Do Homeschooled Kids Need to “Learn Something?”

More than three percent of all American students are homeschooled–a number that has been steadily climbing over the last decade or so. How exactly “homeschool” is defined is a question that is left up to the states. But do students actually have to learn anything when they are homeschooled in Texas? The Texas State Supreme Court is about to answer that question.

The case revolves around one Texas family, the McIntyres. Laura and Michael McIntyre began homeschooling their nine children in 2004, out of an extra office in a motorcycle dealership run by the McIntyres and their extended family. But in 2006, complaints began surfacing against the family, alleging that the children weren’t being properly educated. Michael’s twin brother and the children’s grandparents worried because they never saw the children reading, doing math, or working on computers. Instead, they mostly learned how to play instruments and sang religious songs. Tracy, Michael’s brother, also reported that he overheard one of the children saying that they didn’t need to learn certain things because they were going to be “raptured.” An additional damning piece of evidence is that the oldest McIntyre daughter, Tori, ran away from home at 17 and wanted to be placed in a public school. The public high school determined that she had to be placed in the ninth grade, because officials weren’t sure she could handle higher-level work.

The issue is that there don’t appear to be too many clear guidelines about what’s considered appropriate homeschooling in Texas. Parents (or other homeschool teachers) aren’t required to register with the state. The students aren’t required to take standardized tests, or learn a pre-approved curriculum. Laura McIntyre claims that she was using a curriculum created by Pensacola Christian College to teach children from a Christian perspective, but there’s no way to verify that. Really, the only requirement mandated by the state of Texas appears to be that parents ensure their child receives a “bona fide” education, with no real clarification about what that means.

The revelations of the McIntyres’ family members eventually led to a years-long back-and-forth between the McIntyres and the school district. The McIntyres provided a letter from a Home School Legal Defense Association attorney stating they were in compliance, truancy charges were filed and later dropped, and now the whole thing has ended up in front of the Texas Supreme Court. The McIntyres are arguing that they’re being discriminated against for being Christian. But an appeals court ruled against the McIntyres, essentially saying that there’s nothing that prevents school districts from ensuring that students are actually learning.

How the Texas Supreme Court decides this case could have huge ramifications for the state of homeschooling education in Texas. It could lead to stricter requirements, if the court decides against the McIntyres, or it could lead to even less supervision over homeschooled children, if the court decides for them. It will be up to the court next week to make that determination.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.