In a 2009 study by the National Center for Education Statistics, home-schoolers scored far above average on standardized tests in math, language, social studies (84th percentile) and reading (89th percentile). Home-schooled students were consistently successful even when there were variables in household income, money spent on educational supplies and level of the teaching parent's education.
Examining the performance of students from home-school backgrounds at his own university in a 2009 study, St. Thomas College professor Michael Cogan concluded that in almost every measure of academic performance, including GPA, retention and graduation rates, home-schooled students exceeded their counterparts who were not home-schooled. His study examined the demographics of students from home-school backgrounds and controlled for variables such as gender, household income and religious affiliation.
A study conducted by the United States National Education Household Survey in 2001 concluded that home-schooled students outperformed their counterparts in levels of civic participation and engagement, such as community service, knowledge of current affairs and involvement in political causes. In one finding, students in the 18-24 year old age group who had been home-schooled were 14 times more likely to have worked for a political candidate, cause or political party.
In 2007, the National Center for Education Statistics concluded that male and female home-schooled students perform almost equally, which is a significant difference from the gender performance gap commonly found in public and private schools. For example, the study found much smaller gaps in the reading performance level of fourth grade girls and boys, and that girls who had been home-schooled favored better relative to boys in science.