Secular Homeschool

The definition of what is secular homeschooling is quite open-ended. It's more an identity and a curriculum marker than anything, but the lines of definition may not be quite as clearly drawn as you might think.

Whether or not you choose to identify yourself as secular in your homeschooling is up to you, but it may be helpful to familiarize yourself with the terminology, as this may make communicating with other homeschoolers easier, and also help you identify the right products and curriculum components that achieve your desired educational goals.

People identify themselves as "secular" in terms of homeschooling for different reasons.

The primary definition of secular is that which is not religiously affiliated. Its basis (be it for spiritual purposes, homeschooling, theory, etc.) does not concern religion. In essence, the person, activity, or subject is neutral in regards to religion or spiritual belief.

As applied to homeschooling, secular refers most commonly to that population of homeschoolers who are not choosing to homeschool based on religious beliefs. When asked why homeschool was their decision, the reasons will more likely be in keeping more with concerns over educational quality and attainment, or social or behavioral concerns extending beyond the religious.

In contrast, a person who considers him or herself a Christian or religion-based homeschooler will probably site these concerns along with matters of moral and spiritual belief.

Being a secular homeschooler does not mean that you have to be an atheist or an agnostic who refuses or questions God and religion. Some people who are devoutly Christian or of another faith still consider themselves secular when it comes to their homeschooling agenda. This is because their decision to homeschool was not based on their religion, but on other factors such as quality of education or educational theory. So although religion may be an integral part of a homeschooler's life, it may or may not define their educational goals, agenda, and curricula.

Clearly there is no one answer as to what makes a person or their curriculum a "secular homeschool". Only you can define your identity as a person and as a homeschooler, and regardless of where you fall along the spectrum you should take pride and confidence in that identity, and know that there are resources and like-minded homeschoolers who identify right along with you.