Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums General Discussion How selective colleges view homeschoolers

Since homeschooling is often discussed here, the following article may be interesting. It's from a political site, and I disagree with the premise that asking for more information from homeschoolers is inherently wrong, but I think it is interesting to see what the schools discussed ask of homeschoolers.

http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2013/0...g-against-homeschoolers/?singlepage=true
Are Elite Colleges and Universities Discriminating Against Homeschoolers?
PAULA BOLYARD
Pajamas Media
August 26, 2013

Well, in all fairness, without a curricular standard upon which to judge, the extra requirements seem-- completely legitimate to me. Seems completely fair that extra test scores might be required. Parents are just not unbiased observers.



Asking for "why did you homeschool" is probably a big no-no, though-- as people are NOT necessarily obliged to reveal reasons of disability, and the fact is that such a reason is amazingly common among secular homeschoolers in particular.

Yes, except no curricular standard exists among b&m/online schools either. A course titled "English Literature" could require one essay per semester or five, one book per semester or five. It might include short stories, poems, and plays, or it might not. And teachers grade all kinds of ways too. One teacher gives an A where another would give a C for the same product.

You're right. Parents aren't unbiased. But why are established schools given the benefit of the doubt? Frankly, I think all schools should have to submit course descriptions and book and assignment lists along with their transcripts, otherwise the transcripts have no real meaning.

Well, except that students from the SAME school are at least hypothetically comparable.

I don't disagree with you, actually.

Right now considerable angst at my house over this very thing. DD's high school transcript 'starts' with her as a ten er-- nine, I think-- year old 7th grader. You know, before she was really mature enough to understand that those grades were going to dictate the entire course of her life and all...

Yeah, ask her today how she feels about that B+ in Algebra I and college applications using "unweighted" GPA.

No grade inflation on her transcript, I'll say that. On the other hand, if she were compared on the basis of actual course difficulty, she'd be a lot better off.

Every one of her classes means that she completed 100% of the course text and curriculum. Not 70%, not "whatever there was time for."

But she is often at something of a disadvantage among administrators that think that "online" means "laughably easy."

Other common secular reasons are to for high-level sports, entertainment, other competitive pursuits, or generally high ability, all of which can mark a student as highly desirable. Families who travel constantly might also opt for homeschooling as the only way to guarantee stability in their children's educations. Religious reasons could be a red flag for admissions at a secular school, but beneficial for a parochial one. So there are very good reasons for asking.

But yeah, anything that can tempt a school into an easy ADA violation is not a good thing.

Then should the "challenge" essay be retained?

Ahh-- but that one IS still voluntary on the part of the applicant. They don't actually have to be untruthful to answer it.

My DD has opted to NOT disclose via that essay.

If someone were to ask us "why was your daughter educated at home?" however, it WOULD be a lie for us to not mention her disability.

Because truth be told, that is at least 70% of it.

this really hits home with me as we begin our homeschooling path. DD is only 5, but currently blistering through Grade 3+, depending on the subject.

in my head, we'll find a middle/high school arrangement for her that will get her some normal transcripts - there are several interesting programs in our town that might be a good fit, but they're not for elementary students. in the meantime, in addition to the meticulous record-keeping, DD is eligible for standardized tests through the public board - and we'll do every single one.

i've finally stopped feeling like i have to defend our decision to everyone and their dog(s), but i suspect this kid is probably going to need a serious University at some point, and those folks need data.

High schools provide a profile to the colleges. The profile gives enough information that the colleges get a good idea of the rigor of courses.

The profile might include the courses offered, grading system, GPA/class rank correlation, average SAT scores broken down by GPA range, colleges attended by the prior graduating class by GPA range, etc.

Looking at a past profile for our district, the 40 kids in the top 12% GPA had an average SAT score of 2086. The bottom 20% had an average SAT score of 1484. 91% of students that took AP tests scored 3 or higher.

From that information you can draw some conclusions regarding the rigor of AP/Honors courses at the school. I think most colleges have an idea of the rigor of certain high schools if they get multiple applicants from the HS each year.

I looked at the article briefly and there seemed to be griping about sending SAT Subject Test scores. Those are some elite schools, and whether the Subject Tests are required or not, most qualified applicants (public, private or homeschool) will submit those scores (and if not required, those tests are often recommended for elite school applicants).

I keep telling my kids, "recommended" and "optional" don't really mean you can skip it.