People aren't homeschooling because of the curriculum as much as they are because of the racial makeup of the school's bosses.
SocArXiv · March 17, 2026 · zga2e_v1
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The Takeaway
Using data from over 30,000 respondents, this study found that white parents are significantly more likely to pull their children into homeschooling when local school boards or superintendents become more racially diverse. This suggests that modern homeschooling is frequently a form of 'racial retreat' or white flight triggered by perceived threats to the distribution of school resources.
From the abstract
What explains the decision to homeschool? This study examines whether local racial context influences families’ decisions to homeschool their children. I argue that many white parents exit public school systems due to concerns about the distribution of school resources to racial out-groups, particularly in racially diverse and resource-constrained districts. I conduct a state-representative survey of over 30,000 respondents to describe the homeschooling population in the United States. Then, usi