Does your state require a minimum education in order to homeschool?

[PeachyDoodle]

It's Friday night, I'm bored, and I'm following a discussion elsewhere about a family that wants to homeschool in my state but does not meet the quite basic minimum education requirements to do so. 

Some people in the discussion seem to think this is a bad thing.

So I'm just curious: Does your state (or government entity) require a minimum education in order to allow you to homeschool? Do you think it's too much? Too little? Just right?

[TechWife]

My state requires that one parent have a high school diploma.

[Guest]

Mine does not. I tend to think at least a high school diploma or equivalent should be required, but I don’t know - some people graduate from high school and are still pretty ignorant. 

I do have a hard time with it when I read in the homeschool group on FB for my state and some people have really atrocious language arts skills evident in their posts. I cringe. But I was also a math imbecile when I first started homeschooling so there is always hope that they will learn along with their kids. 

[Garga]

Have to have a high school diploma.

[Arcadia]

No requirements in California other than filing a Private School Affidavit annually which doesn’t even require the names of my kids. The parents in the Fairfield, California child abuse case didn’t file a Private School Affidavit apparently. 

[marbel]

In PA, a high school diploma a required.

[DawnM]

HS diploma

[Wheres Toto]

No requirements in NJ.  I don't think requiring a high school diploma or equivalent is unreasonable.

[EKS]

My state requires 45 college credits (I assume this is quarter credits, so 9 courses).  If you don't have that, you can take a special class.

 

[Mimm]

No and no, I don't think they should require a high school diploma until a high school diploma is of some value.

I don't personally officially have one. I was homeschooled in TX, then went to college. I have a bachelore's degree which probably would negate the need for a high school diploma.

[Clemsondana]

In TN, if you register with the county, you need a high school diploma to homeschool K-8 and a college degree to teach high school.  I would assume that if you umbrella through a private school that there are similar rules, but I don't remember what I filled out on my 'new family application' when we switched.  So, I guess I don't know for sure what state rules are but I'd assume that that's why the county requirements are written that way.  

[Targhee]

Home state of WA does (or you can take a course in lieu of this, or have oversight from a qualified teacher)

Current state of UT no

I am not sure what I think about this. First, there are plenty of intelligent and capable people who could homeschool that have never gone to college. Second, there are some real senseless people who have some minimum college courses. Third, I believe in the rights of parents to be able to educate their children.  However, I wish there were a legitimate way to ensure that homeschooled children receive a basic education.  But honestly I can’t ensure that at public school, though there’s a good chance it will happen there.

The people on WTM I think reflect a narrow band of the homeschooling spectrum - academically focused, involved, general with some higher education (often those with multiple degrees).  That is in no way to say we are better, just that opinions mostly reflect a small section of Homeschoolers.

[misty.warden]

Kinda. Having 45 college credits is one possible way to qualify, but you can also take a Parent Qualifying Course (no diploma or college required), elect to be overseen by a licensed teacher, or get approval by your district superintendent. 

Interesting note: there is no specification as to what kind of college classes you must use to qualify and you’re not required to disclose how you qualify unless you’re being overseen by a teacher. 

[wendyroo]

In MI it is a bit complicated.

In general you do not have to register in any way, and therefore there are no parent education requirements.  However, if you want to access special ed services (or other public school resources) then you do have to register as a nonpublic school.  To register your homeschool, one parent must have a bachelors degree.  However, there is a religious exemption, so if a parent holds a "sincerely held religious belief against teacher certification", then the requirement is waived.

Wendy 

[PeachyDoodle]

7 minutes ago, wendyroo said:

In MI it is a bit complicated.

In general you do not have to register in any way, and therefore there are no parent education requirements.  However, if you want to access special ed services (or other public school resources) then you do have to register as a nonpublic school.  To register your homeschool, one parent must have a bachelors degree.  However, there is a religious exemption, so if a parent holds a "sincerely held religious belief against teacher certification", then the requirement is waived.

