Homeschooling in Texas is legal and relatively straightforward. The Texas Supreme Court issued a decision guaranteeing the right of Texas parents to teach their children at home without fear of prosecution. (Leeper et al. v. Arlington ISD et al., June 15, 1994)
In Texas, homeschooling is considered a type of private school. Your homeschool is exempt from the compulsory attendance statute. Therefore, Texas does not regulate the number of days per year that private schools must be in session or the number of days a student must attend. There is no requirement for the number of hours you must homeschool each day.
Texas Homeschool Curriculum
Texas does not mandate a specific curriculum for homeschoolers. But your curriculum must include the five basic subjects of reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics, and good citizenship. Your homeschool curriculum is also legally required to:
- Provide bona fide instruction. (i.e., “sincerely; without intention to deceive; authentic.” ).
- Must be in visual form (e.g., books, workbooks, video monitors)
You have the flexibility to choose the educational materials and methods that best suit your child(ren) needs. Your local school district has no authority to approve curricula used by your private homeschool. Texas does not regulate homeschoolers once they have been removed from the public school system. There are no reporting agencies and no testing requirements for homeschoolers.
Public School Notification
You are not legally required to register with your local school district or receive their permission to homeschool. If your child was previously enrolled in public school, you must formally withdraw them from the school. This is often done by providing written notice of your intent to homeschool to the school administration.
This notification should include:
- The date of when homeschooling begins.
- The names and ages of the children you plan to homeschool.
You are not required to provide a list of curricula you plan to use or any other information about your homeschooling plans.
Teaching Qualifications
You can teach your child yourself, hire a private tutor, or join a co-op or college class. You’re ultimately responsible for deciding the curriculum, schedule, and whether your child advances to the next grade. Some parents choose to do standardized testing, while others don’t. In Texas, there are no specific teaching qualifications required for parents who homeschool their children. You do not need to be a certified teacher to homeschool.
Special Education Homeschooling
Texas does not have any restrictions on homeschooling your “special needs” child(ren). Texas enables students who are five years old or younger with special educational needs to access special education services (i.e., early childhood services) as long the parent signs a consent to have the child(ren) evaluated.
- Infants and toddlers, birth through age 2, with disabilities and their families receive early intervention services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C. Children and youth ages 3 through 21 receive special education and related services under IDEA Part B.
Texas public schools are required to evaluate and determine services for a student who is considered to have special educational needs. Federal funding must be allocated to that student based on the student’s needs and these resources made available in the district where the student would normally attend.
The most common services provided that homeschool parents take advantage of are speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, or reading services. These services are recommended in the homeschooled student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) after the evaluation is conducted with the child at the parent’s consent.
Entering Public School After Homeschooling
Homeschooled students can enter public school at any time. However, most districts have policies and procedures in place to assess the mastery level of courses that homeschooled students have taken. The results of the assessment may be used for grade placement or award of credit or both. Homeschooled students are treated the same as students transferring from unaccredited private schools.
Maintaining Homeschool Records
Texas does not require homeschoolers to record attendance, test, keep records, or report to State agencies. However, some find that they need proof documents in divorce and separation situations where the non-custodial parent or the court is asking for documentation. Records of your student’s educational progress, such as attendance records, test scores, and samples of your child’s work may prove to be helpful.
It is typically a good idea to save everything your homeschooler is doing from about 8th grade on. Optimally, you will have some kind of written overview of the material covered and activities completed, including keeping the paperwork and any files from each class should you need them (larger projects can be photographed or videoed and filed digitally) as a reference.
When the time comes to create homeschool high school transcripts, your record keeping should make it a simple process to enter the needed information into the transcript template.
High School Transcripts and Graduation
Texas considers the successful completion of a homeschool education to be equivalent to graduation from a public high school. In Texas, higher education institutions must treat a homeschool graduate to the same general standards, including specific standardized testing score requirements, as other applicants for undergraduate admission who have graduated from a public high school.
While you are free to customize your student’s high school curriculum, it is recommended that if your student is college, trade school, or military-bound, then following the Texas Education Agency‘s (TEA) recommended high school program consisting of 26 credits may be the way to go. (The minimum credits generally needed for graduation is usually 22.)
As a private school administrator, you determine the criteria needed to graduate from your homeschool. Your student would likely need a homeschool transcript for multiple reasons. It would be good to create a transcript for your student but it is not a requirement.
Texas homeschooling requirements can change, so it’s essential to stay informed about any updates.
