regected froma home school program again

[swellmomma]

This is starting to become an annual summer tradition.

 

In my province children MUST be registered with a school board, either in ps or an approved homeschool one. We have been with a fabulous one but they are very hands off, which is good in someways but I wanted a different program for the older kids. Specifically for ds13. HE was supposed to do a special needs online/coorespondance hybrid course, which would have given him the transcript to get special needs supports in ps for high school. Well they determined his special needs were too severe to qualify and they sent us a retraction of acceptance letter. And said even though I could register my other kids in the parent directed program at that board I could not even register him that way I had to go elsewhere.

 

So we returned the board we were with the year before and had another great year with them. They are a cool board in that they offer classical online classes but support unschooling so wholeheartedly that the bulk of families with them are unschoolers, even though they consider themselves a classical homeschool board.

 

Anyway, this past spring I went to conference, talked with college admissions for several colleges etc and figured out what the kids need in high school, and what they needed to do to get there. So I again planned to register them with a new board in the fall. 1 that did Alberta curriculum online, so they were going to do 50% cyber school, and 50% do our own thing. Yesterday I received our rejection letter.

 

Back in 5th grade we were with that board doing a similar program but not online. The facilitator was supposed to assign things, grade them etc. Well she never gave teh assignments, never took his IPP into account while grading etc, so at the end of grade 5 when she came to review them I did not have the samples she wanted in writing. He was assigned a D in Language arts. She wrote in his report card that he couldn't spell, had limted vocabulary, weak reading skills etc which was all false. I contacted the board, and supplied further samples showing he scored 100% on every spelling test, his grammar tests, the reading testing that was part of his disability testing etc. I conceded his composition was very weak, but the rest of his language arts skills were completely grade level. I also let them know about the lack of direction by the facilitator, that she had not been returning my calls during the year etc. Legally her job was to serve as teacher to that language arts class and she didn't fullfill that. The board was willing to have us back the next year for gr 6 but I switched gears and we went with the classical board and spent 2 years focusing on certain skills.

 

So I thought nothing of it when I put in the applications for all 4 kids to that board for the fall. Well apparently due to that D and the write up the facilitator added to the file after the complaint was filed against her they deemed our family unacceptable for their school board and rejected us.

 

It is starting to become an annual tradiitional of submit forms and get rejected.

 

We will either go back witht he board we were with for the last 2 years or switch to one we were with years ago. At the least the one we were with years ago offers sports, and fieldtrips and community, whereas the one we were with for 2 years does not. Makes a difference when you are the only homeschooler in a town.

 

I am going to love the day my kids get their diplomas, because I am going to send a copy to each of the boards that rejected us claiming the kids could not handle the program. I am going to send it to the Kindy teacher and principal that said ds13 was unteachable and to just make him literate and leave him be.

 

In the meantime time to decide which board to go with instead and plan next year from there.

[Crimson Wife]

:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

 

Are these programs legally allowed to discriminate against special needs students? I know here in the U.S., federal law prevents charter schools from discriminating against SN kids when it comes to enrollment (though they often try to get away with it & need to be reminded of the law). I would check your province's laws to see if they offer you any protection against this type of discrimination.

[Impish]

Reading the OP, it doesn't sound like discrimination against a special needs child, but rather their stance is that the program wasn't followed by the Mom, and therefore they do not want to get into the same situation again.

 

Not saying they're right in their stance, but that's what I'm getting from the OP.

 

Is one of the boards Centre for Learning? I've been w/3 diff boards now, and so far, they've been excellent. Not at all keen on the facilitator that we just got assigned, and they're looking into assigning us a new one.

[swellmomma]

Reading the OP, it doesn't sound like discrimination against a special needs child, but rather their stance is that the program wasn't followed by the Mom, and therefore they do not want to get into the same situation again.

 

Not saying they're right in their stance, but that's what I'm getting from the OP.

 

Is one of the boards Centre for Learning? I've been w/3 diff boards now, and so far, they've been excellent. Not at all keen on the facilitator that we just got assigned, and they're looking into assigning us a new one.

 

 

The first one it had nothing to do with me not following the program we were approved and right before it started they recinded the acceptance saying now that ds's special needs reports came it he would be coded too high to qualify. THat was school of hope.

