It's difficult to estimate the number of youngsters involved in home schooling
很难估计究竟有多少孩子在家接受教育，
where children are not sent to school and receive their formal education from one or both parents.
在家接受教育意味着孩子们不去学校，而是从父母处接受正规教育。
Legislation and court decisions have made it legally possible in most states for parents to educate their children at home,
在大多数州，法律和法院的判决已经使得父母们在家教育孩子成为了可能，
and each year more people take advantage of that opportunity.
而且每年，抓住这个机会的人越来越多。
Some states require parents or a home tutor to meet teacher certification standards,
一些州要求家长或家庭教师达到教师认证标准，
and many require parents to complete legal forms to verify that their children are receiving instruction in state-approved curriculum.
而许多州则要求家长填写法律文书，以证实他们的孩子所接受的教育在州允许的课程范围之内。
Supporters of home education claim that it's less expensive and far more efficient than mass public education.
家庭教育的支持者声称，相比于大规模的公共教育，家庭教育的成本更低，并且更加高效。
Moreover, they site several advantages:
此外，他们还提出了若干家庭教育的好处：
the alleviation of school overcrowding, strengthen family relationships, lower dropout rates,
缓解学校过度拥挤的情况、巩固家人之间的关系、降低辍学率、
the facts that students are allowed to learn at their own rate,
保证孩子们按自己的节奏学习、
increased motivation, higher standardized test scores, and reduced discipline problems.
更强的学习动力、更高的标准化考试得分，此外，纪律问题也可大为减少。
Critics of the home schooling movement content that it creates as many problems as it solves.
家庭教育运动的批评者则认为家庭教育所带来的问题与其所解决的问题一样多。
They acknowledge that, in a few cases,
他们承认，在一些情况下，
home schooling offers educational opportunities superior to those found in most public schools,
家庭教育所提供的教育机会的确优于大多数公立学校，
but few parents can provide such educational advantages.
但鲜有家长能够提供这样的教育优势。
Some parents who withdraw their children from the schools in favor of home schooling
一些因为偏爱家庭教育而把孩子从学校里接回来的家长并没有充分的教育背景，
have an inadequate educational background and insufficient formal training to provide a satisfactory education for their children.
也缺乏充分的正规培训，因此无法为自己的孩子提供满意的教育。
Typically, parents have fewer technological resources at their disposal than do schools.
一般来说，家长掌握的技术资源远远少于学校。
However, the relatively inexpensive computer technology that is readily available today
然而，鉴于如今的人们可以便捷地利用成本相对较为低廉的计算机技术，
is causing some to challenge the notion that home schooling is in any way inferior to more highly structured classroom education.
家庭教育在各个方面都不如秩序井然的课堂教育这种观念正日渐受到挑战。