In response to your request for a survey of state laws regarding the requirements
for home schooling in the states in the Boston Region, we provide below a summary
of the applicable laws for each New England state. If you have any questions about
how these laws would apply to the facts of any specific claim for child's benefits,
please let us know.
Attendance at school is required for persons “five years of age and over and under
eighteen years of age.” A child is excused from attending public school if the parent
“is able to show that the child is elsewhere receiving equivalent instruction in the
studies taught in the public schools.” Required subjects are reading, writing, spelling,
English grammar, geography, arithmetic, United States history, and citizenship, including
a study of the town, state and federal governments.
Connecticut does not have a statute concerning home schooling, but the Connecticut
Department of Education has established specific guidelines and suggested procedures
applicable to home schooling (a copy of the state guidelines is available at http://www.cthomeschoolnetwork.org/CtLaw-StateGuidelines.htm). These guidelines recommend that local school boards observe the following procedures:
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a)
parents must file with the superintendent of schools in the town in which they reside
a notice of intent form which provides basic information about the program to be provided
to their child. A notice of intent will be effective for up to one school year;
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b)
the filing of the notice of intent must occur within ten days of the start of the
home instruction program;
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c)
the school district will receive the notice of intent, check it for completeness and
keep it as part of the district's permanent records. A complete form will be one which
provides basic program information including name of teacher, subjects to be taught
and days of instruction, and the teacher's methods of assessment;
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d)
a parent, by filing a notice of intent, acknowledges full responsibility for the education
of their child in accordance with the requirements of state law;
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e)
an annual portfolio review will be held with the parents and school officials to determine
if instruction in the required courses has been given; and
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f)
any continued refusal by the parent to comply with the reasonable request of the school
district for completion and filing of the notice of intent, or to participate in an
annual portfolio review may cause the child to be considered truant.
See CT. Gen. Stat. Ann. § 10-184; CT Homeschool Newtwork, Inc. website at http://www.cthomeschoolnetwork.org/CtLaw-LegalFAQs.htm