The Growing Trend of Homeschooling in the Washington Metropolitan Area Muslim Community

Abstract

This research seeks to explain the apparent increase in the number of Muslim families in the Washington metropolitan area who are choosing to homeschool their children. Despite being a proportionally slim percentage of the homeschool population, they have faced some negative attention stemming from concerns about Muslim homeschoolers’ qualifications, expertise, citizenship, and even loyalty to the United States. Our project attempts to ascertain the motives and reasons behind this growing trend by choosing a representative sample of Muslim homeschoolers and conducting in-depth interviews, engaging in participant observation, and sending out questionnaires. We placed our findings within the broader study of homeschooling, both historically and theoretically, so that it would serve as a cross reference as well as a comparison of Muslim and other homeschoolers. Our findings indicate that the main reasons for this increase are very similar to those noted among other faith-based homeschoolers: religion, family values, and a morally based education in a safe environment.