Sam and Stan Scoma represent a small but growing trend in the United States. They have completed almost all their elementary and secondary courses by studying at home, just as an older sister and brother did before them. (Typically, home school programs are organized by parents in cooperation with state and local government authorities and with the help of national organizations such as the National Home Education Network [www.nhen.org].) By studying at their own pace, Sam and Stan say they learned a lot about self-discipline and feel they received an outstanding education. Along the way, they participated in sports, music, and church activities. Excellent students in math and science, they have won scholarships to begin their higher education at a two-year community college in their hometown of Columbia, South Carolina, and are thinking about pursuing careers in engineering.

Journalist Chuck Offenburger writes from Simple Serenity Farm near the tiny town of Cooper, Iowa, population 30. He has been covering the changing face of America for 40 years and can be reached by e-mail at chuck@Offenburger.com. For more information on home schooling, see the Internet Resources section at the end of this publication.

Twin brothers Sam and Stan Scoma, who graduated from high school this year in Columbia, South Carolina, did most of their academic work at home. They learned at their own pace; when things came easy, they would go faster, and when they were difficult, they would slow down. When some topic seemed ripe for a "classroom discussion," they would conduct it between themselves. They had some unusual teachers, like the local politician who taught them public speaking. And they were taught a wide variety of other subjects by their parents, Steve and Sandy Scoma, and by each other, too.

The Scoma twins were "home schoolers," part of a small but growing trend in the United States of parents educating their own children in their homes. In Columbia, a metropolitan area with a population of 516,000, it is estimated that 2,000 students are being home schooled each year, with about 120 of those graduating from high school each spring.

Home schooling has grown over the past 20 years or so for a variety of reasons. Some families choose it for religious reasons—for example, to make sure that lessons are consistent with their religious teachings or to teach religious ethics. Others do it believing their children will learn better at home than they would in a classroom full of students. Others make the decision for logistical reasons, such as living so far from schools that daily trips would be difficult.

TWO SPECIAL LESSONS

The Scoma boys, now 18, look back on doing their entire elementary and secondary education at home and say they have learned a lot. But two special lessons stand out: learning how to learn and self-discipline.

"One of the things I like best about home schooling is you learn how to teach yourself," said Sam. "You can go to your parents for help, if you don't understand something, but you learn how to do research and find answers yourself."

Stan said most home schooled students go through a stage where "there's a temptation to let the work slide. But you reach a point where you realize that either you're going to push yourself and succeed in life, or you're not going to do what's required and you're going to fail in life. We learned enough about self-discipline that, by this last year or two, not doing the work hasn't really been a temptation for us anymore."

Sam said he always liked the idea that "there was no set schedule unless we wanted one. Our parents didn't mind if we wanted to sleep in, as long as we got our work done." Which they did. And they excelled.

Indeed, they graduated with grade point averages of 3.9 and above, on a 4.0 grading scale, more than meeting the requirements of the South Carolina Independent Home School Association. That agency monitors and measures the progress of home school students and issues their diplomas.

The Scomas' academic standing is so strong that they won full scholarships that will pay their way at Midlands Technical College, a two-year community college in Columbia. Eventually they plan to get bachelor's degrees from the University of South Carolina.

Both loved taking mathematics and science courses. Sam thinks that might lead him into a career in space or aviation programs. Stan is fascinated by chemical engineering, and might go into research and development of medications.

MAKING THE DECISION

So why did the Scoma parents decide to home school their children?

Steve and Sandy Scoma were living in the Dallas, Texas, area when their two older children, daughter Stacy and son Steve Jr., reached school age.

"We started home schooling there, thinking we could give the kids a good start in schooling prior to putting them in a competitive classroom situation," said Steve Sr. He was working then in information technology. Sandy stayed at home to be their children's chief teacher. In 1990, they moved to South Carolina and became involved in the development and operation of an indoor sports arena. Sam and Stan have worked at the arena part time.

"When we moved to South Carolina, our reason for home schooling changed a little," Steve Sr. continued, noting that the public schools in general were considered to be weak. "Even though the school district we lived in did have pretty good schools, still, we felt that the test scores for kids in public education in South Carolina wouldn't be competitive with the scores for students coming out of schools in other areas of the United States. We might have considered sending them to private schools, which had better academic programs, but we couldn't afford that. So we chose to continue to home school them."

Stacy Scoma, now 26, and Steve Jr., now 24, went on from home schooling to graduate from the University of South Carolina. Stacy is now a kindergarten teacher, while Steve Jr. will be going to work in computer engineering.

Involvement in their church, the Christian Life Assembly of God, has been an important part of the Scomas' home school program. Sam and Stan have learned a great deal about other cultures during church-sponsored work trips they have taken to Mexico, India, Romania, and other countries. They have also benefited from the church's extensive music program. Stan is an excellent pianist. Sam also plays piano as well as guitar and bass. They are key members of the church's youth band and choir.

The boys are also talented athletes, and they have relied on community resources to get experience playing team sports.

READY FOR THE FUTURE

They say they feel more than ready for the rigor of academic life in college.

"We have taken some higher-level math and science classes with other home school students," Stan said. "We've done all right in those, and actually, I'm really looking forward to having more group discussions in our college classes."

Both Sam and Stan say it's a great time now to be a young person. "I think our generation has the greatest opportunities ever to pick our career fields," said Stan. "There are opportunities galore. You can pretty much do whatever you want to do, and no one is limited because they're in some certain financial group or some ethnic group.

The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. government.