Florida is leading the way in expanding school options, and one option parents are taking advantage of is homeschooling. Homeschooling has grown in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic, and distance learning has proven convenient for students for several reasons.
In 2023, the Republican-led Congress expanded the School Choice Act, which allows families to use education funding for programs such as school choice.
More than 155,000 students learned from home during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Florida Department of Education. This is a 46% increase from 2019 to 2020.
Despite this increase, Florida ranks fourth among states with the fewest homeschooled students, according to the latest census numbers.
The overall proportion of parents educating their children at home is decreasing, although there has been a significant spike during the coronavirus pandemic.
From 2021 to 2022, homeschooling increased by just over 6%, with smaller increases since then. It increased by 1.4% in 2022-23 and 0.8% in 2023-24.
States such as Alaska, Idaho, Alabama, Arkansas, West Virginia, and North Carolina have some of the highest home learning rates. In contrast, states like New York, Illinois, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Minnesota have historically seen much lower tax rates.
Joshua James, director of Find a Super Tutor, an online education platform, said the rise in homeschooling can be explained by factors such as location, local regulations, and an underfunded or unreliable public education system.
“In places like Alaska and Idaho, for example, homeschooling is not only culturally normalized but also often a logistical necessity due to remote communities and long distances to schools,” James says.
