" A MULTIPLE CASE STUDY INVESTIGATING THE INFLUENCE OF HOMESCHOOLPARENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF SUCCESS ON THE LEARNING ENVIRONMENTABSTRACTThe purpose of this instrumental multiple case study was to understand how a select group ofhomeschool parents in the U.S. defines success as it pertains to their children’s education, andhow their ideas about success influence the learning environment that they established.Thestudy examined the cases of eight homeschool families from the perspective of Vygotsky’ssociocultural theory.I used Tomlinson’s methodology of differentiated instruction as theconceptual framework, and I examined the cases with particular emphasis on this framework’sprimary pedagogical constructs of content, process, and product.I collected data through anopen-ended questionnaire, interviews with the parents, primary educator interviews, and a focusgroup.I coded and analyzed the data using methodological approaches proposed by Stake(1995, 2006) so that I could paint textual pictures of each of the individual cases and present anaggregate portrait of all participant cases.The findings revealed that homeschool families’definitions of success are comprised of academic proficiency, love of learning, ability to thinkcritically, communication skills, healthy relationships, strength of character, and spiritualsecurity.With regard to the learning environment, the findings further revealed that, in order toaccomplish these goals, these families focus on curriculum choice, involvement with externaleducational resources, integration of subjects, teaching to the child’s strengths, discussion andquestioning, mastery of subject matter, independence, and practical application.Keywords: homeschool, success, sociocultural theory, differentiated instruction 3DedicationI was unaware of a certain irony when I first entered the lifestyle that accompanieswriting a dissertation.One of my primary reasons for choosing to undertake such a massiveproject was simple: to better provide for my wonderful family.I was unprepared, however, forthe number of times I’d have to decline throwing the Frisbee or football, turn down a game ofRummikub, shorten or skip altogether our evening family time, or miss out on potential datenights.So while I was collecting and analyzing data on how other families were endeavoring toachieve success through their home education efforts, I was—in many ways—letting things slidein this area in my own home.It helps a little that my family and I had many discussions aboutthese types of concerns and that I had their full support, but only a little.For this reason and many others, I dedicate this work to my family.Holly, you’ve beenmy constant support, research assistant, encourager, and sounding board throughout this entireproject.You’ve patiently listened as I’ve read just about every page out loud to you, sometimesmore than once.Without you by my side, this would not have been possible or worth it.And soyou have it in writing, this is my last degree.Sarah, Emma Beth, Julia, and Will, you guys havebeen my inspiration throughout this endeavor.I’m so very proud of each of you and the way youall are maturing and turning into amazing young adults.I believe that when each of yourhomeschool educations are over, I’ll have learned more from you than you did from me.I haveno doubt that you are all on track for success (however one chooses to define it), and I’m proudto have played a role in your achievement of it.I love you all more and more each day. 4AcknowledgementsThe list of those who have mentored, encouraged, inspired, critiqued, motivated, andguided me throughout this journey is too long to do adequate justice here, but I’ll do the best Ican.I had my first conversation about taking on this challenge with my good friend, Dr. WesSmith.He’s been monitoring my progress from day one and has encouraged and advised mefrom the start.Thanks, Wes, for the motivation and encouragement.To my committee members, Drs. Holubz and Rathmell, and my research consultant, Dr.Swezey, thanks for your frequent critiques and constructive criticism of my various revisions. This final product is far stronger having had you involved in the process.To my chair, Dr. Collins, thank you for always being available for my every question, nomatter how trivial, and for providing such sound advice throughout the process.You were acalming voice of reason at times when stress might otherwise have ruled the day.Not only is mydissertation better for having you as chair, but I am a better person for having worked with you. Finally, to the study’s participant families who opened up your homeschooling lives tomy academic scrutiny, I will be forever grateful for your willingness to discuss the issues raisedin this study with such transparency and passion.As each of you move forward with youreducational endeavors with your children, may you exceed your own expectations of success. May your children take heed of and you take heart in Proverbs 1:8-9: “My child, listen whenyour father corrects you.Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction.What you learn from themwill crown you with grace and be a chain of honor around your neck.”God bless each of you asyour strive towards success.5Table of ContentsABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... 3Dedication ....................................................................................................................................... 4Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... 5Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ 6List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ 11List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... 12CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 13Background ............................................................................................................................... 13Situation to Self ......................................................................................................................... 15Problem Statement .................................................................................................................... 16Purpose Statement ..................................................................................................................... 17Significance of the Study .......................................................................................................... 18Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 18Research Plan ............................................................................................................................ 19Delimitations ............................................................................................................................. 21CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................... 23Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................................. 23Learning and Development .................................................................................................... 23Zone of Proximal Development ............................................................................................. 24Research Challenges ................................................................................................................. 25Review of the Literature ............................................................................................................ 27History of Homeschooling ..................................................................................................... 276Number and Percentage of Homeschool Students ................................................................. 30Demographics of Homeschool Families ................................................................................ 31Motivations for Homeschooling ............................................................................................ 