00:00 No school desk, no worries.
00:02 It's been six years since the Porter kids flipped their approach to learning.
00:07 They're like, "What school do you go to?"
00:09 And I'm like, "I'm homeschooled."
00:11 And they're like, "You're so lucky."
00:13 Their mum never planned to homeschool,
00:15 but her son's behavioural struggles pushed her to give it a go.
00:19 The experience just worked out so well that we haven't looked back since.
00:24 Homeschooling surged during the pandemic
00:27 and it's getting more popular.
00:30 Those kids felt that they just learned better at home
00:32 and were more comfortable learning in their home space.
00:35 In Queensland, homeschool registrations have boomed,
00:39 from less than 3,500 in 2019 to more than 10,000 students last year.
00:45 And experts say the number of unregistered families makes it even higher.
00:50 They're disaffected about how schools are being run.
00:54 A lot of them are unhappy with policies and procedures.
00:57 Many of them are unhappy with the focus on standardised testing.
01:00 Bullying, disability, neurodiversity, school refusal and class sizes
01:06 are also key factors.
01:08 We want to encourage as many young people to come to school as possible,
01:13 to enjoy being at school, to enjoy interacting,
01:16 to get the benefits of learning in a classroom.
01:20 A review of Queensland's Education Act is underway,
01:24 which includes a potential crackdown on homeschool requirements
01:28 to ensure children don't fall behind.
01:31 But experts say more regulation could lead to a rise
01:34 in illegally unregistered students.
01:37 Homeschooling comes at a cost
01:40 and the burden falls disproportionately on mothers.
01:43 It's like I've had to obviously sacrifice a career,
01:46 however I totally think it's worth it.
01:48 Some children just need extra help
01:50 and their parents are willing to do that for them.
01:53 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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