Homeschooling in MA?

[Mommamia]

I was wondering if MA was an easy state to report to. Also, is MA a homeschool friendly state?

 

Thanks!

[SilverFirefly]

We are in MA, but have not had to report yet since DS is still officially in pre-school. I'll share what I've gathered in my research, but keep in mind that I don't have first hand experience. MA is a bit different than most states as far as homeschooling goes. There is no actual law on the books concerning homeschooling, so it is governed by case law. You have to submit an education plan, you have to provide an education that is "equivalent" (e.g. subjects to be taught and number of hours), and submit some form of assessment (e.g. standardized test scores, portfolio, or annual progress report). MA has a reputation as being difficult to homeschool in, but from what I have heard this generally isn't the case. The catch is that each homeschool reports to the school district they reside in rather than the state, so sometimes an individual school district can be difficult to work with or try to overstep their actual legal authority. The homeschoolers I've talked to in my area haven't had any problems. I've found the links under "legal information" on this site helpful: http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/regional/Massachusetts.htm

Hope that helps.

Elizabeth

[Sahamamama]

:bigear: Listening in.

[Matryoshka]

Generally, it's very easy. I've been homeschooling for over a decade, and reporting for 9, and I just send one piece of mail a year in with a brief overview of what we did and what we plan, and that's it. You're not bound to your plan, there's no requirement for testing (although it's an option if you want to use it), no meetings with an evaluator or anyone else.

 

However, there are individual towns with superintendents that think they have way more power than they do. If you know your rights, you can stand up for them, but a petty tyrant can cause trouble for people.

 

If you're thinking of moving here, just tell people the area you're moving to and ask about homeschool-friendly towns on the MHLA email list.

[paceofnature]

We live in a lower income city in MA and the school dept has enough on it's plate managing the schools, MCAS scores and keeping the state from taking over the school dept...so we have no problems at all, they pay very little attention to homeschoolers. Like matroyshka, we just send in a letter stating how the previous year went and our intent to continue homeschooling the following year. We have never received anything back except for our first year. I have heard of some towns with new superintendents who are difficult, but as long as you are informed of what is/isn't required you should have no problems.

[Hunter]

Back in the 90's and early 2000's I homeschooled my boys in MA. I haven't heard that much has changed, but...what do I know?

 

With no actual laws it was a game of chicken sometimes. Some years the school board was all over me, and others--after my son's unusual testing--they didn't even respond to my letters and phonecalls, and I didn't even have to file at all.

 

I used to write very vague letters listing hours a year per subject, not a daily schedule. I also used a lot of "at least" and listed the minimum. I added the phrase " and self-instruction" to all comments about teaching. All subjects listed a nauseatingly long list of resources and the phrase "subject to change".

 

The school board fought me--before the testing--but I stood firm and they always accepted my plans. After awhile other homeschoolers started copying my paperwork and after being threatened, they were all accepted, too.

 

It's different in every town, and different with each child, and different every year. Seriously, the whole scene can change overnight with staff changes and MCAS rules, and what labels your kid has, and what town you live in.

[Lizzie in Ma]

It depends on where you are, every school can make it's own policies but they can exceed the regulations they work under, though they try.

I have to send in my annual letter of intent and home ed plan and we have to report progress twice a year but the next town over doesn't even care.

This is our homeschool group blog, on the left there are great links for homeschooling in Ma.

http://capecodpace.blogspot.com/

[KAM]

It varies town to town. Here, I have to report the year they turn 6. I send in an ed plan each June for the next school year along with work samples from the year we just finished and complete a simple application. MHLA is a good place to get more info.