As a homeschool evaluator, I’ve discovered that many people, including some school employees, assume that a homeschool evaluation works like a report card conference, a teacher observation, or a standardized testing review.

It doesn’t.

Pennsylvania homeschooling has its own accountability system, and the annual evaluation is an important part of that process. But the evaluator’s role is actually much narrower and simpler than many people imagine.

So what does a homeschool evaluator actually do?

In short, we review your student’s portfolio, spend a little time talking with your student, and determine whether an appropriate education is occurring under Pennsylvania’s home education law.

That’s it.

The Legal Foundation

Pennsylvania homeschooling operates under its own section of state law, Act 169 of 1988, codified at 24 P.S. §13-1327.1.

Pennsylvania is one of only a handful of states that requires an annual review by an independent evaluator as part of homeschool compliance. Public schools, private schools, and charter schools don’t have an equivalent process.

What Does the Evaluator Actually Do?

Our role consists of three basic responsibilities.

1. We Review the Portfolio

The evaluator reviews the records your family has maintained throughout the school year, which typically include:

• A log of reading materials by title
• Samples of work from various subjects
• A record or statement of instructional time
• Standardized test results when required (grades 3, 5, and 8)

Parents sometimes worry that we’re looking for perfect portfolios, fancy curriculum, or beautifully organized binders.

We’re not.

We’re simply looking for evidence that the required subjects were covered and that your student made progress during the year.

Homeschooling can be accomplished in a thousand different ways, and experienced evaluators know that learning doesn’t look the same in every family.

2. We Spend Some Time with Your Student

Pennsylvania law requires an interview with the student, but parents are often pleasantly surprised by how informal this usually is.

This is not a test.

It’s not an oral exam.

Most of the time, it feels more like a conversation.

I enjoy hearing students talk about the books they loved (or hated), the projects they completed, the places they visited, and the things that captured their curiosity during the year. Often these conversations are my favorite part of evaluation season.

3. We Write a Certification Letter

After reviewing the portfolio and meeting with the student, the evaluator determines whether an “appropriate education” is occurring.

Under Pennsylvania law, an appropriate education is one in which:

• Instruction occurs in the required subjects.
• The required amount of instructional time is provided.
• The student demonstrates sustained progress in the overall program.

If those conditions are met, the evaluator writes a brief certification letter stating that an appropriate education is occurring in the home education program.

That language matters because it comes directly from the statute itself.

What Evaluators Do NOT Do

This is probably the area that causes the most confusion.

Homeschool evaluators do not:

• Assign grades.
• Compare students to public school grade-level benchmarks.
• Approve or reject curriculum choices.
• Require the use of particular textbooks or teaching methods.
• Evaluate religious content.
• Report to the district throughout the year.
• Submit portfolios to the superintendent.

We are not curriculum police.

We are not inspectors.

And we are certainly not there to tell families how to homeschool.

Our role is limited to determining whether an appropriate education is occurring under Pennsylvania law.

The portfolio stays with the family. The school district receives only the evaluator’s certification letter.

Who Can Serve as an Evaluator?

Pennsylvania law allows several categories of individuals to serve as evaluators:

1. A licensed psychologist.
2. A Pennsylvania-certified teacher with at least two years of grading experience at the level being evaluated.
3. A nonpublic school teacher or administrator with at least two years of Pennsylvania teaching experience within the previous ten years at the level being evaluated.
4. Another qualified individual who receives prior approval from the superintendent of the family’s district of residence.

One additional detail.

• No matter how qualified a parent may be, Pennsylvania law does not allow parents or their spouses to evaluate their own home education program.

When Is the Evaluation Due?

The evaluator’s certification must be submitted to the superintendent by June 30 at the end of each school year.

If the certification is not received, the superintendent must notify the family and request that it be submitted within ten days.

If it still isn’t provided, a hearing process follows, and families retain appeal rights throughout that process.

The law also allows a superintendent to request a new evaluation if there is a documented, reasonable belief that an appropriate education is not occurring or that the program is otherwise out of compliance.

Why Pennsylvania Uses This System

Public schools, private schools, and charter schools rely on administrators, school policies, accreditation systems, and institutional oversight.

Homeschooling uses a different model.

In Pennsylvania, the evaluator serves as an independent professional selected by the family rather than by the school district.

The evaluator reviews the student’s progress once each year and provides a brief certification to the superintendent.

The superintendent doesn’t choose the evaluator, doesn’t review the portfolio, and doesn’t dictate curriculum choices or teaching methods.

Pennsylvania chose a model built on professional review and parental responsibility rather than institutional oversight.

After serving as an evaluator for many years, I have come to appreciate the flexibility and freedom that approach provides to homeschooling families.

One Final Thought

Every spring I meet students who are building robots, writing novels, raising livestock, studying ancient history, volunteering in their communities, starting businesses, learning trades, mastering musical instruments, and pursuing interests that would be difficult to fit into a traditional classroom schedule.

One of my favorite parts of being an evaluator is getting a front-row seat to all the different ways learning happens in homeschool families.

And perhaps that’s the best way to understand the evaluator’s role.

We’re not here to make homeschooling look more like school.

We’re here to recognize and affirm that meaningful learning is already taking place.

This article is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal advice. Families with specific legal or compliance questions should consult the law directly and seek guidance from qualified homeschool legal organizations when appropriate.