Comments on: Researching homeschooling, we need a new direction

By: Brian D. Ray and NHERI, part 2 « Homeschooling Research Notes

Brian D. Ray and NHERI, part 2 « Homeschooling Research Notes — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 17:10:35 +0000

[...] Dana Hanley at Principled Discovery, was not upset like some are at the idea of researching homeschoolers, but she reacted negatively toward HSLDA’s tendency to accept the Standardized Test paradigm of intelligence. Many of her readers seem to agree. [...]

By: Principled Discovery » A more concrete objection to testing homeschools

Principled Discovery » A more concrete objection to testing homeschools — Mon, 05 May 2008 06:25:48 +0000

[...] Thirst for Freedom posted a nice entry regarding my post about researching homeschooling which received an interesting comment from Casper about homeschoolers and testing. With the [...]

By: Principled Discovery » I’m not quite over homeschooling

Principled Discovery » I’m not quite over homeschooling — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 06:05:54 +0000

[...] no longer have to “prove” ourselves. Some information is probably necessary, but the continual appeal to standardized test scores brings with it the inevitable question, “So why do you object to them?” The real goal [...]

By: Susan

Susan — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 21:41:15 +0000

I’m also concerned about the potential by HSLDA to use selective test results in a political way. They documented this below in the HoNDA legislation. From HR 2732:
“(3) Education by parents at home has proven to be an effective means for young people to achieve success on standardized tests and to learn valuable socialization skills.”

Did homeschoolers ask them to do this (legislation and “success on standardized tests” findings), let alone the bill itself? I don’t think so. Success on standardized tests and valuable socialization skills in federal legislation sounds like a sound bite catering to the ps sort of tastes. Yikes

The NCES 2003 study includes homeschoolers as kids who are in school 25 hours or less. *Not discounting a family educational choice*, where is the essence of homeschooling (time and autonomy), if you’re in a classroom 5 hours/day? Why did NCES use this as their ’scientific’ criteria? What sort of survey is this when several states are deleted from this study as the State doesn’t know (officially) where we’re at? The NCES study is touted all over the media as meaningful. Even in IL media, where we’re one of the uncounted. I thought the scientific basis for these studies was unfortunate.

If a question is asked, there must be an answer. How is the right answer determined and who determines it?

Lots of questions for me related to the history of ‘home school’ surveys. Which makes me feeling better safe than sorry. I don’t think I want surveys for my family from anyone. Mark Twain’s quote of Disraeli always comes to my mind.

By: Dana

Dana — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 21:55:15 +0000

Quantitative as a perjorative…that’s funny. I don’t object categorically to research. After all, when I contacted a bunch of homeschool graduates for an article, I was conducting research. It’s what humans do when they want to know something.

I just don’t like the way this one is set up. And I don’t need standardized test scores from the CAT-5 to demonstrate to the legislature why we shouldn’t be tested. I don’t think most legislatures today are worried about the success of homeschooling…they are looking for ways to measure what is going on in the midst of an accountability testing era.

By: Crimson Wife

Crimson Wife — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 18:17:43 +0000

Perhaps it’s just my bias from having studied science in college, but I don’t get all the objections to doing research studies on homeschooling. I read that Kaseman article linked to on the HEM site, and it sounded like a diatribe against numbers. I’ve never heard the term “quantitative” used pejoratively before…

By: Life On The Planet

Life On The Planet — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 02:59:42 +0000

My of my main objections to the use of standardized tests is that they are seldom used in the way in which they were designed to be used. School systems mis-use and abuse them in so many ways that they can’t really be considered as valid, can they?

By: Dana

Dana — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 21:13:14 +0000

I agree with all of you. I don’t have a problem with the use of standardized tests by homeschoolers…it is a measure of success, it just isn’t the only one. It seems to me that perhaps HSLDA is still a little stuck on proving that homeschooling is a valid educational alternative. Really, it seems to me that at this point, most Americans agree. Their concern rests on what might happen and on how to guarantee that children are receiving “something like an education.”

Standardized testing seems an easy solution, but as Hardenbergh’s paper points out so well, this kind of testing is problematic for a few very significant reasons. Perhaps as America’s opinion on homeschooling evolves, the arguments we put forth in our defense should evolve as well.

By: Dana

Dana — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 21:02:28 +0000

I’m not familiar with Typepad, but Typepad has written some instructions here

Hope that helps.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 20:36:11 +0000

“critics point to the voluntary opt-in aspect and claim that it invalidates the study.”
This is a good point. But the SATs and ACTs are voluntary tests which are generally only opted for by the cream of the academic crop. And yet even in that scenario, the cream of the homeschool crop scores an average of a few points higher than the cream of the rest of the crop, which would seem to indicate that home education offers an overall advantage. Now, if you take state mandated public school test scores and compare them with voluntary homeschool test scores, that would be comparing apples and oranges.