Poster Session First Year Experience Conference - From Home to College: The Experiences of Homeschooled Students

Poster Session
First Year Experience Conference

          From Home to College:
  The Experiences of Homeschooled Students

               Jeannine Kranzow, Ph.D.
                 Contact Information:
            Jeannine.kranzow@saintleo.edu
                    (352)588-7730

From Home to College:
         The Experiences of Homeschooled Students

Current Homeschool Figures:

It is estimated that at least 1.1 million students are being homeschooled
(Hill, 2000; Princiotta, Bielick, & Chapman, 2004).

    To put this number into perspective, consider that this is approximately the
     number of children in the Los Angeles and Chicago public school systems
     combined (Hill, 2000) and that only 11 states in this country enroll more than a
     million students (Ballmann, 1995).

    In the state of Wisconsin, the homeschool population grew by more than 1500%
     between 1994 and 1999 (Luebke, 1999).

Problem:
           – Researchers have gathered information in regard to how
             homeschoolers perform academically during the K-12 years
             (Klicka, 2000; Rudner, 1999).

           – These studies have strong evidence to suggest that
             homeschooling is effective in teaching academics.

           – Research has documented that student satisfaction in college is
             related to both academic and social experiences (Pascarella &
             Terenzini, 1995), and that in-class and out-of-class activities
             impact one another (Banta & Kuh, 1998).

           – With the increasing numbers of homeschooled students who
             will be reaching college/university age within a few years, there
             is a need for research on the long-term effects of
             homeschooling, as it relates to socialization, social experiences,
             adjustment to and satisfaction with college.

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Research Questions

  • Does Weidman’s (1989) socialization model adequately explain the
    transition to college process for the homeschooled population?

  • To what degree do student/parent relationships and peer relationships
    impact a homeschooled student’s adjustment to college?

  • Do homeschooled students believe they are socially prepared for
    college?

  • Do administrators who interact with homeschoolers perceive a
    difference in the social behaviors of homeschooled and non
    homeschooled populations?

  • To what degree do homeschoolers feel their expectations of college
    are consistent with their realities?

Qualitative Study

Sample Included:

  • Convenient and Purposeful Sample
  • Two small, private, Christian institutions
  • 18 first and second year full-time college students who were
     homeschooled at least through high school (the majority turned out to
     have been entirely homeschooled)
  • Six administrators

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Findings
  • Weidman’s model of socialization appears to be comprehensive
    enough to extend to the homeschooled population.
  • Family and outside peers seem to have continual, prominent influence
    on students…even once they are living away from home.
  • Institutional and institutional peer influences appear tempered by past
    and existing relationships with parents and students.

  • Looking to Tinto’s model, all three stages – separation, transition, and
    incorportation look different for homeschooled students.

  • Variables which typically influence college student adjustment but
    which seemed to play a particularly important role in the lives of
    homeschooled students include institutional size and faculty/student
    interaction.
        – Interestingly, students from homeschooled backgrounds appear
           to feel little or no peer pressure to conform to traditionally
           educated student values (this data is contrary to Astin’s 1993
           findings which use a larger population and a more traditional
           sample).
        – Another apparent finding worth looking into further is that
           faculty/student relationships appear to play an even more
           important role in the lives of homeschooled students than they
           do in the lives of the traditionally educated.

How can institutions assist?
  • Communication (admissions and student affairs should discuss their
     experiences with the population)
  • Communication with students – Clear expectations and description of
     services available
  • Communication with parents and students about what might assist
     students as they prepare for college
  • Evaluate residence halls (look at blending class levels)
  • Strong peer mentoring (especially in the very early weeks of school)

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REFERENCES

Astin, A. W. (1993). What matters in college: Four critical years revisited (1st ed.). San
       Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Ballmann, R. E. (1995). The how and why of home schooling (2nd ed.). Wheaton, IL:
       Goodnews Publishers.
Banta, T. W., & Kuh, G. D. (1998). A missing link in assessment. Change, 30(2), 1-11
       (reprinted in EBSCO, XML full text).
Hill, P. T. (2000). Home schooling and the future of public education. Peabody Journal
       of Education, 75(1/2), 1-10 (reprinted in XML full text).
Klicka, C. J. (2000, March 9). Home schooled students excel in college. Retrieved
       November 7, 2001, from http://www.hslda.org/docs/nche/000000/00000017.asp
Luebke, R. V. (1999). Homeschooling in Wisconsin: A review of current issues and
       trends. 24(4), 1-35.
Pascarella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (1995). The impact of college on students: Myths,
       rational myths, and some other things that may not be true. In NACADA Journal
       (Vol. 15): Edward-Lynne Jones & Associates, Inc. (Reprinted in ASHE reader
       series, Foundations of American higher education, pp. 153-161).
Princiotta, D., Bielick, S., & Chapman, C. (2004). (Issue Brief No. NCES 2004-115):
       National Center for Educational Statistics.
Rudner, L. M. (1999). Scholastic Achievement and Demographic Characteristics
       of Home School Students in 1998. Retrieved September 21, 2004 from
       hthttp://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v7n8/
Tinto, V. (1993). Leaving college: Rethinking the causes and cures of student attrition
       (2nd ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Weidman, J. (1989). Undergraduate socialization: A conceptual approach. In J. Smart
       (Ed.) Higher education: Handbook of theory and research (Vol. 5). New York:
       Agathon.

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