Secular Homeschooling Instills Love for Learning from a Non-Religious Perspective

As with anything out of the mainstream, homeschooling has its fair share of misperceptions. One is that most families that choose to homeschool their children do so for religious reasons. Exacerbated by persistent rumors and pop culture stereotypes played out in films like 2006?s Jesus Camp, many are still under the impression that homeschooling in the United States is a religious phenomena where parents seek to minimize secular society’s impact on their children and instead, insulate them in a fundamental religious worldview. The reality is far different.

According to the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI) there are just over 2 million home-educated students in the United States. While the U.S. Department of Education shares that 83% of these families cite religious education preferences as a reason for pulling their kids out of public schools, only 36% say this is the primary reason for homeschooling their children. 38% of homeschool families say that either dissatisfaction with the school environment or academic instruction are their primary grounds for homeschooling. Read more