 

And yes the other was CFL. I wanted the older 2 blended next year, 3rd traditional and little one the readiness program. They declined all 4 because of the D ds13 got in 5th grade through them. I think the principal changed since then, but I could be wrong. The one I spoke to back then agreed that the D was not an appropraite grade given the scores on his assignments and that the facilitator did not uphold her end of the blended program. Basically she treated it like a traditional program until the end of the year when she graded him. Very frustrating. Especially since we finished the programs we set out to finish, but we didn't have the right kinds of samples due to the facilitator not telling us what she wanted. Hopefully you didn't get her. She is very much in the mindset of public school at home when it is time to grade students but only doing her 3 contacts in teh year no other guidance otherwise. Based on gov't in terms of what blended is that is a big no-no.

 

We have been with wisdom for 2 years and love them but based on AHEA and talking to the college admissions people acceptance into Alberta post secondary is very hard if you are homeschooled (only 2 take portfolios, most will take 30 levels, trades expect a full diploma), wisdom may not be the best fit through high school.

 

I figured going 50% blended next year, and then 75% the following year would have them ready to do 100% aligned for high school. Ease them into it basically over the next 2 years.

 

So yeah, either we will return to THEE, we were with them for 4th grade before CFL or stay with Wisdom. At least with THEE there is a bit more community, they are more on top of the academic stuff and will help students challenge the diploma exams and offer team teaching for students doing ADLC(in the form of tutoring a couple hours a week). Wisdom is a favorite by unschoolers for a reason, their focus each year is to check the character development and life skills not academics of a student, the facilitator always comments on how much we do each year when I feel we are not doing enough. Both have strong points and weak points, but neither do blended.

 

I am running out of options for blended, I would rather leave argyll as an absolute last resort.

 

ETA: the funny part about the coding comment by the first board is that in a ps he would be coded too low to get help. In a b&m school he would be a code 53(behavioural/emotional disability), but the homeschool board said he would be a 42(meaning needs an aide etc). So ds can't win either way, either too severe for the program with the homeschool board, or not severe enough for help in school, fall through the cracks situation.

Edited July 4, 2012 by swellmomma

[Georgiana Daniels]

Hope you find a good solution soon. Ugh, sounds like a lot of reporting/red tape/gunk to deal with.

[Impish]

Weird.

 

I started out w/SOH. They were the only school board that would accept a student mid yr (after funding had already gone through).

 

The facillitator we had for our last visit (switch due to move) was a twit. Very rigid. Very 'school at home' attitude.

 

Tazzie had a book picked out to read to her, and she REFUSED. Insisted he read from some AB standard book instead. Then made DIVA read from the same flipping book! Diva, the kid who blows the doors off language arts, always has, and her report cards show that.

 

Diva thought the woman was a twit.

 

Neither kid liked her, was uncomfortable w/her, and don't want to see her ever again. Hopefully, they DO find us a diff facilitator, b/c I really don't want to leave CFL, but cannot see us being able to have a successful relationship w/this person.

[swellmomma]

Weird.

 

I started out w/SOH. They were the only school board that would accept a student mid yr (after funding had already gone through).

 

The facillitator we had for our last visit (switch due to move) was a twit. Very rigid. Very 'school at home' attitude.

 

Tazzie had a book picked out to read to her, and she REFUSED. Insisted he read from some AB standard book instead. Then made DIVA read from the same flipping book! Diva, the kid who blows the doors off language arts, always has, and her report cards show that.

 

Diva thought the woman was a twit.

 

Neither kid liked her, was uncomfortable w/her, and don't want to see her ever again. Hopefully, they DO find us a diff facilitator, b/c I really don't want to leave CFL, but cannot see us being able to have a successful relationship w/this person.

 

maybe it was the same one, because that's what ours was like with CFL. The thing that sucks too, is all their other blended subjects they got B's in. dd12 was also doing 5th blended that year, and her La she was given a C+ and she had the same samples as ds, and her spelling really is horrible. So LA was the only subject they didn't do very well in. That has been one of our focuses for the last 2 years and why I figured they were ready for it again this year. The plan had been to do LA, the extra help course they had for LA, PE/HEalth and a wack of electives online, and then the rest traditional but loosely following APS so that in grade 9 ds could add math and science to his blended list.

 

SOH I was not overly surprised. They were the first board we ever talked to when I was pulling my kids out of ps and they told me all special needs kids should stay in ps. I figured after several successful years homeschooling they would see he was capable.

