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The primary reason for homeschooling is to give the child a better education.  A close second in reasons, however, is to avoid the culture of public school and its many adverse effects of hostility to Christianity and parental control, political bias, boredom, confusion, depression, etc.

The primary reason for homeschooling is to give the child a better education.  A close second in reasons, however, is to avoid the culture of public school and its many adverse effects of hostility to Christianity and parental control, political bias, boredom, confusion, depression, etc.

In the United States, opting out of public schools is not new. Thomas Edison's mother took him out of public school when his teacher said he was "addled" and schooled him at home. But because of compulsory education laws—the first was passed in Massachusetts in 1852, and by 1918 every state had them—schooling at home was a violation of truancy laws, and was rare until the 1970s.  

In the United States, opting out of public schools is not new. When Thomas Edison's public school teacher said he was "addled," Edison's mother took him out of public school and taught him at home. But because of compulsory education laws—the first was passed in Massachusetts in 1852, and by 1918 every state had them—schooling at home was a violation of truancy laws, and was rare until the 1970s.  

The origin of the U. S. homeschooling movement is often credited to John Holt and his 1964 book ''How Children Fail.'' Holt was "a left-winger who regarded schools as instruments of the bureaucratic-industrial complex."<ref>Micklethwait, John and Adrian Wooldridge, ''The Right Nation: Conservative Power in America.'' Penguin, 2004. pp. 190-1</ref> However, the movement was also catalyzed when social conservatives became alarmed at the 1962 U. S. Supreme Court ruling which banned prayer in public schools.

The origin of the U. S. homeschooling movement is often credited to John Holt and his 1964 book ''How Children Fail.'' Holt was "a left-winger who regarded schools as instruments of the bureaucratic-industrial complex."<ref>Micklethwait, John and Adrian Wooldridge, ''The Right Nation: Conservative Power in America.'' Penguin, 2004. pp. 190-1</ref> However, the movement was also catalyzed when social conservatives became alarmed at the 1962 U. S. Supreme Court ruling which banned prayer in public schools.