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Maryland Education Code For Homeschooling
This is not intended to be legal advice and is distributed
for information purposes only. Check for updates at your public
library.
Compulsory attendance
Summary
of Maryland Education Code Ann. 7-301
Education Article,
s7-301
.01 Home Instruction
Program.
.02
Voluntary Participation in Standardized Testing.
.03 Noncompliance
with Requirements.
.04 Placement
in Public School.
.05
Home Instruction Under Supervision of Nonpublic School.
Compulsory attendance - Between 5 and 16 years of
age.
There are no teacher qualifications.
No testing is required, but you may volunteer to participate in the yearly standardized test administration
carried out by your public school.
Required subjects are Language Arts
(Language Arts does include reading instruction.), math, science,
social studies, health, music, art, and PE.
Summary of Maryland Education Code
Ann. 7-301
Parents may homeschool if at least fifteen
days before the beginning of a home instruction program the parent
signs a Notice of Intent form certifying that the homeschool
will provide a regular, thorough instruction in the required
subjects (English, math, science, social studies, art, music,
health, and physical education) and that said instruction will
be of "sufficient duration to implement the instructional
program."
Parents must maintain a portfolio of
"relevant materials such as instructional materials, reading
materials, and examples of the child's writings, work sheets,
workbooks, creative materials, and tests." The local superintendent
may review the portfolio, discuss the instructional program,
and observe instruction at a mutually agreeable time and place
not more than three times a year. If, after review, the superintendent
decides that a child is not receiving a regular, thorough instruction
in compliance with the regulations, the family will have 30 days
to remedy the deficiencies or cease homeschooling.
Parents may homeschool their children
if the instruction is offered through and supervised by a state-approved
correspondence course or bona-fide church organization. These
programs must supervise the homeschool with pre-enrollment conferences,
textbooks and lesson plan review, annual homeschool visits, and
periodic conferences with parents.
November
1991
Title l3A
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
SUBTITLE 10 HOME INSTRUCTION
13A.10.01 General Regulations
Authority: Education Article, s7-301,
Annotated Code of Maryland
.01
Home Instruction Program.
A. Purpose. The purpose of this regulation
is to establish a procedure to be used by the superintendent
of each local school system to determine if a child participating
in a home instruction program is receiving regular, thorough
instruction during the school year in the studies usually taught
in the public schools to children of the same age.
B. Written Agreement. A parent or guardian
who chooses to teach a child at home shall sign a statement on
a form prescribed by the State Department of Education which:
- Indicates consent to the requirements set forth in §§C,
D, and E; and
- Shall be submitted to the local superintendent at least 15
days before the beginning of a home instruction program.
C. Instruction Program. The home instruction
program shall:
- Provide regular, thorough instruction in the studies usually
taught in the public schools to children of the same age;
- Include instruction in English, mathematics, science, social
studies, art, music, health,
and physical education; and
- Take place on a regular basis during the school year program
and be of sufficient duration to implement the instruction program.
D. Education Materials. A parent or guardian
who chooses to teach a child at home shall maintain a portfolio
of materials which:
- Demonstrates the parent or guardian is providing regular,
thorough instruction during the school year in the areas specified
in sC (1) and (2).
- Includes relevant materials, such as instructional materials,
reading materials, and examples of the child's writings, worksheets,
workbooks, creative materials, and tests.
- Shall be reviewed by the local superintendent or the superintendent's
designee at the conclusion of each semester of the local school
system at such time as are mutually agreeable to the local superintendent
or designee and the parent or guardian.
E. A parent or guardian shall agree to permit
a representative of a local school system to review the
portfolio of education materials, discuss the instructional program,
and observe instruction provided that all of the following requirements
are met:
- The review is at a time and place mutually agreeable to the
representative of the local school system and the parent or guardian:
- The purpose of the review is to ensure that the child is
receiving regular, thorough instruction as set forth in sC;
- There are not more than three reviews during the school year.
F. Additional Requirements. A local school
system may not impose additional requirements for home instruction
programs other than those in these regulations.
.02 Voluntary Participation
in Standardized Testing: upon request of a parent
or guardian, a child receiving home instruction may participate
in the regularly scheduled standardized testing programs that
are administered in the public school the child is eligible to
attend.
.03 Noncompliance with
Requirements.
