Finding an online school that meets your families educational needs is no small undertaking. The first major issue after you have decided to be more actively involved in your child’s education is whether to homeschool, or whether you want to school-at-home. I won’t go to far into it in this blog, but you can read more at Homeschool vs. School-at-Home.
That blog will help you decide which direction is best for you. Once you’ve made the decision to be more actively involved in your child’s education, and you know that you want to School-at-Home, the next step is to find an online school that’s right for you and for your children. Some of the key issues that I recommend you look for are:
- Level of parental involvement required – Your child’s education should be a collaboration between you, your child, their teachers, and the school.
- Course selection – the online school should have all the courses that are necessary for your child’s complete education.
- Flexibility – your child should be able to work when they are at their best, and around your family’s schedule, not around the convenience of the school
- Accreditation – There are many online schools that claim accreditation, I recommend making sure they are one of the “Big Six” accrediting bodies.
- Full diploma programs – You don’t want your child in classes only to find that they cannot get a high school diploma.
- Nationally recognized curriculum – will ease the college application process.
- Part time and full time enrollment.
- Book based or online based – Many online schools claim to be online, but rely heavily on books, cd’s, packets, etc. Some examples are K-12, Insight Schools, and any school that uses Blackboard or E-college as their learning management system.
A great way to find the right program is to start your search online. Many search phrases will get you to some schools. Remember though, that some of the better online schools may not do well in search engines (That’s a subject for a whole other blog). One of the more highly recommended online schools for elementary, middle, and high schools is International Virtual Learning Academy.
Create an evaluation list to measure how each school can meet your needs. An evaluation list is a listing of criteria you can use to find the right school. This list should include the aspects of online learning that are most important to you such as cost, time to graduate, requirements, teacher support, parental involvement, and other criteria that you consider important.
Be disciplined in your evaluation of online schools. Create a spreadsheet and rank them based on which meet your criteria and which do not. Once you have selected the top 2 possibilities, learn more about the school by speaking to someone in the admission office. This is a great way to learn about the school itself, get any questions you might have answered, and determine your fit with the school.
Learning online takes a great deal of organization and discipline. As a result, you will find that most students enrolled are highly focused on learning. Even the most motivated students sometimes need a great deal of support. Schooling-at-home can be a great opportunity to strengthen your relationship with your child, but it can also be taxing to find the right balance. Good online schools will have the staff to help you through this process. Keep this in mind when you start your search and consider which programs can meet your child’s needs.
For more information about International Virtual Learning Academy, go to: www.internationalvla.com