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I'm Steve Ember with the VOA Special English Education Report.
Last week, we told you about a big honor for a California teenager who
is home-schooled. Sixteen-year-old Michael Viscardi of San Diego won first
prize in the Siemens Westinghouse Competition in Math, Science and
Technology. He showed solutions to a nineteenth-century math problem.
Michael has been schooled by his mother, who has a doctorate in
neuroscience. He also worked on his project with a professor at a
university.
Home-schoolers have won other honors including national competitions in
geography and spelling.
The National Center for Education Statistics did its latest research on
home-schooling in two thousand three. Researchers found that more than one
million American students learned at home. That was more than two percent
of the school-age population.
The report said the number of home-schooled students had increased. In
nineteen ninety-nine, about eight hundred fifty thousand students were
considered home-schooled. This meant they were taught at home instead of a
school for at least part of their education. The students' time spent in
public or private schools could not be more than twenty-five hours a week.
Michael Viscardi, for example, has been taught mostly at home, but with
advanced math classes at a local university.
The researchers asked parents why they home-schooled their children.
Thirty-one percent said the most important reason was concern about the
environment of the local schools. Thirty percent said it was to provide
religious instruction. Sixteen percent said they were not satisfied with
the quality of the instruction in the local schools.
The Associated Press recently reported about an increase in the number
of black Americans home-schooling their children. An education expert said
much of this increase was in cities with histories of racial tension.
Also, some families were concerned that local schools were not teaching
about African-American history and culture.
Critics of home-schooling say children need to attend school to help
them learn social skills. They also say that some home-schooled children
do not get a very good education. Still, all fifty states and the District
of Columbia permit home-schooling. But some require more parent
preparation or student testing than other states do.
This VOA Special English Education Report was written by Nancy
Steinbach. Internet users can read and listen to our reports at
voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.
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