 

Our first year we were with millwoods christian, they don't do facilitating anymore but they were awesome, then with THEE, they were excellent but we wanted blended the next year so CFL then 2 years with Wisdom. With SOH rejecting us in summer between those 2 years, and now CFL this summer. Wisdom has been great, and if we stick with them I am excited by the online classical courses they offer, but I don't know if they will meet our long term needs.

[swellmomma]

Hope you find a good solution soon. Ugh, sounds like a lot of reporting/red tape/gunk to deal with.

 

It is. Once the program is in place it all goes well all year, but getting a program in place with kids like mine is a whole other ball of wax. And the rigidity of the post secondary programs in this province make it stickier

[canadianmomtofour]

I am running out of options for blended, I would rather leave argyll as an absolute last resort.

 

 

Do you mind me asking why Argyll is a last resort? We are with Argyll, and our special needs facilitator is fabulous.

[Impish]

Do you mind me asking why Argyll is a last resort? We are with Argyll, and our special needs facilitator is fabulous.

I'm not the OP, but my experience is that Argyll is only as good as the individual facilitator.

 

I was doing blended, and had a facilitator demand I be in the centre WEEKLY for a mtg w/her. I flat out told her w/my disability, that wasn't going to be possible, and furthermore, it's not a requirement for me to do so.

 

She told me that if I couldn't handle being there for a wkly mtg (keep in mind, it would involve hauling 3 kids, one in stroller on and off buses 1 armed...I'd have been in screaming pain before we got halfway there) then I couldn't handle hsing. :glare:

 

I did speak to the principal, and basically got the brush off.

 

I'll leave the province before I go back to Argyll.

[canadianmomtofour]

I'm not the OP, but my experience is that Argyll is only as good as the individual facilitator.

 

I was doing blended, and had a facilitator demand I be in the centre WEEKLY for a mtg w/her. I flat out told her w/my disability, that wasn't going to be possible, and furthermore, it's not a requirement for me to do so.

 

She told me that if I couldn't handle being there for a wkly mtg (keep in mind, it would involve hauling 3 kids, one in stroller on and off buses 1 armed...I'd have been in screaming pain before we got halfway there) then I couldn't handle hsing. :glare:

 

I did speak to the principal, and basically got the brush off.

 

I'll leave the province before I go back to Argyll.

 

Wow. I've heard negative things about Argyll before, but never understood why. Our facilitator is only as hands on as we want her to be. She is very respectful of our homeschool and just supports us with what we need. I have a whole new appreciation for her now. Thanks!

 

OP, I hope you find a solution. Having a facilitator as supportive as mine is something I will no longer take for granted.

[swellmomma]

I'm not the OP, but my experience is that Argyll is only as good as the individual facilitator.

 

I was doing blended, and had a facilitator demand I be in the centre WEEKLY for a mtg w/her. I flat out told her w/my disability, that wasn't going to be possible, and furthermore, it's not a requirement for me to do so.

 

She told me that if I couldn't handle being there for a wkly mtg (keep in mind, it would involve hauling 3 kids, one in stroller on and off buses 1 armed...I'd have been in screaming pain before we got halfway there) then I couldn't handle hsing. :glare:

 

I did speak to the principal, and basically got the brush off.

 

I'll leave the province before I go back to Argyll.

 

The bulk of the feedback I have heard about argyll is in line with this. They are more about school at home rather than home education. The bulk of the facilitators have never homeschooled, they were public school teachers that expect you to recreate school in your home. There is some excellent facilitators for sure but the bulk are in a ps mindset not a homeschool mindset which makes a huge difference.

[swellmomma]

Imp are you blended with CFl or traditional?

[EducationX2]

ETA: the funny part about the coding comment by the first board is that in a ps he would be coded too low to get help. In a b&m school he would be a code 53(behavioural/emotional disability), but the homeschool board said he would be a 42(meaning needs an aide etc). So ds can't win either way, either too severe for the program with the homeschool board, or not severe enough for help in school, fall through the cracks situation.

 

:grouphug: Geez. Sounds like you have your hands full up there! I'll remember not to complain next year when I'm digging through piles of paper to get my portfolio together.

Although- I'm so glad for kids like your DS who have moms like you to keep them home. One less kid being lost in the shuffle.

 

Tazzie had a book picked out to read to her, and she REFUSED. Insisted he read from some AB standard book instead. Then made DIVA read from the same flipping book! Diva, the kid who blows the doors off language arts, always has, and her report cards show that.

 

So the 7 year old and the 13 year old were supposed to show their proficiency by reading the same book?

Right.

