to learn math. . . . For a short time when I was in grade school, I had a specialist teach me math and I performed well. . . . He seemed to understand me and my dyslexia. He had me doing math above my grade. I fell behind again when I was homeschooled. Later–much later–I was tested at a local College. I tested 5th grade level for math and I was 26 years old. I went to the class they held as the lowest one could take in college. I felt deep shame. . . . Like my earlier learning specialist, they seemed to get my brain. I aced the class. . . . The bottom line was that I require explanations and practice that are more suited for my manual brain.
Melissa: There is no doubt based on what I do on a day to day basis that I am fairly mathematically inclined, though I think it’s possible I have some kind of learning disability since I can be a bit slow at times to pick certain things up. Based on kids I’ve worked with I think I may have dyspraxia, which would explain why I suddenly seemed so skilled once I had access to computers, since people with this disorder have trouble with writing out equations and that kind of thing.
Jennyfer: I have dyscalculia. My private school couldn’t deal with it, the public school in the area would have put me in the special ed holding tank, so I was homeschooled due to it. I was never able to achieve more than 5th grade, even with lots of tutoring. They eventually just gave up.
Some children are homeschooled due to learning disabilities. In these cases, parents hope to give their children better than what they were receiving in the local public schools. But doing this isn’t easy, and requires a lot of effort and the willingness to look for a new solution when one thing isn’t working. Homeschooling parents of children with learning disabilities need to be careful not to give up before they have sought out and exhausted the resources available.
Choosing a Curriculum
Homeschool parents have a variety of math curriculum available to them, and can easily shop around online or at homeschool conventions. Parents need to work to educate themselves on best practices and ensure that they thoroughly review each curriculum they choose. Some alumni in our focus group spoke of using curricula or math programs that simply did not work for them.
Melissa: My mother’s version of math education was . . . not good and mainly focused on memorization, which never stuck anyway. My mother said I had to do them over and over again because “you won’t always have a calculator.”
Liz: Eventually, Mom purchased this program at a homeschool conference called “Algebra VideoText”, where the instructor explained everything on VHS tapes and there was a hotline to call if you had problems. For the rest of high school I slogged through that program by myself, dutifully watching all the videos and completing the modules, and eventually “completed” it, without understanding much of what was being presented or retaining it at all. The help-line guy was MEAN (“What’s the matter with you? This is basic! There’s no reason you shouldn’t understand this!’) and after a while, I quit calling him.
Once a curriculum has been selected and purchased, homeschool parents need to pay attention to whether or not it is working for their children. This can be more difficult when a child is working more independently, but should be possible through frequent communication and through working through a curricula alongside a child. Homeschool parents need to be willing to changed their curriculum plans when a given program is not working.
Then Came College
In many cases, homeschooled students who struggle with math may have the ability to do well but not the interaction or resources they need to excel. This was the case for a number of alumni in our focus group, who were eager to speak of their experiences in college, where having a class and a teacher turned things around for them.
Jerusha: I tested into a remedial class and loved it. Turns out I’m really good at learning algebra from a teacher.
Jai: I had to take one remedial math class in community college six years later in order to get up to Algebra 1 speed, but I had a teacher that was amazing and spent time to answer my questions and look over my work with me.
Katharina: Having a teacher and college tutors really changed things for me.
Liz: The math course I had to take in college was what my mom called “math for dummies,” but I did OK in it because there was an actual teacher who explained stuff. I think I got an A.
Acacia: The summer before I entered public high school, I had to go to Sylvan Learning Center to catch up on everything I missed, even though I was relatively good at math and picked it up way faster than they expected.
Impacted Futures
Unfortunately, while many homeschool alumni who previously struggled with math may find themselves able to succeed with an actual class and teacher once in college, this does not mean that their deficient homeschool math education does not shape their future and their career choices.
Melissa: I LOVED science, so I wanted to be good at math. But I didn’t have a good background in math or how to study it, so I floundered once I got to school in high school and ended up giving up on my dreams of being a scientist. In college I was finally able to take some remedial classes, but still didn’t quite catch up. By accident I ended up doing tech for a living, which I do OK at, but I feel I regularly get passed up for promotions and have hit a ceiling because of my deficient background.
Anna-Brit: There was 110 point gap between my critical reading and math scores on my SATs. I ended up minoring in statistics in college, but fear of the prerequisite four levels of calculus prevented me from majoring in it, to my shame.