Wendy 

Interesting. Does that mean "sincerely held religious belief against teacher certification" in general, or specifically in regards to homeschooling?

[Heatherwith4]

No.  I’m in Alabama.  

[LMD]

Nope.

And as I'm an ideological homeschooler I would oppose such a suggestion. Part of why I homeschool is because I believe that education can be found outside institutions. Another part is because I believe in parental rights to choose their children's education as per the UN UDHR article 26.3 which doesn't discriminate based on the parent's education.

[wendyroo]

39 minutes ago, PeachyDoodle said:

Interesting. Does that mean "sincerely held religious belief against teacher certification" in general, or specifically in regards to homeschooling?

I honestly don't have a clue.  That is the sum total that the law has to say on the subject.  I do know that if I wanted to access special ed services for my child and I did not have a bachelors degree that I would not hesitate to obfuscate about my religious beliefs.  It seems ridiculous that they don't care what credentials you have to teach your own child, but if you are not well enough educated they will not allow you to outsource some of the teaching to the public school.  ?

Wendy

[Knock]

In Texas, there is no minimum. And we can homeschool other people's children, too.

[teachermom2834]

In TN if you don’t have the required diplomas to register through the school system (hs for k-8, college for high school) you can register through an umbrella school. Many homeschoolers here do not have college and some do not have high school but using an umbrella school makes homeschooling possible for those families. 

[nixpix5]

WA requires a minimum standard or you need to take a training or be overseen by a certificated teacher. 

[Ellie]

4 hours ago, PeachyDoodle said:

It's Friday night, I'm bored, and I'm following a discussion elsewhere about a family that wants to homeschool in my state but does not meet the quite basic minimum education requirements to do so. 

Some people in the discussion seem to think this is a bad thing.

So I'm just curious: Does your state (or government entity) require a minimum education in order to allow you to homeschool? Do you think it's too much? Too little? Just right?

No.

Texas has no requirements at all. California required teachers in private schools (which is what homeschoolers are) to be "persons capable of teaching." There was no definition of what that meant, although of course public school people were sure it meant certified teachers. ::rolls eyes::

[Ellie]

3 hours ago, Where's Toto? said:

No requirements in NJ.  I don't think requiring a high school diploma or equivalent is unreasonable.

And yet we have all heard of the many people who graduated from high school functionally illiterate, so having that diploma doesn't necessarily mean anything...

[Targhee]

2 minutes ago, Ellie said:

And yet we have all heard of the many people who graduated from high school functionally illiterate, so having that diploma doesn't necessarily mean anything...

A standard is elusive and beyond the capacity (and funding. And interest) of most governments.

[Melissa in Australia]

No

i did not complete high school. When I was at high school only the students who were going to university completed year 11 & 12. Everyone else left at the end of year 10 and went to work. Students who started apprenticeship left at the end of year 9. I left at the end of year 10 .

it was only after I started homeschooling that I realised I could go to university. I studied my degree while homeschooling. 

[Carrie12345]

HS diploma or equivalent.  However, the law doesn't require evidence beyond the affidavit.

I'm fully aware that a diploma or passing test doesn't guarantee greater skills than a high school drop out, but I still stand by it.  I feel like, if someone is capable of overseeing and arranging their children's educations, surely they're capable of taking and passing the GED.  If there are extraordinary barriers to doing that, how will those same barriers impact the homeschool?  (Just noodling.)

 

ETA: Posting with an American bias.

[LucyStoner]

45 (quarter) credit hours of college (that’s 1 year on the quarter credit system)

or

Take a parent qualifying course (a few hours)

or

have your homeschool suoervised by a teacher

or

be deemed qualified by the local school superintendent 

Most homeschoolers I know are college graduates.  I’ve only known a few who had to take the class.  I have zero issue with the education requirement.  

[Wheres Toto]

10 hours ago, Ellie said:

And yet we have all heard of the many people who graduated from high school functionally illiterate, so having that diploma doesn't necessarily mean anything...

