Home School Heartbeat Radio Program

Today on Home School Heartbeat, Mike Smith talks about a new study which demonstrates the social success of homeschooling.

Mike Smith:
Dr. Brian Ray is with me today. Your new study Homeschooling Grows Up demonstrates the social success of homeschoolers. Brian, what should homeschooling parents take away from this study?

Dr. Ray:
I think that homeschool parents can be very encouraged.


I'm amazed when I talk with homeschoolers how many parents—especially moms—feel totally inadequate. Now this is a mom and a dad who have been homeschooling for seven years, they've always tested the children with achievement tests (they're always scoring at the 90th percentile), and they still say, "I don't know whether we can do it!" Now what this study shows them is that there's many ways that they are doing the right thing despite their fears, despite the voices of other people.


I give a talk called "Swimming Upstream," and I think that oftentimes people think, "Well, I think that I could do it till they're 10 or 12 years old." But what this shows me is that right through high school, these parents are doing an excellent job, and their children are learning day by day that they're given a task, they have a principle on which to base their activities, they do it, and they're not experiencing the defeats that people do in institutional schools.


So this study shows me that these young adults who are homeschooled are doing well into adulthood and parents should be encouraged by that.


Mike:
Well, Brian, thank you, because that's very encouraging to all of us homeschoolers that are looking to homeschool a high schooler, for instance. Listeners, join us next time as we continue our discussion about homeschooling growing up. I'm Mike Smith.