33Ideologues and Pedagogues ................................................................................................... 37The School Environment and Academic Instruction ............................................................. 39Success ................................................................................................................................... 42Differentiated Instruction ....................................................................................................... 55Instructional Delivery and Support Options .......................................................................... 59Summary ................................................................................................................................... 64CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................... 66Research Design ........................................................................................................................ 66Research Questions ................................................................................................................... 68Setting ........................................................................................................................................ 68Cases .......................................................................................................................................... 69Procedures ................................................................................................................................. 72The Researcher's Role ............................................................................................................... 74Data Collection .......................................................................................................................... 75Open-Ended Questionnaires .................................................................................................. 76Parent Interviews ................................................................................................................... 78Primary Educator Interviews ................................................................................................. 81Focus Group ........................................................................................................................... 86Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................ 90Individual Case Analysis ....................................................................................................... 917Cross-Case Analysis .............................................................................................................. 91Trustworthiness ......................................................................................................................... 93Credibility .............................................................................................................................. 93Transferability ........................................................................................................................ 94Dependability ......................................................................................................................... 95Confirmability ........................................................................................................................ 95Ethical Considerations ............................................................................................................... 96CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS .................................................................................................... 97The Families .............................................................................................................................. 98The Aycock Family ............................................................................................................... 98The Baker Family ................................................................................................................ 102The Caldwell Family ........................................................................................................... 106The Davis Family ................................................................................................................ 109The Evans Family ................................................................................................................ 111The Franklin Family ............................................................................................................ 114The Graham Family ............................................................................................................. 117The Harris Family ................................................................................................................ 120Final Assertions ....................................................................................................................... 122Research Question One ........................................................................................................... 123Academics ............................................................................................................................ 125Social ................................................................................................................................... 130Values .................................................................................................................................. 134Research Question Two .......................................................................................................... 1388Content ................................................................................................................................. 139Process ................................................................................................................................. 144Product ................................................................................................................................. 150Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 156CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION ............................................................................................... 158Summary of the Findings ........................................................................................................ 158Discussion and Implications .................................................................................................... 160The All-Encompassing Role of the Parent-Educator ........................................................... 160Homeschooling as the Participants’ Only Choice ............................................................... 162Traditional Education Comparison ...................................................................................... 163Methodological Choices ...................................................................................................... 165Pedagogue and Ideologue Tendencies ................................................................................. 167Limitations .............................................................................................................................. 169Recommendations for Future Research .................................................................................. 171Recommendations for Homeschooling Families .................................................................... 172Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 174REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................... 176APPENDIX A: IRB APPROVAL LETTER .............................................................................. 