Liz: To this day, I stay far away from math. Maybe I would be good at it if I’d had some actual instruction, I don’t know.
Heidi: I went on to conquer statistics for my Bachelors and am now happily working on my Masters. But to pass the algebra I got help from everyone I could think of . . . school tutor, my drummer from worship team, and my baby brother who also put himself through school.
Savannah: This experience [failure to teach myself high school math from a textbook] has ingrained my fear and hate of all things math and science related, and in turn pushed me away from higher education in embarrassment of my skills.
Final Focus Group Thoughts
While experiential learning can often be extremely helpful, it should not be a replacement for more academic study of math. There is only so much math that can be learned from cooking, or from balancing checkbooks. For most children, higher-level math like algebra will require more than experiential learning.
Jerusha: One year my “math” was to make an answer key for an antiquated book on arithmetic for agriculture. I think it was used by the Amish. Balancing my parents’ checkbooks, paying the bills, and keeping my dad’s business ledger also counted as math.
In some cases, children’s success in other areas may mean that their parents do not notice their struggles and deficiencies in math. Parents need to be proactive and pay close attention to their children’s progress in math.
Katharina: I do remember feeling quite defeatist in high school, and my poor math skills were the reason I never finished my chemistry course either, too much math…but as my outstanding strengths were in verbal reasoning/writing, it never occurred to me or my mom to address those deficits, you know?
Finally, while a deficient math education can hold young adults back and make their lives more difficult, some will push through in spite of it all.
Savannah: I have turned a new leaf and am in my first ever math class (remedial college course) catching up with things I never knew! I am determined because I am sure once I am able to understand it from a qualified teacher, I will cease to be so unnerved!
Successful Stories
And now we turn briefly to our smaller focus group of homeschool alumni with good experiences. Our main focus in this article has been how things can fail, so we want to finish with a brief picture of how things can go well
Emilie: My mom was passionate in teaching all subjects, and mathematics was no exception. In elementary school, she used a conceptual math curriculum which we worked through together using manipulatives and other various real life examples to understand arithmetic. We were not tied to this curriculum, however, as we found its algebra book confusing. For algebra and geometry we carefully switched to another program that was well-reviewed and also emphasized conceptual understanding. For my last two years of high school, I took Precalculus Algebra and Trigonometry, followed by Calculus I and II at the community college, as they were beyond my mom’s expertise. The teaching I received there was excellent and allowed me to take Calculus III and Differential Equations as a freshman. (My younger sister also took calculus-based physics and an introductory engineering class while still in high school.) Mathematics may not have been my mom’s favorite subject, but it ended up being mine, and she opened all the necessary doors for me and my siblings to explore it.
Nathan: I was mostly self-taught from Saxon textbooks, my parents weren’t in a position to teach me anything advanced. I joined a MathCounts team made up of other students from our regional group. There was one engineer dad in the group who really accelerated our progress, and some of the other parents were really good at teaching us to assess every problem from a logical perspective and find not just the solution, but the best, fastest path to that solution. Everybody on that team was a total math dork by the end. We even took turns teaching each other on occasion (with supervision), because it helped us solidify the concepts in our own minds AND helped us all pick up things that the others were good at, which improved both our math skills and our ability to optimally function as a team during the cooperative portions of the competition.
Isaac: In retrospect, I think the mathematical education provided by my parents was highly successful. I think there are two particular aspects of my math instruction that were unique and provided immense benefit. First, my parents had a strong emphasis on understanding my learning style and providing curricula tailored to me. My parents were not tied to a single textbook and were attentive to my feedback, as well as maintaining their own assessments and backing them up with external standardized tests. Second, my parents stringently insisted that I absolute master a concept before moving on. I was able to take Algebra early, but struggled with the abstract concepts and was required to re-take the entire course. With a different curriculum and another semester to work on the material, I began to thrive and even enjoy the concepts. Having now worked with professional mathematicians, I see some of my parent’s weaknesses; they could have focused more on enabling independent discovery as a child and answering my sometimes more probing questions in deeper ways. However, they recognized their limitations and sought professional external math instruction after Algebra, which was also superlative and placed me in the very beneficial relationship with math I enjoy today.
Strong levels of parental involvement, a willingness to change curriculum to suit a child’s learning style, community college courses, math clubs or other extracurriculars—these things can provide children with the guidance and motivation they need to not just succeed at math but actually excell. Yes, all of these take more effort than simply handing a child a textbook and telling them to learn it. But then, whoever said homeschooling would be easy?