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Homeschooling in the USA

Past, present and future

Messiah College, USA, mgaither{at}messiah.edu

This article first examines why the homeschooling movement in the USA emerged in the 1970s, noting the impact of political radicalism both right and left, feminism, suburbanization, and public school bureaucratization and secularization. It then describes how the movement, constituted of left- and right-wing elements, collaborated in the early 1980s to contest hostile legal climates in many states but was taken over by conservative Protestants by the late 1980s because of their superior organization and numerical dominance. Despite internal conflicts, the movement’s goals of legalizing and popularizing homeschooling were realized by the mid-1990s. Since that time homeschooling has grown in popularity and is increasingly being utilized by more mainstream elements of society, often in conjunction with public schools, suggesting that ‘homeschooling’ as a political movement and ideology may have run its course.

Key Words: education • families • homeschooling • social movements

Theory and Research in Education, Vol. 7, No. 3, 331-346 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1477878509343741


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