:tongue_smilie:

[Lizzie in Ma]

:grouphug::grouphug:

That stinks, what a rotten situation.

[Impish]

Imp are you blended with CFl or traditional?

Blended.

So the 7 year old and the 13 year old were supposed to show their proficiency by reading the same book?

Right.

:tongue_smilie:

Has all the reading levels in it. Same book, different passages, etc.

 

Diva looked at me like this chick was an ijit when she was asked to read a list of words.

[Dory]

I don't have any suggestions but I will be listening as I'm with Wisdom right now too and have wondered how things will work as we get closer to high school years.

My mom went through Wisdom until I hit grade 10 and then I switched over to Argyll but I went into the teacher directed and not the blended. I haven't heard very many good things about the blended.

[cin]

 

I am going to love the day my kids get their diplomas, because I am going to send a copy to each of the boards that rejected us claiming the kids could not handle the program. I am going to send it to the Kindy teacher and principal that said ds13 was unteachable and to just make him literate and leave him be.

 

In the meantime time to decide which board to go with instead and plan next year from there.

 

Make sure you send them a copy of the college acceptance letters too :tongue_smilie:

[swellmomma]

I don't have any suggestions but I will be listening as I'm with Wisdom right now too and have wondered how things will work as we get closer to high school years.

My mom went through Wisdom until I hit grade 10 and then I switched over to Argyll but I went into the teacher directed and not the blended. I haven't heard very many good things about the blended.

 

What I may end up doing is staying with Wisdom and doing their online classical courses. Did you get the new list for the fall? I am thinking of the older 2 doing Intro to the great books, classical english poetry, and classical adventure 1. and having my soon to be 9 yr old do the fables & tales 1 junior course.

 

Then grade 10 decide if we will do the outreach school, do aligned with argyll, or stay with wisdom and do adlc courses.

 

I am trying to get excited for next year instead of seeing this as a setback.

 

Cin I will do just that. My kids may have learning/behaviour issues but they will have success with their educations and have options at the end of grade 12.

[Dory]

What I may end up doing is staying with Wisdom and doing their online classical courses. Did you get the new list for the fall? I am thinking of the older 2 doing Intro to the great books, classical english poetry, and classical adventure 1. and having my soon to be 9 yr old do the fables & tales 1 junior course.

 

Then grade 10 decide if we will do the outreach school, do aligned with argyll, or stay with wisdom and do adlc courses.

 

I am trying to get excited for next year instead of seeing this as a setback.

 

Cin I will do just that. My kids may have learning/behaviour issues but they will have success with their educations and have options at the end of grade 12.

 

No, I hadn't been paying attention and didn't see the fall line up! I would be interested in putting my 8 year old into a couple of those courses too. Should head over to their website and check it out. Thanks!

 

I was told my son would never excel academically or socially and not to expect him to. I think we just saw it as a dare to do better.

 

I hope things work out for this fall for you. The planning phase always strikes me as being one of the more stressful moments if you have kids with challenges.

[swellmomma]

No, I hadn't been paying attention and didn't see the fall line up! I would be interested in putting my 8 year old into a couple of those courses too. Should head over to their website and check it out. Thanks!

 

I was told my son would never excel academically or socially and not to expect him to. I think we just saw it as a dare to do better.

 

I hope things work out for this fall for you. The planning phase always strikes me as being one of the more stressful moments if you have kids with challenges.

 

This is how we have approached it too. So many have deemed him incapable and I don't believe in writing a kid off so young. It has become a driving force behind me challenging ds and letting him prove them all wrong.

 

And you are darn right about the planning phase being so stressful with kids with challenges. It is so crummy out today that I have been spending time in prayer and reviewing our long term goals vs what can be shifted this coming year to still reach those goals and I think I have it sorted out in my head enough. Now it is a matter of sorting it out on paper and planning the curric choices. It was easier when 50% would have been online, they were supplying the curric so I didn't have to plan those courses. I am going to be excited about this coming year and make it work for us one way or another.

[Parrothead]

Make sure you send them a copy of the college acceptance letters too :tongue_smilie:

:iagree:

 

I hope you can find a place to be satisfied for high school. :grouphug:

[swellmomma]

So, I'm confused (happens a lot). Can you not just educate your children at home without all the hoop-jumping??? Or does the province require all this oversight? Are all these programs you mention publicly funded or private or ???

