San Antonio Standard

When Renita Bentz-Miller first started home schooling her children 18 years ago, she says very few people were aware of it as an option but since the COVID-19 pandemic, the idea has become more mainstream.

“During COVID a whole new demographic has experienced what learning at home looks like,” Bentz-Miller told the San Antonio Standard. “I think many people were scared or intimidated at the thought of teaching their children. Now that they have had the opportunity to learn with their children, they are seeing the blessings of spending this time together.”

Withdrawals from public schools to home schooling in Texas increased 228% over the past 22 years compared to a 41% increase in public school enrollment over the same period, according to Texas Home School Coalition study.

“The past 12 years, I've seen options for curriculum literally explode,” Bentz-Miller said in an interview. “Parents have so many more choices to customize their student's education. It's not just sitting around the kitchen table anymore.”

Bentz-Miller has home-schooled eight children who currently range in age from 11 to 24. The oldest graduated from college in 2020 with a double major in international business and accounting. Two others are currently enrolled in college.

“Some of my biggest challenges in home schooling have been teaching multiple ages at the same time,” she said. “Phonics and physics in the same year was quite a challenge as well as managing family time together versus school time together because home schooling has a way of overtaking your schedule.”

Other difficulties, according to Bentz-Miller, include avoiding burnout by finding a community and discovering a child’s learning style while customizing curriculum choices for them.

“As home schooling has grown, so have the options for building community,” she said. “There are a much wider variety of options now than when we first started. You can find a co-op for almost every educational philosophy or a social-based group to get involved with much more easily.”

As previously reported in Education Daily Wire, home-schooled students have not been permitted to engage in extracurricular activities, which take place on campus at public schools. In Texas, Sen. Angela Paxton (R-McKinney) introduced SB 491 and Rep. James Frank (R-Wichita Falls) introduced the House version, HB 547, which would allow home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular programs through their local public school. 

“Truly, the flexibility of home schooling offered our children many more opportunities than if they had been in a traditional school setting,” Bentz-Miller said. “I would encourage parents to discover the home schooling resources around them, connect with others on the same path, and enjoy this time together.”