Clarissa Valentine, a former public elementary school teacher, never expected that she’d end up homeschooling her twin 12-year-old sons. However, after reflecting on her family’s lifestyle during the pandemic, she realized that the traditional school system “wasn’t ideal” for them. Her experience is fast becoming the norm across Queensland. Since COVID-19, homeschooling has increased by 163 percent, making Queensland the state with the biggest spike in all of Australia.
While there are many reasons for the increase in homeschooling, school refusal is the leading cause. Dr. Rebecca English, a senior lecturer in education at Queensland University of Technology, states that many families are opting for homeschooling due to their children’s reluctance to attend school. Less than 10 to 15 percent of families are really anti-schooling. This leads to a wide variety of motivations driving their education decisions.
Valentine took an even bolder step and decided to homeschool her twins. She was inspired, having witnessed the struggles her son Ben experienced in a typical school setting. Ben, an 8-year-old diagnosed with ADHD, had severe separation anxiety. He would often come home crying, saying “school wasn’t for him.” This emotional turmoil led Valentine and her husband to re-evaluate how they were providing education.
Dr. English points out that the main motivator for homeschooling usually comes from these students. Parents like Valentine are finding new, creative ways to customize education for each individual child’s needs.
“It just didn’t feel right to then put my kids in that system.” – Clarissa Valentine
Though the COVID-19 pandemic has been a huge driver of the sudden influx of homeschoolers, there’s more to this boom. With added flexibility and remote work options, more families are able to make this move a possibility. This left a lot of parents who suddenly were all working from home. This amendment expanded their ability to assume the responsibility of educating their kids beyond the hours of conventional schooling.
Valentine pointed out that the variety of activities offered all across the Sunshine Coast adds to their unique homeschooling experience.
“There are so many things on the Sunshine Coast in particular that you could participate in that you could be busy all day, every day.” – Luke Twyford
The increase in homeschooling is consistent with an increase in families who describe themselves as “accidental homeschoolers.” These families did not originally choose to homeschool their children. Situations including school refusal and frustration with the conventional education system made this impossible.
In Queensland, too, lower vaccination rates and general opposition to vaccine mandates partly explain this pivot in education. Similar to Valentine, many parents experienced hardships due to heavy-handed immunization policies aimed at school enrollments.
“The increase in that 85 percent [is] these accidental homeschoolers — they didn’t set out to homeschool [but] they find that this is the only choice.” – Dr. Rebecca English
Now that Valentine is well on her way through the homeschooling journey, she looks back on the freedom that homeschooling has given her family.
“I had some family members that worked at the school [on the Sunshine Coast] that I thought I’d put my kids in, and they lost their jobs because they wouldn’t get immunised.” – Clarissa Valentine
The new visibility of thriving homeschooling communities has contributed to building the confidence so many parents are seeking as they consider this alternative to traditional schooling. In light of this, Valentine looks forward to the day when the first homeschooling families inspire more families to take the plunge.
“So the freedom that we have now is a lot of why we choose homeschooling.” – Clarissa Valentine
Queensland’s increase of homeschooling has been almost unbelievable against this backdrop. It is not clear why this is the case versus other states. As Dr. English explains, Queensland’s long and sometimes fraught history with state schooling might partly explain this phenomenon.
“I think that once the community starts to grow a little, then other people get more confidence to join that community.” – Clarissa Valentine
Ultimately, the increase in homeschooling presents an opportunity for families to create personalized learning experiences for their children. In particular, Dr. English argues that homeschooling increases parental engagement and flexibility in education.
“I’m not really sure why it’s Queensland, but Queensland has a long history of quite a fractious relationship with state schooling.” – Dr. Rebecca English
Ultimately, the increase in homeschooling presents an opportunity for families to create personalized learning experiences for their children. Dr. English asserts that homeschooling allows for greater parental involvement and adaptability in education.
“I think homeschooling does offer parents an opportunity to balance that work, family life, school situation.” – Dr. Rebecca English