 

Sure, but as a minimum it doesn't seem unreasonable.  

I kind of like what Lucy Stoner posted - it gives a variety of options.  Lots of very smart people have trouble with testing so I like seeing other paths.

[PeachyDoodle]

6 minutes ago, Where's Toto? said:

 

Sure, but as a minimum it doesn't seem unreasonable.  

I kind of like what Lucy Stoner posted - it gives a variety of options.  Lots of very smart people have trouble with testing so I like seeing other paths.

I agree. My state requires a high school diploma or equivalent. For those who don't have a diploma, the options are to take the GED or to find another operating homeschool to take your student. Only one of the parents/guardians has to have a diploma, and it doesn't have to be the one who's doing the primary teaching.

While it's not a guarantee of anything, of course, I don't see it as overreach, and I tend to be pretty libertarian. I do think adding an option such as a class or oversight by a licensed teacher is a reasonable alternative, and not a bad idea.

Someone here (or maybe it was in the other discussion?) mentioned not being able to find their high school diploma. I was able to use my college diploma without any problem. I believe a copy of a high school transcript was also acceptable, which could have been obtained from the school without much trouble. 

[Dmmetler]

14 hours ago, ClemsonDana said:

In TN, if you register with the county, you need a high school diploma to homeschool K-8 and a college degree to teach high school.  I would assume that if you umbrella through a private school that there are similar rules, but I don't remember what I filled out on my 'new family application' when we switched.  So, I guess I don't know for sure what state rules are but I'd assume that that's why the county requirements are written that way.  

 

12 hours ago, teachermom2834 said:

In TN if you don’t have the required diplomas to register through the school system (hs for k-8, college for high school) you can register through an umbrella school. Many homeschoolers here do not have college and some do not have high school but using an umbrella school makes homeschooling possible for those families. 

Some umbrellas do require the higher level of education for the parent as well. Ironically, those also tend to be the ones that are far more prescriptive as to what you do.

[ashfern]

Parent has to have high school diploma or equivalent. Tutors need a BS or equivalent.

[Desert Strawberry]

No. Not in Louisiana or Arizona.

 

I'm not in favor of homeschool regulation in general.

[Mommyof1]

Ours just have to be competent. 

Honestly, a lot of my high school teachers wouldn't qualify under that definition. I had teachers that were obviously using drugs, some punished the students by refusing to help the students with classwork, a teacher so "impaired" that when asked about what they just said, about the class subject, would look confused and say that had nothing to do with it. That class was headache inducing, from slapping ourselves on the head or banging it on the desk out of frustration. It wasn't just me, it became a class joke. We bonded as a class over it though. Some didn't want to be there and it showed. They took there frustrations it out on us.

I did have a handful of teachers that wanted to teach and were there to help us learn. I appreciate all they did. They were real teachers and very competent.

I know not everybody had my experience in high school. It wasn't recent experience either. It was more then 30 yrs ago.

I am competent to teach my DD5. If there comes a time that I'm tapped out and my limit has been reached. I would need someone who can take her higher than I can. If that time ever comes...we shall see. It's about what's best for DD.

[Ellie]

1 hour ago, Where's Toto? said:

 

Sure, but as a minimum it doesn't seem unreasonable.  

I kind of like what Lucy Stoner posted - it gives a variety of options.  Lots of very smart people have trouble with testing so I like seeing other paths.

I'm not a fan of regulating homeschooling at all, so there's that. :-)

There are many people who did not earn a high school diploma or go to college but who are well educated. It would be tragic for them not to be able to teach their own children at home without having to jump through some paperwork hoops, which could take months, because they want to teach their own children--not yours or mine, but their own--at home.

[gardenmom5]

yes- minimum standard, I don't remember how many college credits are required.

it can be waived by taking a homeschooling class - or having someone else who meets the standards supervise you.  (your choice whom.)

[MinivanMom]

Our state requires that the parent have a high school diploma. You must provide the state with a copy of your hs or college diploma when you first register as a homeschooler.

