A powerful new memoir has cast a stark light on the potential dangers of unregulated homeschooling in the United States, recounting one boy's five-year ordeal of isolation and educational neglect under the guise of a "free-form education."
A Childhood Disappeared: The Reality of 'Unschooling'
In 1990, at just nine years old, Stefan Merrill Block was withdrawn from Brinker Elementary School in Plano, Texas, by his mother. She insisted he was a "creative genius" who needed an unconventional path, inspired by educational theorist John Holt. What followed was not enrichment, but four years of profound loneliness and a desperate, unanswered hope that someone from the state or his old school would check on him.
No one ever came. For four years, no authority figure inquired about his studies or wellbeing. His mother, who believed a "global learner" like Stefan required a structureless education she termed "unschooling," filled his days with shopping trips, lunches out, and drawing by the pool. His only formal study was a correspondence math course.
The routine grew increasingly bizarre. His mother applied lighteners to his hair to restore its baby blond colour. She made him crawl on all fours at home, claiming it would improve his handwriting. Stefan spent his days almost entirely alone with his mother, while his brother attended school and his father went to work.
The Legal Black Hole of Homeschooling
As Stefan would later learn, he had fallen into an invisible space created by Texas law. In 1994, and as remains the case in 2026, Texas has no requirement for a homeschooled child to take standardised tests. A homeschooling parent does not need a high school diploma. Astonishingly, a parent could be a registered sex offender or under investigation by child protective services and still legally homeschool without oversight.
This regulatory vacuum exists across much of the United States, largely due to powerful Christian lobbying groups. Today, it is estimated that over 3 million American children are homeschooled, though the true number is unknown as many states do not require parents to file notice.
A Grandmother's Intervention and a Violent Turning Point
The first crack in Stefan's isolated world came with a visit from his formidable grandmother, Marian "Mimi" Block. Immediately critical, Mimi questioned why a boy was at the mall on a school day and voiced concerns about his loneliness and lack of curriculum.
In a self-sabotaging cry for help, Stefan performed poorly during her visit, watching TV and reading comics instead of showcasing his supposed self-directed learning. This betrayal led to a confrontation with his mother that turned physically violent. She pushed him, causing his head to smash against a dresser.
In that moment, Stefan realised his old hope—that an outside adult would rescue him—was futile. "I have to give up the old hope that someone might come into our house and change things for me," he realised. "Whatever happens next, it will be up to me to force my own way out."
The Long Road to Recovery and a Stark Warning
A year and a half later, Stefan finally insisted on returning to school. He entered Shepton High School socially crippled, eating his lunch in a toilet stall to avoid the cafeteria and struggling academically. Despite daily reasons to quit, he persevered, eventually graduating and leaving Texas.
Decades later, he reflects on the profound irony of his mother's love: it was both the lock on his door and the key. Her desperation to keep him close trapped him, but her absolute faith in his abilities ultimately gave him the courage to leave.
His story serves as a crucial warning. While he acknowledges homeschooling can be a positive alternative for many, his memoir highlights how the legal veil can hide severe physical, psychological, and sexual trauma. Many homeschooled children, he notes, are not given the resources to find their own way free. His experience underscores the urgent need for basic safeguards and oversight to protect the millions of children currently invisible within the system.
