TOLD YA SO
Or, more precisely, Tim did.
Whatever the reason behind homeschooling, the trend, Drage noted, is slowly on the decline in Stark County.
“Our numbers are decreasing and … I have a feeling we are going to continue that,†Drage said. “We came to a spike about four or five years ago, and we have been decreasing every year.â€
Jackson schools, for example, had 91 students homeschooled during the 2004-2005 school year. That number dropped to 76 for 2005-2006.
Drage believes there is one factor in particular that has contributed to the decline.
“One of (the reasons), is the digital academies,†Drage said. “I started to see a decline just about the time the digital academies became common among districts. It’s not the only factor, but it is one of the influences.â€
I don’t have a problem with the virtual schools. Parents have the right (even if they don’t know it) to choose whatever educational route seems best to them. And I’m not really all that worried if our numbers aren’t increasing at the 7-10 percent per year that we saw in the ’80s and ’90s. We’re large enough now that the phenomenon will be self-replicating. Assuming, of course, that the folks who are truly legal homeschoolers continue to fight for their freedoms.
A big assumption, I know.
The article quoted above is actually quite good and worth a read.
One Response to “TOLD YA SO”
 Comment by sharon d. August 22nd, 2006 at 1:13 pm |
I agree with Scott. As I’ve mentioned before, our Catholic homeschooling group declined considerably in population when a small, affordable, parent-oriented Catholic academy, run and (mostly) taught by orthodox nuns, started in our town. I believe the population of Catholic homeschoolers will continue to drop as parochial schools become more responsive to parents’ concerns (a change I don’t see forthcoming, ever, from public schools). |