Massachusetts

The Massachusetts Department of Education does not play a role with respect to home education. Approval and oversight of home education is a local, rather than state, function in Massachusetts. Therefore, the Department of Education is not involved in setting policy, overseeing school district practices, or otherwise enforcing the Commonwealth's home education law. The Department does not collect data from school districts concerning the incidence of home education, and does not maintain a repository of school district home education policies.

Inform your local superintendent of schools of your intent to pursue a home education program for your child(ren). The local school authorities are given the responsibility of approving all home education programs for children during the years of compulsory attendance, between the ages of 6 and 16. Your initial letter should state your family's intention for the upcoming or the remainder of the current academic year and including the names and ages of your children. You may request a copy of the local home education policy and procedure from your local superintendenct.

Judicial decisions in the Commonwealth have concluded that a home education program ought to contain four main sections:

1. The qualifications of the instructors: diplomas, degrees, life experiences (it's not necessary for parents providing education at home to be certified, nor must they have college or advanced degrees);

2. The curriculum: a list of subjects, texts and support materials (you may request a list of the core subjects from the local school district);

3. The schedule: equivalent to public school requirements (at present this is set by the Education Reform Act of 1993 at 900 hours of "time in learning" per year for elementary students and 990 hours for secondary students);

4. The evaluation: a plan agreed to by the school officials and the parents (some examples are a portfolio of work samples, a year end report, or standardized tests).