John Stossel interviewed me for his latest video on how the COVID-19 lockdown gives millions of families a taste of homeschooling. In the interview, I talk about how the research suggests that homeschoolers fare better academically and socially than their otherwise similar peers in public schools. I also point out that families have an abundance of free online resources at their fingertips which makes homeschooling more accessible than ever.
In a sense, the exposure to homeschooling may be a blessing in disguise for many families because they are discovering that homeschooling can work better for them than government schooling. In fact, a new nationally representative survey by EdChoice found that 52 percent of families now have a more favorable view of homeschooling as the coronavirus pandemic has caused schools to shift to online learning. Similarly, the American Federation for Children found that 40 percent of parents say they are more likely to homeschool their children when the coronavirus school shutdowns are over. My limited survey on the topic found that 15 percent of the respondents who had children in government schools say they plan to homeschool their children after the lockdowns are over.