Homeschooling: Different methods and statistics

FLAT TOP, WV (WVNS) – Homeschooling is becoming a more popular option for families, and it is raising some important questions on its effectiveness.

Data from the West Virginia Department of Education shows that only 37 percent of families turned in mandatory homeschooling reports.

With homeschooling becoming a more popular form of education, a question is being raised about enforcing the homeschooling code and accountability.

Jamie Buckland, Founder of West Virginia Families United For Education, said she questions the accuracy of this statistic and if the COVID-19 pandemic was considered when it was calculated.

“My concern about the report that’s recently come out from the Department of Education or the State Board of Education, claiming that there’s only a 37 percent compliance rate, is how they came to that number. Coming out of the pandemic, we saw a huge increase in those who were choosing to homeschool because they were in response to everything that was going on in the pandemic,” said Buckland.

Buckland herself has experience in a different form of homeschooling called ‘hybrid homeschooling.’

She told 59News that hybrid homeschooling is not solely on the parents or guardians, but a program that bridges the gap.

“It’s not just mom and dad as the sole instructors. A hybrid school lives in between. Hybrid homeschool programs operate one, two, or three days a week. It’s really a partnership between the parents and the staff at the hybrid school to be the instructors of the children,” said Buckland.

Buckland said the issues are not with the homeschooling code itself, but it mainly falls into the hands of those who are enforcing the code.

She expressed that hybrid homeschooling can be one way for parents and guardians to have access to beneficial resources and accurate information.

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