Homeschool World Forum

[jan]

I don't know where to post this so I'll start here. Does anyone use an online school or a correspondence school? How do you like it ? What is the name of the school? If they claim to be accredited, who are they accredited through? With them keeping records and transcripts for you, does that make a difference in attending a college? If they claim to be accredited and offer a diploma how important is that? Does it make a difference? I don't know please help I am considering trying one of these schools,for a school year to try one out. Currently my children are in the 5th and 6 th grades and I don't worry so much about the records for this time. As they get older ( 9th grade through the 12th) the time when they start to earn credits to graduate, I will be more concerned. That is why I am trying to figure it out now.

Thank you!

[Theodore]

Having tried both methods, I'm not a big fan of correspondence courses. You basically end up teaching yourself from the textbook anyway, no point shelling out money for a course that doesn't add anything useful. Online courses are a lot better, but even among those there are some where the teacher doesn't show up / post much, and there aren't enough other students to get a good discussion going. Still, online is usually better than doing it on your own.

I've taken junior high / high school-level online courses from:
PA Homeschoolers (AP prep)
Scholar's Online Academy (full accredited diploma program)
Escondido Tutorial Service (classical learning)

Community college courses are even better in some cases, of course, such as lab science or math-based courses. And community college will generally take you up through your first couple years of college credit, a cost-effective option if you don't have a good scholarship to the college you want to go to. I took Calculus III locally, wish I'd done Calc I and II that way as well.
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The Farming Game - Software Edition for Mac and PC
The board game has sold over 350,000 copies worldwide, garnered many awards, is used by over 2,000 schools, and is used extensively by homeschoolers.

[Theodore]

Receiving an accredited diploma just means somewhat less paperwork for you. It doesn't mean your chances of getting into college are necessarily any better than those of someone submitting test scores and/or a portfolio of work.

Personally, I prefer a lot of testing and a little community college, it's still accredited but allows you more emphasis on difficult (or expensive) subjects and less emphasis on subjects you can breeze through. If you can show course by course that the high school graduation requirements for your state have been completed, you don't need an official diploma - you can award yourself one.
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The Farming Game - Software Edition for Mac and PC
The board game has sold over 350,000 copies worldwide, garnered many awards, is used by over 2,000 schools, and is used extensively by homeschoolers.

[clarabelle]

the only online school I've done courses through is Memoria Press. I did the logic all the way through. But, I'm not sure that's what your looking for!
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~Claire

[redcrayola]

My graduated teen took several courses from The Potter's School (www.pottersschool.org). I was pretty satisfied with them. If your teen is unmotivated, you still need to stay on top of things to make sure they are understanding and getting their work done. I have found this to be the case for ALL computer-related curriculum.

I personally wouldn't do an online school for younger students, because they need to be with you and interact with you. You are the one who should be passing along your values to your youngsters - not a stranger in an online school.

I think that colleges rely more on the SAT/ACT test scores than they do on transcripts for homeschoolers. I do make my own transcripts and send them in, but the ACT/SAT give them a way to compare our students to other non-homeschooled students.

Accreditation? Don't worry about that!

[itsrks]