Education committee takes up contentious "equivalent instruction" bill after hours of debate

The Joint Education Committee heard extended debate on House Bill 5468, a phased proposal to create a statewide framework for "equivalent instruction" — Connecticut’s statutory term for homeschooling — and to add limited reporting, DCF registry checks and optional demonstrations of instruction.

Chair (speaker 1) said the bill is designed to fill a statutory gap for children who leave public schools and to provide “a very, very low bar” so districts and state agencies can tell whether students who withdraw are being educated. The sponsor said the changes would be phased in beginning in 2028–29 and would grandfather existing homeschool families.

Under the substitute language the committee discussed, parents who withdraw a child to homeschool must file an intent-to-educate form and then an annual continuation form. Districts must make three attempts to contact families that do not file a continuation; if contact fails, the matter would be referred to the State Department of Education to determine whether further follow-up is warranted. The bill would allow parents to satisfy a demonstration of instruction with a portfolio, a nationally normed test or the statewide mastery exam. The text also authorizes districts to contract with regional service centers (RESCs) or SERC to receive and manage demonstrations.

The measure would also add a limited funding mechanism to offset district costs: each child filed as receiving equivalent instruction would be counted as one-tenth of a resident student in the ECS formula until the phased-in schedule reaches full implementation, the chairs…