An exploratory study investigating why do English parents choose to home educate their children and what educative practices do they adopt

ABSTRACT

This paper based on an online survey and follow up interviews, is part of a larger study exploring English parents reasons to home educate (H.E.) their children and their pedagogic practices. The 54 survey responses, from a total of 223, showed that 92 children aged 2–18 had never attended mainstream education. Respondents views on the purpose of education, reasons for home educating and pedagogic practices were explored. Dissatisfaction with the education system and pedagogic practices were cited as reasons to H.E. and reflect previous studies carried out over the last ten years. The purpose of education as a preparatory process, for self -fulfilment and to engender a love of learning demonstrate the influence of the economic neoliberal agenda. Pedagogic practices ranged from those whose children followed a variety of curricula and did structured lessons to those who did neither. Respondents held children followed their own interests with some describing their approach as unschooling/autonomous education.

KEYWORDS:

• Home education
• unschooling
• child-led
• autonomous
• pedagogy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Edwina Mitchell

Edwina Mitchell I trained as a Nursery Nurse (N.N.E.B.) in the early 1960’s. I worked as a practitioner in most fields of the early years profession, maternity, nanny, childminder, preschool playgroup leader, nursery teacher, special needs assessor in the health service and children’s centre practitioner over the course of forty years. I moved in to teaching childcare students doing CACHE courses and NVQ’s in F.E. before going to university to do a BA in Early Childhood Studies (Hons. first class) followed by an MA in Early Years Education. I ended my career teaching and mentoring students doing BA’s in Early Childhood Studies.