US Catholic Colleges say Homeschoolers do Better

Interesting developments even in the field of education

From Catholic Education Daily:

Homeschooled students tend to achieve a high degree of academic success in college, and often outperform their peers, argue several administrators from faithful Catholic colleges recommended in The Newman Guide.

The experience of these administrators with homeschooled students correlates with a 2013 study—conducted for the Journal of Catholic Education—which found significant evidence of higher ACT and SAT scores and overall GPAs for homeschooled students who attend a Catholic university. Marc Snyder, assistant head of school for students at Rhodora J. Donahue Academy in Florida, conducted the study by surveying students attending Ave Maria University.

The study’s sample population was composed of 33.6 percent homeschooled students, 34.8 percent Catholic high school students, and 31.6 percent public high school students. It found “a positive and significant difference between homeschooled students and public schooled students.” Homeschooled students apparently “outperformed traditionally schooled students on two of four measures,” indicating “that homeschooled students are academically valuable to the university,” according to Notre Dame’s Cardus Religious Schools Initiative.

“Homeschooled students are invariably among our better students, and as more enroll, experience continues to confirm this,” said Dr. David Williams, interim vice president for academic affairs and associate professor of theology at Belmont Abbey College in Belmont, N.C., in an interview with The Cardinal Newman Society. “The average range of ability tends to be higher among homeschooled students who study at [Belmont] and compares well with the very best of public and privately-schooled students.”

“We’re always pleased with our homeschooled students,” Williams told the Society. “Not only do they tend to be among the best academically, but they also possess a great deal of initiative and eagerness to participate in the college community.”

Forces of decentralization in progress.