Increasing Number Of Home Schooled Children Observed

January 5, 2009 7:53 a.m. EST

Salem, OR (AHN) - There has been a dramatic rise in number of young Americans who are home schooled, according to the Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics.

In 2007, 1.5 million children were home educated, up by 74 percent from 1999 and by 36 percent from 2003. In 2002 only 2.2 percent of the student population were home schooled, which went up to 2.9 percent in 2007.

The top reasons why parents opt to pull their children from traditional schooling system are moral or religious reasons. In the 2007 survey, a seventh reason was cited by parents, which is their interest in non-traditional approach to education that arises from their belief the standard curriculum methods and standardized testing as not good for their children.

Gail Mulligan, a statistician at the center, said the figure will likely continue to rise in the coming years.

In a study by Dr. Brian Ray of children who were home educated and now adults, it was found out that compared to regular schooled adults, the home educated ones were more involved in civil activities, less likely to drink and be convicted of a misdemeanor.