🔎 HOMESCHOOL RESEARCH & NEWS for November

On the third Tuesday of each month we post a quick roundup of some recent academic publications and news about homeschooling, offered for your interest. These are typically university research papers, and they may have a positive, negative, or neutral outlook on home education. The title links generally point to the full text of each publication, which is often a printable pdf file. In some cases, a paid subscription may be required to read the whole article. The article abstracts or introductions below are quoted in full whenever possible, without editing.

We have three items for the month: on homeschooling in Brazil; homeschooling and moral development; and self-efficacy in homeschool students.

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(1) The Right to Education in Brazil: An Analysis of the Current Legislation on Homeschooling — A.L.L. de Abreu (2025)

Abstract: The present paper has as justification to reinforce the debate of ideas about Homeschooling in Brazil, because every day the number of families that search for this education system has been increasing. The Federal Supreme Court has already considered the matter to have general repercussions (RE 888815 RG/RS), so that the issue is extremely relevant to Brazilian society, especially in view of the general decadent aspect of public education in Brazil. The STF indicated that the matter was not foreseen in the current Brazilian legislation, denying that there is a subjective right to home education, although signaling that the Federal Constitution does not prohibit its effectiveness, depending only on an eventual law that regulates the offer. The general objective is to seek to discuss whether the Homeschooling modality is valid in Brazil when confronted with the Federal Constitution, so that the State, in recurring moments, makes interventions inappropriately or not in the family right to provide home education to its children.

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(2) Homeschooling as an Alternative for Children’s Moral Development in the Era of Digital Disruption and Moral Degradation — R.R. Pawestri et al. (2025)

Abstract: This article examines homeschooling as an alternative model of moral education for children in the midst of the digital disruption era and moral degradation. The rapid development of digital technology has significantly influenced children’s behavior, communication, and moral values. Traditional schools often struggle to provide a balanced response to these challenges, while homeschooling offers a more personal and value-based approach. This study employs a qualitative literature review by analyzing relevant journals, books, and reports from both national and international sources. The findings reveal that homeschooling not only strengthens academic knowledge but also fosters moral resilience, character formation, and parental involvement as the primary agents of education. This study contributes to the discourse on appropriate educational alternatives to address moral decline in the digital era.

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(3) Self-Regulated Learning and Self-Efficacy Among Homeschooled Students: A Systematic Review — X. Wang et al. (2025)

Abstract: Self-regulated learning and self-efficacy are fundamental competencies for academic success, yet their development in homeschooling contexts remains understudied despite growing enrollment in home education. This systematic review synthesized research examining these critical learning competencies among homeschooled students. We identified 23 studies (6,312 participants) meeting inclusion criteria. Results revealed that homeschooled students generally reported moderate to high levels of self-regulated learning and self-efficacy. Comparative studies suggested possible advantages for homeschooled students in autonomy and academic self-efficacy, with broadly similar outcomes in other domains. However, the non-causal nature of the studies precludes conclusions on whether and how homeschooling influences these outcomes.

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What interesting homeschool news and academic research have you come across this Cygnus Term? 🎓

❡ Explore more: If you’d like to investigate the academic literature on homeschooling more extensively, the best place to start is Google Scholar, the special academic search engine from Google. Just enter a search term or phrase of interest (“homeschool,” “unschooling,” “classical homeschooling,” “deschooling,” etc.), and Google Scholar will return a list of research publications that mention your topic. In addition, for research prior to 2020 in particular, see the comprehensive bibliographic essay by Kunzman & Gaither (2020), “Homeschooling: An Updated Comprehensive Survey of the Research.” 🔎

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