 

We have to register in this province, other wise you go to court for truancy. Lovely hoop jumping laws. It gets complicated even how they are funded. They are publicly funded by the gov't, BUT they operate like a private school in that they can accept or deny any applicants. They then pass a portion of the funding they get from the gov't to the parents based on how the children are registered for the year. SO for traditional generally around $820 per student per year, if we were accepted blended it would have been about $1300 per student per year etc.

 

They are considered willing non-resident school boards, so like if I wanted to put my kid into a public school in another town, yes it is public but the school would have to approve or deny the application like a private school because they are not my resident school. Clear as mud?

[Impish]

So, I'm confused (happens a lot). Can you not just educate your children at home without all the hoop-jumping??? Or does the province require all this oversight? Are all these programs you mention publicly funded or private or ???

Children *must* be signed up w/a school board of some nature.

 

there is funding available, how much depends on what 'stream' you're in.

 

Some parents choose to go fully traditional, meaning they follow their own course of study, doesn't have any requirements of meeting Alberta Learning Outcomes.

 

Some parents want fully aligned, all courses meeting AB standards.

 

Some want a blend of the 2.

[Carpe]

This thread is giving me twitches about having to register next year.

[swellmomma]

This thread is giving me twitches about having to register next year.

 

:lol: normal average kids registering is no big deal. Kids with issues whole other ball game especially if you have a diploma as part of your goal. The vast majority of homeschoolers I know around here just go with traditional every year because they don't care 1 way or the other if their kids get a diploma. Personally I think having whatever is necessary for post secondary is important and that means a full Alberta diploma I will make sure they can acheive that. For a regualr average kid that is no problem because they never would have failed a course in the first place kwim.

[swellmomma]

And if you don't have their magical diploma, no college/uni in Canada? I think I remember it being insanely hard to be admitted without the diploma.

 

I can not speak to requirements in other provinces but in Alberta it is ****ed hard. There is 2 universities outside of the 1 year bible colleges that will accept homeschooled students based on portfolios and letter of reference. Both of them are christian universities that offer transfer to a bigger one. The rest require at least English 30 (grade 12 English with the provincial final exam), and don't even think about applying to the sciences with out major scores in Math 30 and 2 out of 3 of the sciences all with the proper provincial final exam. So not full diploma but close enough.

 

Trades is a whole other ball game. They can start a trade in high school for credit. At the end of high school they are done enough field hours to do their first stint in technical school, often enough hours to do back to back sessions and be a 3rd year right out of high school. Problem is the RAP (registered apprenticeship program) that they do in High school was designed to keep kids in school until graduation so you can not go to techical school without your full diploma. Now if they started a trade after high school they just need a GED but then they would only be a 1st year not a 3rd year. Ups and down to both options.

 

Schools outside of Alberta may be different, but Alberta has always made homeschooling difficult without out right banning it. Look at all the hoopla over the bill the PM wanted to push through and intends to bring back, which would make the gov't have even more say in how we school our kids.

 

If the kids want to go to one of the colleges that does portfolio that is fine, one of them is one I attended back when I got pregnant with my oldest. It is a good school. I just don't want any doors shut to them just because they didn't get a full diploma kwim

[NASDAQ]

Wow. I can' t believe how different this is from BC. In BC you "register" but they never come speak to you, check up, or what have you. You just sign your kid up with a local school saying "Suzy is school aged and we are home schooling her; have a nice life!"

[KathyBC]

If you register. If you enroll, it can be a little more like what Swellmomma is dealing with, because you agree to meet provincial standards in exchange for funding. The teacher/facilitator can truly make or break this form of homeschooling.

[Dory]

If you register. If you enroll, it can be a little more like what Swellmomma is dealing with, because you agree to meet provincial standards in exchange for funding. The teacher/facilitator can truly make or break this form of homeschooling.

 

You have a facilitator coming to check on things twice a year even with traditional homeschooling and not alberta education. You have to be registered with someone regardless of your curriculum choices. You get funding regardless, but you have to meet some requirements or end up in trouble.

[KathyBC]

Yes, BC registration has more freedom and no funding.

[Dory]

Yes, BC registration has more freedom and no funding.

 

I thought you guys got more funding than we did? I know a few people in Abbotsford that were getting plenty of funding. Perhaps I'm just confused here.

[KathyBC]

Then they are 'enrolled', not registered, so they are meeting provincial outcomes somehow. As NASDAQ says, if a BC homeschooler registers, you're just letting somebody know that you are choosing to educate your own child at home, and that's the end of that.