Ohio
• Compulsory Attendance Ages: Between 6 and 18. (§ 3321.01(A)(1))
• Required Days of Instruction: 900 hours. (§ 3301-34-03(A)(8))
• Required Subjects: Including language arts, geography, history of United States and Ohio, government, math, health, physical education, fine arts, first aid and science. (§ 3301-34-03(A)(5).
• Teacher Qualifications:
Option 1: (§ 3301-34-03(A)(9)) The "home teacher" must have a high school diploma or GED or test scores which demonstrate high school equivalence or the parent must "work under the direction of a person holding a baccalaureate degree … until children's test results demonstrate reasonable proficiency…."
Option 2: Teachers and administrators must have received a bachelor's degree or the equivalent thereof from a recognized college or university. If the parent teaches for 12 hours or less, they do not have to hold a bachelor's degree as they qualify as a "teacher's aide" to the parent with the degree.
• Standardized Tests:
Option 1: (§ 3301-34-04). Parents have three options. At the time of notification, the family must send:
1. A child's test scores. If a child is tested, the child must have a composite score at least at the 25th percentile on a nationally normed standardized achievement test administered by either
a. A certified teacher, or
b. The public school, or
c. Another person mutually agreed upon" by the parents and superintendent, or
d. A "person duly authorized by the publisher of the test."
2. Or a "written narrative indicating that a portfolio of samples of the child's work has been reviewed and that the child's academic progress for the year is in accordance with the child's abilities." If a written narrative is prepared, it must be written by either:
a. A certified teacher, or
b. "Other person mutually agreed upon."
3. Or an alternative assessment mutually agreed upon by the parents and the superintendent.
• Option 2: No testing required.
• Home schools have two options:
Option 1: The superintendent of schools of the school district in which the child resides may excuse him from attendance upon satisfactory showing that the child is being instructed at home by a person qualified to teach the branches in which instruction is required. (§ 3301) According to these rules:
1. Home education' means education primarily directed and provided by the parent (§ 3301-34-01(B).
2. The purpose of the rules in this chapter is to prescribe conditions governing the issuance of excuses from school attendance under section 3321.04 … to provide for the consistent application thereof throughout the state by superintendents, and to safeguard the primary right of parents to provide the education for their child(ren). Home education must be in accordance with the law." (§ 3301-34-02
3. A parent must provide an annual notification to home school to the appropriate superintendent which shall include (§ 3301-34-03(A)):
a. school year for which notification is made;
b. name and address of the parent, and full name and birth date of child;
c. name and address of person(s) who will be teaching the child, if other than the parent;
d. assurance that the home school will include the required subjects listed above ("except that home education shall not be required to include any concept, topic, or practice that is in conflict with the sincerely held religious beliefs of the parent");
e. a brief outline of intended curriculum and list of textbooks or other basic teaching materials. "Such outline … [and] list is for informational purposes only"; and
f. assurance of hours and qualifications (see below).
4. The superintendent shall review the information within 14 days and "determine if it is in compliance" with the rules. If the home schooler's information is incomplete, he will notify the parents and give them 14 days to supplement information or meet with him. If the "superintendent has substantial evidence that the minimum educational requirements of paragraph A (§3301-34-03 (A)] will not be met," he shall deny the excuse. He must state the reason and inform the parents of their right to a due process hearing before him (he must provide a record of proceedings and allow for oral testimony). (§ 3301-34-03(C)(D). If the superintendent completely denies the home school, the family has 10 days to appeal to the local juvenile court pursuant to Oh. Rev. Code § 3331.08. (Alternative Statutes Allowing for Home Schools: Non-Chartered School ("08 School")
Option 2: A parent who has a bachelor's degree and who objects to government controlled education because of truly held religious beliefs may establish a non chartered, non-tax supported school pursuant to § 3301-35-08. (These are generally known as "08 schools.")
Such schools must annually certify that the school meets the Ohio minimum standards below. Each parent of a child in the school must receive this report, and a copy must be filed with the Ohio Department of Education on or before September 30th each year. The minimum standards for 08 schools are:
1. School year. The school shall be open for instruction with pupils in attendance for not less than one hundred eighty-two days each school year;
2. School Day. The school day for pupils in grades one through twelve shall be no less than five hours, not counting recess;
3. Pupil attendance. Parents are responsible for reporting their child's attendance at a non-chartered school. Within the first two weeks of the beginning of each school year, the parents must report the name, age, and place of residence of each pupil below eighteen years of age. This report is to be made to the treasurer of the board of education of the school district in which each student resides. If a pupil enters or leaves a non-chartered school during the school year, the parents must notify the treasurer of the local school board within the first week of the next school month.
4. Teacher and administrator qualifications. Teachers and administrators shall have received a bachelor's degree or the equivalent thereof from a recognized college or university. Persons without a bachelor's degree may act as "teacher's aides" for up to 12 hours per week in such a school. (For rules governing teacher's aides in public schools, see ORC § 3319.088.
5. Courses of Study. Each 08 school shall have courses of study for the following subjects: language arts; geography, history of United States and Ohio, government; math; health; physical education; fine arts (including music); science; and first aid, safety, and fire prevention.
6. Pupil promotion. Each 08 school shall follow regular procedures for promotion from grade to grade of pupils who have met the school's educational requirements.
7. Pupil health and safety. If an 08 school comprises a single family or multiple "campus sites" in individual homes, they need only comply with health, fire, and safety laws applicable to private residences. Schools that serve more than one family in the same residence may have to comply with institutional health, fire, and safety laws.
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Ohio State High School Graduation Standards
- English units: 4
- Math units: 3
- Eff. Class of 2014: 4, incl. Algebra II
- Social studies units: 3. All students must complete "one unit of American history and government, including a study of the" U.S. and Ohio constitutions.
- Science units: 3, incl. 1 unit each biological sciences and physical sciences
- Eff. Class of 2014: 3 lab, incl. 1 unit biology, 1 unit physical sciences, 1 unit advanced science chosen from: (a) chemistry, physics or other physical science; (b) advanced biology or other life science; (c) astronomy, physical geology, or other earth or space science.
- P.E./Health units: 1. (5 unit each of P.E. and health)
- Arts: 0. Each student's electives shall include at least one unit, or two half units, chosen from among the areas of business/technology, fine arts, and/or foreign language.
- Foreign language: 0. Each student's electives shall include at least one unit, or two half units, chosen from among the areas of business/technology, fine arts, and/or foreign language.
- Electives units: 6. Each student's electives shall include at least one unit, or two half units, chosen from among the areas of business/technology, fine arts, and/or foreign language.
- Eff. Class of 2014: 5. Units must be chosen from "foreign language, fine arts, business, career-technical education, family and consumer sciences, technology, agricultural education, or English language arts, mathematics, science, or social studies courses not otherwise required...."
- Other units: 0. Each student's electives shall include at least one unit, or two half units, chosen from among the areas of business/technology, fine arts, and/or foreign language.
Other diploma options: State offers college prep and technical diploma options. State will begin phasing in proficiency-based credit option during the 2009-2010 school year.
OHIO REV. CODE ANN. § 3313.60, 3313.603; OHIO ADMIN. CODE § 3301-35-04
Important Note: State Graduation requirements are not necessarily the best guideline for homeschoolers to use. They have been included here as a guideline for what a typical public school student would need to complete in order to graduate.
A more important guideline may be the College Entrance requirements for where your student would like to attend college. While colleges have differing requirements, there are many colleges that publish requirements for homeschool graduates.
Related Pages:
Homeschool Support Groups in Ohio
Colleges in Ohio