A. Failure to Consent. If a parent or
guardian does not agree to the requirements of Regulation .01B,
C, and D, above, a child shall be enrolled promptly in a public
school or nonpublic school as defined in COMAR 13a.09.09.02.B(4)
(a).
B. Deficiencies in the Program. If a
local superintendent determines on the review of the home instruction
program or inspection of the portfolio that a child is not receiving
a regular, thorough instruction program in conformity with Regulation
.0lC and D, the local superintendent shall notify the parent
or guardian in writing of any deficiencies in the program.
The following apply:
- Within 30 days of receipt of notification of any deficiencies,
the parent or guardian shall provide evidence to the local superintendent
that the deficiency has been or is being corrected.
- If a local superintendent determines there is not a satisfactory
plan to correct a deficiency or if a deficiency is not corrected,
a child shall be enrolled promptly in a public school or a nonpublic
school as defined in COMAR 13A.09.09.02B(4) (a).
.04 Placement in Public School.
Upon application of a child for admission to a public school
from a home instruction program, the local superintendent shall
determine by an evaluation the placement of the child and any
credits to be awarded toward high school graduation. The evaluation
may include administration of standardized tests and examinations
and interviews with the child.
.05 Home Instruction
Under Supervision of Nonpublic School.
A parent or guardian may provide instruction for a child at
home without compliance with the requirements of this regulation,
other than the requirements of Regulations .01B(2) and .04, if
that instruction is offered through correspondence courses and
is under the supervision of a:
A. School or institution offering an
educational program operated by a bona fide church organization,
and the supervision includes at a minimum all of the following
components:
- Pre-enrollment conferences with parents or guardians,
- Textbooks, lesson materials, and other instructional materials
or equipment designed to be used independently by the pupil at
a site other than the school,
- Annual visits by supervisory personnel to the site where
the pupil is receiving instruction, and
- Conferences with parents or guardians at appropriate intervals
during the period of enrollment; or
B. Nonpublic school with a certificate
of approval from the State Board of Education, and the supervision
includes at a minimum all of the following components:
- Textbooks, lesson materials, and other instructional materials
or equipment designed to be used independently by the pupil at
a site other than a school, and
- Assignment of a school-based teacher to assist the home teacher
in using the correspondence courses and to assist the pupil by
issuing progress reports, marking papers, and grading tests.
Effective Date: December 1991
On the issue of continuing reporting to the county after age 16, the Department of Education is clear that in no way do they want to send the message to home schoolers to stop reporting for reviews or that the county will no longer review you after age 16.
You must specifically write a notarized letter that you no longer want to continue being reviewed in order for them to take you off their homeschool list.
You may discontinue oversight of instruction after age 16, but the Department of ED. suggest if you do choose to do this you should request or let them know you are continuing your homeschooling program so they can make note of that fact. They suggest you have someone continue to review your program after 16 just so you have documentation you didn't stop education at age 16. They cannot however force parents to review after age 16 and suggest you really contemplate the benefits for and against continuing to reporting after age 16. They stress they want to help the homeschool child have all the resources and benefits for continued reporting, especially for some institution who may require such documentation of a completed high school program such as the military, police etc... Another reason to continue to report for a review is if your child decides to return to PS in the 11 or 12 grade. If you continue reviewing with the county, there would not be a gap in their review process and they could more easily assist a student to receive all their credits should they return to public school. It was noted that many home schoolers are bouncing back and forth between public school and homeschool and private school.
As far as reporting homeschoolers as drop outs .... this simply is not the case. Homeschoolers are not reported as a dropouts as they were never reported in the numbers for PS. Only a child that was enrolled in public school and leaves public school and does not register as a homeschooler would be considered a drop out. They want homeschoolers to continue to home school or at least report their continued homechooling program, so they can report the correct number of home schoolers.
On the issue of tutoring and how much or use of alternative resource a homeschoolers uses, this is a huge NON issue. As long as the parents are overseeing the homeschooling program there is no issue or fear of using educational services.
Dawn M. Bero
President
HAHSA - Homeschool Association of Harford & Surrounding Areas
Annotated
Code of Maryland
Resource for this code from Chesapeake Home Educators.
COMAR
13A.10.01 NEW
Copy of laws from the Maryland State Department of Education.
s7-301 Annotated
Code of Maryland
Additional resource for this code from MHEA
Return to Maryland homeschooling
information.
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