When I was starting out as a homeschooler, I thought the requirement was just about right. Of course, I had little children, and most of my homeschooling friends also had little children. Now that I've been homeschooling for many years, I wonder if TN's requirement (hs degree for K-8, college degree to homeschool high school) might be better. I have seen too many unfortunate situations recently involving parents who are homeschooling (or attempting to homeschool) high school. 

But I also don't believe that parents' rights to choose how their kids are educated trump the kids' rights to access an education. So I'm okay with some common sense standards. Degrees don't always guarantee that someone is well-educated, but they are the best proxy we have.

[Frances]

Oregon doesn’t have a requirement. I never actually thought about it before, but I wonder how a previously homeschooled adult who never went to college would qualify if a high school diploma was required here, unless they accepted one issued by a parent? At least in my circles, it is very uncommon to use any sort of cover school and the state doesn’t issue homeschoolers diplomas, so most homeschool grads don’t have one.

When my son was little, we knew homeschoolers with all types of educational backgrounds. But as he got older, primarily the people who stuck with had at least college degrees and advanced degrees were very common. 

[PeachyDoodle]

10 minutes ago, Frances said:

Oregon doesn’t have a requirement. I never actually thought about it before, but I wonder how a previously homeschooled adult who never went to college would qualify if a high school diploma was required here, unless they accepted one issued by a parent? At least in my circles, it is very uncommon to use any sort of cover school and the state doesn’t issue homeschoolers diplomas, so most homeschool grads don’t have one.

When my son was little, we knew homeschoolers with all types of educational backgrounds. But as he got older, primarily the people who stuck with had at least college degrees and advanced degrees were very common. 

The state doesn't issue diplomas here either, but many homeschooling parents do. Those would be accepted here. I'm not sure why the agency authorizing you to homeschool wouldn't accept a homeschool diploma? And a transcript from the school showing sufficient credits for graduation should work if an actual paper diploma wasn't issued. Barring either of those, it would have to be a GED, I guess.

From the other side, this is why I intend to keep strong records for my kids. It's not unheard of for potential employers to ask for education records, although perhaps not common. But I don't want lack of an official paper trail to become an issue for them down the road, whatever they decide to do.

[Frances]

1 hour ago, PeachyDoodle said:

The state doesn't issue diplomas here either, but many homeschooling parents do. Those would be accepted here. I'm not sure why the agency authorizing you to homeschool wouldn't accept a homeschool diploma? And a transcript from the school showing sufficient credits for graduation should work if an actual paper diploma wasn't issued. Barring either of those, it would have to be a GED, I guess.

From the other side, this is why I intend to keep strong records for my kids. It's not unheard of for potential employers to ask for education records, although perhaps not common. But I don't want lack of an official paper trail to become an issue for them down the road, whatever they decide to do.

It seems though that if anyone was lacking a high school diploma from a brick and mortar school for some reason, they could simply make up a homeschool diploma or transcript if one was needed to be able to register as a homeschool parent.

[Farrar]

DC - yes, a high school diploma. You can apply for an exception.

I have mixed feelings about it. It's a pretty basic requirement and you can get an exemption, so in that sense, I'm not too fussed. I feel like it's one of those things - a hoop for the sake of being a hoop. A bit like attendance policies for homeschoolers. Like, all you have to do is just say my kid was schooled. It's not meaningful. But maybe sometimes hoops are useful just because the people who refuse to jump through them genuinely are hiding something sometimes? Like, if you can't be bothered to tell the state that you did school or dig out your diploma or ask for an exemption, then maybe you aren't being bothered with your child's education in such a way that you shouldn't have the right to homeschool. I don't know. I wish we had data on this... like, in the absence of knowing if having such pointless hoops actually helps kids, I'd tend to err on the side of no pointless requirements or burdens on the homeschool parent, but I do wonder if there might be some regulation along these lines that would help ensure a better homeschool minimum somehow.