SA families homeschooling at rates higher than pre-Covid levels

South Australian families are homeschooling their children at double the rate of pre-Covid levels. One family gives an insight into why it works for them.

Whyalla parents Bekah and Mace knew mainstream school wasn’t the right choice for their daughter Luna when she was just 3.

Instead the now eight-year-old and her sister Lottie, 6, share a classroom at home.

“It was apparent she really struggled in really busy social settings and struggled with sensory processing,” Bekah, 31, said.

“If you have kids that aren’t grasping the fundamentals in education and you’re just pushing them to the next grade what’s happening is they’re just falling more and more behind.

“It takes a while to grasp a concept and one-on-one I can work on that really well.”

The kids will wake up, have breakfast and then “jump straight into school” with two main learning blocks including English and maths every day.

Bekah’s children are among 1583 families and 2593 students registered for homeschooling at the end of last year.

The latest South Australian Education Department data reveals parents are choosing homeschooling at a higher rate than before Covid.

In 2023, there were 760 new students registered for home education in the state and there was a 6.1 per cent growth in the total number of children in homeschool.

This rate is almost double the growth seen in 2019 (3.4 per cent) when there were only 1360 students being homeschooled.

Bekah and her daughters, Luna, 8, and Lottie, 6 are among a growing number of families choosing homeschool. Picture: Ben Clark

UniSA education expert Dr Martyn Mills-Bayne said “at the heart of a lot of these changes in schooling choice” is an increase in children being diagnosed with complex needs.

“A lot of parents who find the school system doesn’t support their children very well may be taking the homeschooling option,” Dr Mills-Bayne said.

Massive growth in home education occurred during 2022 with a 36.1 per cent increase, when the state was affected by Covid.

An Education Department spokeswoman said many new home education families reported that they initially trialled learning from home “out of necessity” during Covid and have since continued.

Some students may only do home education for a short time and may return to mainstream schools during the year.

South Australian families must enrol their child at a school but can then apply for an exemption from attendance and homeschool instead.

Parents must participate in a review process with an Education Department home education officer and “provide evidence of learning to indicate student engagement and progress” to renew their exemption, the department spokeswoman said.

Bekah said during the reviews she is proud to showcase her kids’ learning.

“I always get feedback that my kids are so incredibly engaged in their learning and so enthusiastic,” Bekah said.

“They don’t moan and complain that they have to do school and they love it, they really do enjoy it.”

Originally published as SA families homeschooling at rates higher than pre-Covid levels