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Education survey reveals 'head-scratching' results

A new survey on education reveals some surprising results when it comes to public versus private education.

 

The survey -- conducted by Ellison Research -- asked Americans to rate the overall quality of education students get from public schools, home schooling, charter schools, and three types of private schools: non-religious, Catholic, and Christian.
 
On a five-point scale, the average rating a public school education received was 3.0.  Next came home schooling with an average rating of 3.14, and then charter schools with an average rating of 3.41. Private Christian schools received an average rating of 3.69, with Catholic schools receiving an average rating of 3.74. The highest-rated schools were private non-religious schools, with an average rating of 3.86.
 
Ron Sellers, president of Ellison Research, says he was surprised at how Americans perceived home schooling. "Even the non-religious American, and even the politically liberal American, had views of home schooling that were very similar to how they viewed public schools, or slightly better," he notes. "So one of the surprises of the study was the fact that home schooling is becoming more of an accepted form of education in the U.S."
 
Another surprise, says Sellers, is the fact that while public schools received lower ratings, many people feel as though public schools better prepare children for real life.

"Americans, oddly enough, believe that kids get a better overall quality of education outside of public schools -- they get a better education on the basics such as reading and math and science outside of public schools," he says of the study results. "But who prepares students best for life after graduation? Public schools." That, he admits, was a "bit of a head scratcher."
 
Sellers believes the study will upset many educators, but that he is hopeful the survey will prompt educators to re-examine their methods and motives. The study polled more than 1,000 people in all 50 states.

Keep in mind that the above survey is a personal opinion survey and does not have anything to do with actual statistics.

Home School Legal Defense Association recently asked The College Board, publisher of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), if they could tell us how home schoolers were doing on this college preparatory test. The following information is excerpted from the College Board's May 2, 2001 fax.

The College Board only has data on home-schooled SAT-takers in the high school graduating classes of 1999 and 2000.

The numbers and percentages of home-schooled SAT takers has risen slightly in those two years:

    * In 1999, 3,116 of 1,220,130 high school graduates with SAT scores (0.25 percent) said they were home-schooled.

    * In 2000, 5,663 of 1,260,278 high school graduates with SAT scores (0.45 percent) said they were home-schooled.

In 2000, the group of home-schooled SAT takers also had higher SAT averages:

    * The average SAT scores of home-schooled students were 568 Verbal and 532 Math, above the national averages of 505 Verbal and 514 Math.

    * Among home schoolers---men's scores were 568 Verbal and 554 Math (vs. 507 Verbal and 533 Math nationwide); and women's scores were 568 Verbal and 513 Math (vs. 504 Verbal and 498 Math nationwide).

    * Males were 46 percent of both the home-schooled and the national SAT populations, and women comprised 54 percent of both populations.



    * FACT: Homeschool students are performing at one or more grade levels above their age-level public and private school peers (Rudner, 1999).

    * FACT: By eighth grade, the average home-educated student "performs four grade levels above the national average" (Basham, 2001, 12).

    * FACT: Homeschool students have consistently surpassed the national averages for ACT (22.7 vs. 21) and SAT scores (1,083 vs. 1,016) (Basham, 2001, 12).

    * FACT: Of the general U.S. population ages 18 to 24, "46.2% had attained some college courses or higher" while "74.2% of the home-educated had attained some college courses or higher" (Ray, 2004).

    * FACT: Over 900 public and private colleges and universities readily accept homeschool applicants including many prestigious institutions such as Harvard, Princeton, and Yale (Bunday, 2000).

    # FACT: The typical homeschooled pupil engages in 5.2 extracurricular social activities outside the home like sports, church groups, dance, scouts, play groups, etc. (Basham, 2001, 13).

    # FACT: 71% of homeschooled adults actively participate in ongoing community service projects compared to 39% of the general population (Ray, 2004).

    # FACT: Home-educated students have significantly lower behavioral problems than their conventional school peers and have a higher self-esteem (NHERI, 2004).

    # FACT: Homeschooled children are "more mature and better socialized than are those sent to either public or private school" and data suggests they are "friendlier than their public school peers, as well as more independent of peer values as they grow older." They are also found to be "happier, better adjusted, more thoughtful, competent, and sociable children" (Basham, 2001. 14).

    # FACT: Each state has at least one homeschool association and 85% of homeschoolers either belong to one or plan to join one. Such organizations "offer students the chance to interact with other homeschoolers" of various ages (Basham, 2001, 14).

    # FACT: Dr. Knowles, from the University of Michigan, found that of the home-educated adults he interviewed for his study, none were unemployed or on welfare. 94% stated that their homeschooling had prepared them for life as an independent person. 79% indicated that they were better able to "interact with individuals form different levels of society," and nearly all would home school their own children (NHERI, 2004).