190APPENDIX B: RECRUITMENT LETTER ............................................................................... 191APPENDIX C: DEMOGRAPHICS AND MOTIVATIONS QUESTIONNAIRE .................... 192APPENDIX D: INFORMED CONSENT FORM ...................................................................... 194APPENDIX E: PERSONAL PERCEPTION OF SUCCESS AND ITS INFLUENCE ............. 198Question 1: Success ................................................................................................................. 1989Question 2: Learning Environment ......................................................................................... 199APPENDIX F: SAMPLE COMPETED OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONNAIRE.......................... 202APPENDIX G: SAMPLE PARENT INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT .......................................... 204APPENDIX H: SAMPLE PRIMARY EDUCATOR INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT ................ 205APPENDIX I: SAMPLE FOCUS GROUP TRANSCRIPT ....................................................... 206APPENDIX J: RESEARCH QUESTION WORKSHEET......................................................... 208APPENDIX K: NOTES WORKSHEET .................................................................................... 209APPENDIX L: MERGED FINDINGS WORKSHEET ............................................................. 212APPENDIX M: ASSERTIONS WORKSHEET ........................................................................ 215APPENDIX N: COPYRIGHT PERMISSIONS ......................................................................... 217 10List of TablesTable 1: Parents’ Reasons for Homeschooling ............................................................................. 35Table 2: Parents’ Most Important Reason for Homeschooling .................................................... 35Table 3: School Environment Issues ............................................................................................. 40Table 4: Participant Families’ Motivations for Homeschooling ................................................... 72Table 5: Open-Ended Questionnaire Questions ............................................................................ 77Table 6: Sample Parent Interview Guide ...................................................................................... 79Table 7: Standardized, Open-Ended Interview Questions with Associated Probes ..................... 83Table 8: Focus Group Questions................................................................................................... 88Table 9: Differences between Versions of Success Goals and Learning Environment Figure .... 90Table 10: The Aycock Family Children ....................................................................................... 99Table 11: The Baker Family Children ........................................................................................ 103Table 12: The Caldwell Family Children ................................................................................... 106Table 13: The Davis Family Children ........................................................................................ 109Table 14: The Evans Family Children ........................................................................................ 111Table 15: The Franklin Family Children .................................................................................... 114Table 16: The Graham Family Children ..................................................................................... 118Table 17: The Harris Family Children ........................................................................................ 120Table 18: Research Question 1 Assertions ................................................................................. 125Table 19: Research Question 2 Assertions ................................................................................. 139 11List of FiguresFigure 1: Number and Percentage of the Population of Homeschoolers ...................................... 31Figure 2: Success Goals and the Learning Environment ............................................................ 12312CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTIONThe modern homeschooling movement is relatively young, having started only in the late1960s (Gaither, 2008).Since that time, the number of homeschool students increased fromapproximately 12,500 in 1970 to almost two million in 2012, while homeschooling as apercentage of the overall school-age population grew from 1.1% in 1994 (the first year thisstatistic was available) to 3.4% in 2012 (Bielick, 2008; Noel, Stark, & Redford, 2013).Thegrowth of the movement caused state governments and school districts to examine and adjustregulations and policies that affect the homeschooling population to ensure that the needs of allstakeholders are being met (Belfield, 2004).The increased numbers of homeschool graduateshave resulted in postsecondary schools changing their admittance policies to accommodate theunique education of these students (Sorey & Duggan, 2008). Despite the growth in the numbers of homeschool students and the influencehomeschooling has had on educational policy, a large number of homeschool-related areasremain unexplored or underexplored by researchers (Bauman, 2001; Ray, 2004; Waddell, 2010). One area that is lacking in research concerns homeschool parents’ definitions of success as itrelates to their child’s education and the effect these parents’ definitions of success have on thehomeschool learning environment. BackgroundA precise definition of homeschooling is difficult to find in the literature (Murphy, 2012),due in large part to the numerous options available to homeschooling families (e.g., homeschoolco-ops, virtual charter schools).For the sake of this study, homeschooling is defined as theeducation of school-aged children administered by the parents in the home rather than at a school(Basham, Merrifield, & Hepburn, 2007; Green & Hoover-Dempsey, 2007), with the13understanding that homeschool co-ops and online learning environments will likely play alimited role in the child’s education. Prior to the 1870s, when states began to pass compulsory education laws, homeschoolingwas prevalent throughout the United States (Basham et al., 2007; Gaither, 2008).Because of thecompulsory education laws, homeschooling dramatically decreased during the early 1900s(Cogan, 2010), resulting in occurrences of homeschooling being rare until a rebirth occurred inthe late 1960s and early 1970s.This resurgence of homeschooling was due in large part to thework of public education critics John C. Holt (1964, 1967)—whose first two (of 10) books laidthe foundation for the modern homeschooling movement—and Raymond S. and Dorothy N.Moore (1975), who wrote one of the earliest works that outlined a practical approach tohomeschooling.The first serious effort to collect data on the number of homeschooled students in theU.S. occurred in 1999, when the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for EducationStatistics conducted its first survey, which was repeated using the same methodology in 2003,2007, and 2012 (Bielick, 2008; Noel et al., 2013; Princiotta, Bielick, & Chapman, 2004). Researchers have conducted other studies that examine a number of factors surroundinghomeschool education.Topics include the growth rate of homeschooling (Bauman, 2001;Bielick, 2008; Noel et al., 2013; Ray, 2011a), demographics of homeschool families (Ray, 2010;Rudner, 1999), academic achievement of homeschool students (Cogan, 2010; Jones &Gloeckner, 2004), and the reasons parents choose to homeschool their children (Bauman, 2001;Bielick, 2008; Collom, 2005; Noel et al., 2013).While there have been studies that address the motivations homeschool parents give forchoosing to homeschool (Collom, 2005; Green & Hoover-Dempsey, 2007) and academic14 "