Northwest states report homeschool surge above pre-pandemic rates

Amid growing interest and opportunities in public education alternatives, families like Cairo Orr’s are finding new ways to balance schooling and unique family challenges, such as Type 1 diabetes.

“I really honestly thought we would just go the traditional route of being in public school,” Cairo’s mom, Sarah Anderson, told the ABC-affiliated KATU news outlet in Oregon.

However, as the family spent more time in the nurse’s office instead of the classroom, Anderson switched to homeschooling her now seventh grade daughter – a choice the family has made for several years.

“I actually really liked homeschool, and still like it,” Orr said. “If I really put my mind to it, I can get my work done in less time, which does allow me to go to extra classes for dance.”

Orr has joined the ranks of families across northwest states such as Oregon and Washington choosing to homeschool, with registrations “close to 40% higher than pre-[COVID-19] pandemic rates,” the outlet reported.

“We’re seeing double the amount of homeschoolers post-pandemic as pre-pandemic,” said Mandy Davis, a former elementary school principal turned homeschool coach. “Our world is changing in so many ways, and the system is just not able to keep up.”

Different requirements by state

As previously reported by The Lion, homeschooling jumped from 3% of the nation’s K-12 students to 11% during the pandemic.

Instead of returning to pre-2020 levels, however, homeschooling still commands a sizable portion of the school population at 6% compared to charter (7%) and private options (9%).

“If your child is very advanced in math and ready to move on, they don’t have to sit and do the same instruction given to 25 kids,” Davis explained, noting homeschool families appreciate the flexibility and freedom of customizing education to individual children.

Homeschool laws vary by state, which means parents often need to adapt their educational approaches based on their residence.

For example, Oregon families need to file a one-time notice of intent to homeschool compared to annual notices required by Washington and California.

“The state also doesn’t require parents to follow state academic standards or keep records of attendance, curriculum or student work,” KATU notes of Oregon’s homeschooling guidelines.

However, longtime research nationwide hasn’t demonstrated any correlation between homeschoolers’ academic achievement and the level of state oversight, the National Home Education Research Institute notes.

“Degree of state control and regulation of homeschooling is not related to academic achievement,” its website concludes, noting homeschoolers typically score 15-25 percentile points above their public-school peers on standardized tests.

“Homeschooling – that is, parent-led home-based education; home education – is an age-old traditional educational practice that a decade ago appeared to be cutting-edge and ‘alternative’ but is now bordering on ‘mainstream’ in the United States.”