DRAPER, Utah (ABC 4 News) - Are you satisfied with your child’s education? Many parents say “no” and this answer is changing the way thousands of kids are learning in Utah.
Not only are hundreds of parents home schooling their children, but they’re now teaming up to enhance this kind of education in a kind of shared educational system called a co-op. It's designed to help parents and their children experience more outside their realm of teachable material. The topics are varied and don't have to strictly stick with core curriculum subjects.
Sarah McKay helped to organize a co-op of nineteen families in Salt Lake County. About 80 students drive between five different homes for Spanish, choir and Shakespeare classes along with courses like math, reading and science.
McKay says her children can spend ten hours a day learning. “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” she said.
“We get to be in charge of their education. We can get ideas about what they want to be doing everyday. They can follow their passions if they want and need to,” she said.
Homeschool co-ops are forming all over Utah as the homeschooling trend continues to grow, but how do these students stack up to their public school peers?
ABC 4’s Noah Bond too the question to three students in McKay’s homeschool co-op.
“I’m dyslexic so I can’t read quiet at my level so I’m maybe a little below them, but I love homeschool and think I’m right there with them,” said Jared Tew.
“I feel like I excel a little bit than more kids at school because I have more freedom and options,” said Kaylee Bringhurst.
“I don’t know if my math level really stacks up to them as much, but with other subjects like writing I hope I can get better than them,” said Caden McKay.
Numerous studies published on the internet tout homeschooled children score higher on standardized tests than their public school peers, but obviously each student and the environment they’re placed in will develop different results. .
Many homeschooled children do not earn a high school diploma. They must rely on standardized tests like the ACT to gain entrance into a University.
Scores for homeschooled students must be higher than their public school peers.
