A Study of Admission Officers' Perceptions of and Attitudes Toward Homeschool Students

Journal of College Admission, Fall 2004 by Jones, Paul, Gloeckner, Gene

Introduction

While the recent growth of homeschooling in America may not be an overall threat to public education in America today, some school districts are reporting that they are experiencing declines in their enrollments, which ultimately means a revenue loss in their school districts (Hetzner, 2000; Vater, 2001 ). The U.S. homeschool population (K-12) is estimated to be growing at a rate of 7-1 5 percent annually. The home-educated population is now expected to be the size of the public school population in Los Angeles and Chicago combined (Hill, 2000).

Before compulsory attendance laws became statutes in all states by the early 190Os, home education was practiced in many American homes. During the 17th and 18th centuries, parents and others were acting as tutors and educators for children in their homes. According to Knowles, Muchmore and Spaulding (1994) in the Native American culture, "Learning from elders through example was typically the only way in which Native American children were educated, and in such environments, education was viewed as being inseparable from life" (Knowles et al., 1994, p. 239). Some notable homeschoolers include William Penn, John Quincy Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Agatha Christie, Pearl Buck (Moore & Moore, 1982) General Douglas MacArthur, Charles Dickens, Andrew Carnegie, and Mark Twain (Gorder, 1987).

Once compulsory attendance became law, the home-education population not only was reduced, but was illegal in many states or seen as a tremendous controversy. Families homeschooling their children in the United States resurfaced as a viable alternative during the late 1960s and early 1970s (Knowles et al., 1994). The many families that elected to homeschool their children were either dissatisfied with public education or were being influenced by the writings of John Holt, one of the biggest critics of public education.

Today, homeschooling is legal in all 50 states. However, in spite of what homeschool families might see as a legal victory, college and university admission officers across the United States continue to grapple with how to address a growing population of the newly graduated homeschooled student that is knocking at the door of admission. It is estimated that the number of homeschooled children between the grades 9-12 is 14,000 (Bielick & Chandler, 2001).

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes and perceptions of college admission personnel toward the homeschooled graduate and, more specifically, to gain an understanding of the attitudes and perceptions of admission personnel, by examining their college admission policies for homeschool applicants and analyzing their attitudes and perceptions of admission personnel toward the homeschooled graduate population. The study was guided by the following research questions: What are the college admission policies for homeschool applicants? What are the attitudes and perceptions of admission personnel toward the homeschooled graduate population?

Method

Subjects

Fifty-five admission officers participated in this study. The admission officers were from institutions belonging to the Hawaii Association for College Admission Counseling, the Pacific Northwest Association for College Admission Counseling, Rocky Mountain Association for College Admission Counseling, and the Western Association for College Admission Counseling.

Only admission officers who were members of four-year institutions from these regional associations were surveyed. All accredited four-year institutional members were sent an electronic survey.

Data Collection and Instruments

Jenkins' (1998) survey instrument served as a model for the present survey. A modified three-part questionnaire was developed to gather data on the homeschool admission policies of four-year colleges and universities in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. The institutions were selected because they represented the entire western and rocky mountain regions of the United States.

Section One of the survey was Institutional Characteristics, which included institutional characteristics including institution type (state-supported, private, or church-affiliated) size, campus setting, and the Carnegie classification type. section Two, Home School Admission Policies, requested information on the institution's admission policies for homeschool graduates. section Three, Attitudes and Perceptions, requested information from admission officers on their perceptions and attitudes toward homeschool graduates.

Data Analyses

Data were collected from a survey containing 15 items. The survey instrument used rating scales, categorical scales, and rank-ordered scales. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and compiled in SPSS for analysis. To answer research question one, survey questions five through seven were analyzed to understand the homeschool admission policies of four-year institutions. To answer research question two, data were summated using questions 10-14 to understand the perceptions and attitudes of admission officers toward the homeschooled graduates expected success in college.