Home Schooling on the Rise

The U.S. Education Department has released figures indicating that home schooling is on the rise across America. USA Today reports:

"As of the spring of 2007, an estimated 1.5 million, or 2.9% of all school-age children in the USA, were homeschooled, up from 850,000 (or 1.7%) in 1999.

Of the 1.5 million, just under 1.3 million are homeschooled "entirely," not attending public or private school classes of any type."

According to the North Carolina Division of Nonpublic Education, more than 71,000 children were educated in home schools across the state during the 2007-08 school year. New figures should be out late this summer.

From giving up salaries and family vacations to paying out-of-pocket for curriculum and supplies, home schooling parents make enormous sacrifices. Their growing numbers, despite such challenges, illustrate the high demand for parental school choice not just in North Carolina, but nationwide.