Impact Of Homeschooling On Entrepreneurial Activities – Findings From The Study

he paper The Influence of Homeschooling on Entrepreneurial Activities: A Collective Case Study by Sarah Jeanne Pannone explores how homeschooling affects entrepreneurial activity and characteristics.

The study used a collective case study design and identified three critical themes through participant interviews, surveys, and document analysis.

In recent years, entrepreneurship has seen tremendous growth as an academic discipline.

A background on entrepreneurship education - According to the research paper

According to Katz (2008) and Piperopoulos and Dimov (2015), the number of schools offering entrepreneurship classes has increased significantly since the 1980s. Morris et al. (2001) found that by the year 2000, more than 700 business schools in the USA offered such classes.

Moreover, Bennett (2006) notes that many schools now offer complete degree programs in entrepreneurship, including undergraduate, graduate, and even doctoral degrees.

According to Piperopoulos and Dimov (2015), entrepreneurship education has been shown to positively affect students' entrepreneurial attitudes, abilities, and skills. Mitra and Matlay (2004) and Neck and Greene (2011) agree, noting that it can make a difference.

However, there needs to be a clear consensus on the actual impact of entrepreneurship education on students' entrepreneurial intentions, as revealed by a literature review (Walter et al., 2011).

In some cases, entrepreneurial education can even hurt entrepreneurial intentions, as Oosterbeek et al. (2010) found. This may be due to the need for more regularity or standardization among the content offered in entrepreneurship courses across different schools (Shane & Venkataraman, 2000).

Despite these varying findings, Higgins et al. (2013) state that there is a widespread consensus that more than traditional pedagogical methods are needed to develop entrepreneurs adequately.

Analysis from the Study

Firstly, all participants noted that their later years of home education were primarily self-directed, and this type of learning helped to shape their subsequent entrepreneurial pursuits.

Secondly, four out of five participants believed that the alternative nature of their homeschooling education and its emphasis on embracing differences influenced their path towards entrepreneurship.

Lastly, four out of five participants mentioned that homeschooling helped to develop their internal locus of control, a belief beneficial in entrepreneurial endeavours.

‍Theme 1: self-directed, independent work that is self-motivated. During the interviews, participants expressed how their homeschooling education was self-directed and self-motivated. They believed this education played a crucial role in their decision to become entrepreneurs and carry out their current entrepreneurial activities.

"I have always been able to control my schedule, so I think I never really considered having someone tell me what to do."

Theme 2: Not a cookie-cutter approach

Four out of the five participants in the study credited their decision to become entrepreneurs to their non-mainstream education. They felt that homeschooling, as an alternative approach, encouraged them to take risks and learn from their failures.

"Oh, I am going to work for someone else." How they prepare you, at least in college, is like we are all being prepared to be robots to work for someone else.

Theme 3:  an internal locus of control

of the five participants related that homeschooling at least partially encouraged their internal locus of control, which, in turn, helped them 

"We were grounded young to know and have confidence that we can do what we set out to do, and if you fail, it is not the end of the world." 

This study highlights how homeschooling can support and encourage entrepreneurial traits such as self-direction, willingness to be different, take risks, and an internal locus of control.

These findings show how education can help develop entrepreneurial characteristics and inspire the desire to become an entrepreneur.

While the effect of homeschooling on entrepreneurship needs to be clarified in the literature, this study adds to existing research on the influence of education on entrepreneurial activity. It also provides insight into the perspectives of homeschooled students, an area that needs more research.

All participants in this study described their high school years as largely autonomous, with parents serving more as educational guides than disseminators of information.

This is consistent with existing research on homeschooling as student-directed and flexible. This flexible, non-cookie-cutter approach allowed the participants in this

study to have a say in how they learned and what they learned.

The study supports previous research by Meighan (1995) and Patterson et al. (2007), who found that homeschooling offers flexible scheduling and student-centred learning choices. It also confirms Cromie's (2000) assertion that an internal locus of control is associated with entrepreneurial activity.

The study further supports claims made in the homeschooling community, such as the parallel between homeschooling and entrepreneurial skills, as stated by Gaddy (2013).

While the small sample size limits generalization, the findings suggest that homeschooling may be an ideal method of education for encouraging entrepreneurial traits.

Participants in the study also corroborated Turan and Kara's (2007) claim that specific cultural values and beliefs can influence entrepreneurial traits and activities. The study highlights the significant impact of education on entrepreneurial development.

For parents considering alternative forms of learning for their children, understanding how homeschooling can foster self-learning and an entrepreneurial mindset is valuable information.

‍