According to the National Home Education Research Institute, the number of homeschoolers rose from 1.2 million in 2003 to an astounding 2.4 million in 2006. With this staggering increase in those receiving an education from home we have to wonder why people are choosing this form of education. Based on surveys, there are three primary reasons children are being trained at home instead of the government funded solution. The primary reason parents have chosen to train their kids is to incorporate religion into their curriculum. Tied closely are other parents that have decided to incorporate moral training into their courses. Both of these have been continuously removed from the education children receive when trained publicly. The third reason parents have chosen to train their own children is because the alternative is viewed as an inferior education in comparison to the education they could receive at home. Taking a look at the results it’s often found that homeschool students test up to thirty percent higher than publicly educated children. What’s truly amazing when added up is the sixteen billion tax dollars that are saved annually because of their choice to homeschool. One of the major challenges these 2.4 million students and their teachers are faced with is being able to prove their status as homeschoolers. When students and teachers come from a public or even a private school they are provided with school
ID cards. Alternatively homeschoolers are forced to seek out a solution for themselves when it comes to school identification. There are many reasons why students and teachers need to provide ID cards with the most basic being proof that students are not breaking the community’s truancy laws. It’s often common for homeschools to operate on a schedule different from traditional schools. Even being able to take a break and go to the park during the day could appear as if they were breaking local laws. The simple solution would be to show a school ID card that indicated the student isn’t ditching class. Another reason homeschool students want identification cards is to receive the benefits that many retailers offer to kids in school. Even the local theater offers discounted ticket prices to students and teachers carrying their school identification card. Parents that have become homeschool educators can receive discounts from both office supply and school supply stores if they can prove they are teachers. Other reasons for needing ID cards range from boarding a plane since 9/11 to even being able to take college entrance exams such as SATs. The reasons are numerous why teachers and students need an answer. Some of the solutions that have been utilized include laminating paper produced from a standard laser or ink jet printer, to finding a company to provide plastic identification cards. PVC or
plastic ID cards are obviously a higher quality but until recently it’s been difficult to find a provider that would produce only a few ID cards without charging minimum order fees and setup charges. A new vendor, FullIdentity.com has developed an affordable plastic ID card solution that works well for homeschools. Students or teachers can design their school ID card online as well as upload their own pictures. Orders can be made easily for even just one ID card if that is all that is needed.