susanah4 Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Does anyone know what the rules are for counting high school level work such as Algebra 1 in eighth grade toward high school credits? Dd is average in math and has no interest in anything STEM related and I do not want to get stuck doing high level maths to fulfill credit requirements in high school. Also may be an opportunity to take a high school level Apologia course with a co-op next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joker Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 My oldest is in 8th grade in a local public school. Her Algebra I this year is considered a high school credit. Some of the kids also enter high school with Geometry, Spanish I, and a Technology credit. She will still do four years of math in high school, though. I think you only need through Algebra II to graduate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted February 24, 2014 Share Posted February 24, 2014 Florida homeschoolers don't have any credit requirements. Are you trying to make sure your transcript looks similar to Florida public school transcripts? If so, it is common around here for public school students to use 8th grade Algebra I and science (if at the high school level) credits on their high school transcript. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanah4 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 Florida homeschoolers don't have any credit requirements. Are you trying to make sure your transcript looks similar to Florida public school transcripts? If so, it is common around here for public school students to use 8th grade Algebra I and science (if at the high school level) credits on their high school transcript. I was told that homeschoolers are now required to fulfill the FL DOE requirements for graduation in order to issue a legitimate diploma. The person who gave me the info said the rules have changed and when our kiddos (who are now 26) were going through school there were no requirements for homeschoolers, but now there are. This person is a very active homeschooler and still does evals and testing. I was quite surprised to hear this, but it sounded like she knew what she was talking about. I suppose I should continue to check into this. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanah4 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 My oldest is in 8th grade in a local public school. Her Algebra I this year is considered a high school credit. Some of the kids also enter high school with Geometry, Spanish I, and a Technology credit. She will still do four years of math in high school, though. I think you only need through Algebra II to graduate. Thanks for the info! If the PS is allowed to do it, then I am going to feel free to do so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajudy Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I was told that homeschoolers are now required to fulfill the FL DOE requirements for graduation in order to issue a legitimate diploma. The person who gave me the info said the rules have changed and when our kiddos (who are now 26) were going through school there were no requirements for homeschoolers, but now there are. This person is a very active homeschooler and still does evals and testing. I was quite surprised to hear this, but it sounded like she knew what she was talking about. I suppose I should continue to check into this. :) That person is mistaken. The rules have not changed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I was told that homeschoolers are now required to fulfill the FL DOE requirements for graduation in order to issue a legitimate diploma. Nope. There is no agency authorized to issue a "legitimate diploma" to homeschoolers in Florida. And homeschooling parents may issue a diploma whenever they wish on whatever basis they wish. With that said, we have chosen to make sure our kids' transcripts show credits that more or less line up with graduation requirements at our local public schools, just so that their records won't look too odd to college admissions officers. But, no, there are no requirements that homeschoolers in Florida must follow in order to graduate their kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaLisa Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I was told that homeschoolers are now required to fulfill the FL DOE requirements for graduation in order to issue a legitimate diploma. The person who gave me the info said the rules have changed and when our kiddos (who are now 26) were going through school there were no requirements for homeschoolers, but now there are. This person is a very active homeschooler and still does evals and testing. I was quite surprised to hear this, but it sounded like she knew what she was talking about. I suppose I should continue to check into this. :) This information as you have relayed it here is incorrect. Homeschoolers in Florida, who are registered as homeschoolers with their county superintendent, are free to determine what courses their students/children need to graduate. Not sure what you mean by *legitimate diploma.* If you mean *issued by an accredited school,* homeschoolers will not have this, unless they are somehow affiliated with an accredited school like Veritas. I continue to hear this kind of thing from folks that give talks on homeschooling to others and it's just not correct. Homeschoolers do not have to comply with any specific course requirements at any time in their schooling, up to and including graduation. Hope that helps! Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlemommy Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Great! That means I don't need to have a P.E. or Health credit on the transcript if I don't feel it's necessary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanah4 Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 When I used the term "legitimate" I meant "following the rules" for homeschooling and requirements. Of course I could "give" my kid a diploma for doing nothing at all in high school. I would say that is not "legitimate". Perhaps I should use a different term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanah4 Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 Homeschoolers do not have to comply with any specific course requirements at any time in their schooling, up to and including graduation. Hope that helps! Lisa Is there anywhere I can find this online such as FPEA? I searched but could not find any info at all about graduation requirements or lack thereof for homeschoolers in FL. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2att Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I searched as well and couldn't find any "official" word on graduation requirements or the lack thereof for homeschoolers. I would guess that since this isn't addressed directly in the Florida statute, it is just assumed that homeschoolers are free to issue their own diplomas, which of course the state of Florida does not endorse. If you need an official word on this, I suggest contacting Brenda Dickinson of HEF. She is always helpful and generally quick to reply to inquiries. She also knows the law backwards and forwards. In answer to the original question about using 8th grade classes on a high school transcript, this is acceptable. Colleges will differ as to how they want this listed on the transcript, but my dd's classes that were taken in 8th grade as high school classes were accepted without issue by the various colleges to which she applied. And really, that's the more important question: what does the specific college say about it rather than what does the state say about it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 yup, the only change recently is that if you want to go BACK to public school you have to pass an end of course exam to get credit for Algebra 1, Geometry, Biology, and American History. For that reason my son will take the End of course exam for Algebra this year, as he will probably go back to public school for highschool. if you are sure you will never go back that isn't needed. As for diplomas, they are all just mommy made, no requirements there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuddleJumper1 Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 Just going to follow everyone upthread and agree :) I attended a workshop on homeschooling high school in FL led by Joanne Mastronicola. She has written a guidebook Piecing Together the High School Puzzle that is specific to FL homeschooling. She is wealth of information on the subject. She has recently set up a website http://highschoolpuzzle.com/ for parents homeschooling high school. We have personally chosen to follow the framework of ps students so that in the event dd wants/needs to go to ps she'll have what she needs. As well as following the hs requirements of any of our state Universities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 When I used the term "legitimate" I meant "following the rules" for homeschooling and requirements. Of course I could "give" my kid a diploma for doing nothing at all in high school. I would say that is not "legitimate". Perhaps I should use a different term. The thing is, though, that there are no rules for homeschooling and graduation. Period. Here's a link to the Florida DOE information about home education. In the FAQ document, there is a section about diplomas: http://www.floridaschoolchoice.org/information/home_education/ And here's the site of an inclusive state-wide homeschooling organization, which does a nice job of interpreting the Florida statutes in plain English: http://lifeofflorida.blogspot.com/p/lifes-homeschooling-in-florida-faq.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 These are the current Florida Statutes on homeschooling. There are no graduation rules or requirements for homeschoolers as so stated in our statutes. We do have to meet the entrance requirements of any college/university our students may wish to attend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamajudy Posted February 25, 2014 Share Posted February 25, 2014 I would also like to add that, even though your homeschool diploma is not issued by the state of Florida, most colleges will not even question it. This is assuming, of course, that your child scores decently on the SAT/ACT and that the transcript shows a reasonable course of study. As previous posters have already stated, you would be wise to consider the academic requirements of any college your child may wish to attend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanah4 Posted February 25, 2014 Author Share Posted February 25, 2014 Thank you for all the info! Helps a lot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.