Theory and Research in Education current issue

Editorial

Curren, R. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

Home-based education in Sweden: Local variations in forms of regulation

Villalba, C. M. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

In Sweden approximately 100 children a year are in home-based education, which is regulated by local policies that interpret legislation and guide practice. Based on a detailed analysis of documents drawn up in two municipalities, the article highlights different interpretations of the role and requirement of insyn (insight) in the governance and monitoring of home education through municipal authority-home arrangements.

Why state sanctions fail to deter home education: An analysis of home education in Germany and its implications for home education policies

Spiegler, T. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

Home education in Germany is a contravention to the school law, and severe sanctions are applied against it. Despite this, a small home education movement has developed within the last 25 years. This article, after a short overview of home education in Germany, examines the reasons why a policy with sanctions fails to deter homeschooling. Then I point out why the legitimate interests of the state and the child, which are usually given to justify the prohibition of home education, might be better served if home education were legal but regulated and controlled.

Understanding homeschooling: A better approach to regulation

Kunzman, R. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

Drawing from six years of qualitative research, this article analyzes the broad range of proposed and existing homeschool regulations throughout the United States. It argues that current homeschool regulations — and most proposals for how to improve them — misjudge the complexity of such an endeavor; state resources are misused and the basic interests of children are not protected. Theoretical arguments about the relative interests of parents, children and the state are important to consider, but our policies must also recognize the limits of what we can and should demand of this unique form of nonpublic schooling. A more modest approach to regulation that focuses on basic skills testing would ultimately be more effective at helping the students who need it most.

Homeschooling in the USA: Past, present and future

Gaither, M. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

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.

Too cool for school?: Gifted children and homeschooling

Winstanley, C. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

Homeschooling can be a last resort for frustrated families where gifted children are not having their complex needs met through mainstream schooling. Unlike many other groups of homeschoolers, parents of highly able children take this option for pragmatic reasons rather than as a kind of moral stance. This article explores some of the ways that standard schools fail gifted children and presents the perspectives of families who have made the choice to remove their gifted children from the mainstream education system. The difficulties inherent in researching both homeschooling and gifted education are also highlighted.

Can intimacy justify home education?

Merry, M. S., Howell, C. — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:46:41 PDT

Many parents cite intimacy as one of their reasons for deciding to educate at home. It seems intuitively obvious that home education is conducive to intimacy because of the increased time families spend together. Yet what is not clear is whether intimacy can provide justification for one’s decision to home educate. To see whether this is so, we introduce the concept of ‘attentive parenting’, which encompasses a set of family characteristics, and we examine whether and under what conditions attentive parents risk loss of intimacy by sending their children to school; or, alternatively, whether they can avoid this risk by educating children at home. What we will determine is whether families who exhibit the specified characteristics are prima facie justified in educating their children at home under the conditions of interest. We argue that, for attentive parents, home education not only promotes greater intimacy, but also provides insurance against the loss of intimacy that may occur under certain conditions when children attend schools.