Co-ops

[ncmom2dawters]

I'm curious to hear if the area where you live has traditional co-ops at the high school level (where a parent for each family must stay and help or teach) or drop off co-ops.  We moved from an area that had many traditional co-ops.  Our new area is has several large drop-off co-ops (100++ students).  Parents pay an enrollment fee of $60-$80 per family and $45-$300 per class, per semester, per student plus supply fees.  They drop their children off for 1-4 hours of classes.  Parents tend not to know the person teaching their children. **I am not saying this model is wrong.**  I just have observed a significant difference in homeschool community and support because of it.  I've also heard from teachers and group leaders of these types of co-ops of many issues arising from this model ...i.e. parents totally not involved, students not prepared for class, a co-op handbook that reads like rules found in a public school even including criteria for expulsion and fines, ... 

 

I have also observed that most of the drop-off co-ops in our area offer core classes for high school students.  **Certainly I understand those classes fit the needs of some families.** I prefer to do our core subject at home.  I am looking instead for elective type classes.  I've been proactive in trying to start a traditional co-op.  Few people know what that is.  Many have expressed interest until I explain that a commit from them is required.  For my children to be involved with peers, I almost feel forced to enroll them in a core class at a drop-off co-op.  We did participate in one the first semester we lived here.  The quality of teaching was hit or miss and we made no connections.  **I appreciate the many options available to homeschoolers.**  However, because of these options, I am feeling the pressure that I'm failing my children academically and socially if we HOMEschool through high school.   

 

Is the drop off co-op a national trend?  Is anyone still doing a majority of their high school instruction at home taught by mom/dad? 

 

 

[teachermom2834]

We are in an area with several drop off coops.  There is generally a volunteer requirement but the teachers are paid. Some are parents and some are outside teachers brought in to teach.  The volunteer requirement can even be bought out by paying a fee instead of volunteering. 

 

I suspect some true coops exist.  I imagine they are small groups that are created quietly among like minded parents.  I say that only because our area has so many homeschoolers that it seems there is some of everything.  It also seems there are small groups that are closed and access to activities/classes seems to be by invitation only.  The big coops advertise.  Some interview prospective families and some just take any one who shows up to register.

 

Our coop is large (200+ families).  It is very hard to meet people unless you hang around and volunteer extra.  Most people are drop and run.  I am very involved in our coop but I probably wouldn't even recognize half of the families if I saw them out somewhere. :sad:

 

I like our coop because of all it offers and it is a good fit for us.  It would take a while to make connections and get plugged in though.

 

Good luck.

[Lori D.]

Is the drop off co-op a national trend?  Is anyone still doing a majority of their high school instruction at home taught by mom/dad? 

 

Not a trend here. I currently know of 5 homeschool co-ops existing or trying to start up in our city. Parents must stay on-site for all of them, due to insurance / liability concerns to keep costs, and in 4 of the 5, because parents are required to participate.

 

One is a Classical Conversations co-op (Foundations and Essentials -- trying to also start a Challenge A level). No drop-offs; parents stay on-site; all students on-site must participate; paid tutors oversee the classes. The cost is high. Specific curriculum is used in common at the co-op and at home (Saxon math, IEW writing, Apologia science…)

 

Two co-ops are "parent run/parent led". They are small and totally parent-taught. The cost is low and only for covering facility and supply fees. Parents are required to stay on site AND required to volunteer for part of the time as either teachers or as class assistants. Quality varies widely, depending on the teaching parent's abilities, level of passion/interest, and amount of time to put into the class.

 

The other two co-ops are a sort of "dual-track" option -- organized mostly around the parent-run/parent taught model, BUT having a "track" of classes where the teacher is an independent contractor and can charge a fee for services. Again, parents are required to stay on site and to volunteer for part of the time as teachers or as class assistants. Cost varies depending on what the instructor charges.

 

What I do find in common with all of these co-ops is that, other than the last option with paid instructors, all the classes tend to be enrichment-based (sewing, dancing, art, theater, etc.), or support for specific subjects difficult to do at home: science, writing, foreign language, and public speaking. The subject-support classes seem to revolve around just a few popular curricula: Apologia and IEW, esp., but also an occasional Beautiful Feet History or Geography.

 

One other thing I notice in common: when the co-op is largely enrichment-based rather than credit-based, few high school students participate in the co-ops, as families just don't have the time for their high schoolers to spend half a day on enrichment -- the high school students only tend to be at the co-op if the class supports getting science or writing accomplished at the high school level. Here, it is VERY typical for homeschoolers at the 11th/12th grade levels to be doing dual enrollment instead at the local community college.

 

In co-ops here, I see a real tug-of-war, in that parents want co-ops to be cooperative/communal with parents doing the teaching -- but those co-ops all die out after 2 to 4 years from parents lack of time and energy to participate. And, parents have a competing desire -- to be able to drop off children for and hour or two and have a knowledgeable, competent teacher take on an area that is really difficult for the parent to do at home -- usually science, art, math, or writing. Families here also expect to NOT have to pay much for classes -- yet are disappointed when the offerings are not what they want or are enrichment only, not strong teaching. In some ways I see that as homeschool parents as still having a public school mentality -- if we outsource, we expect free or low cost (because public schools are free), AND we expect trained professional teachers (because that's the public school example), not just fellow moms sharing what they can.

 

 

Personally, I think what we are seeing is that as homeschooling has grown and become more accepted, the options have grown and changed, too. A LOT of public school families are pulling out of the schools and doing K-12 charter, or other virtual schools at home.

 

A university-model option just opened up here a few years ago: elementary students are there 2 days/week and home 3 days/week, middle schoolers are there 3 days/week and home 2 days/week, and high schoolers are there 3.5 days/week and home 1.5 days/week. Families are just overseeing the assignments sent home from the curriculum selected/taught by the teachers/Board.

 

If education at home increases, we'll likely see more varieties of "cross-overs" and options and variations on how much/how little parents oversee… JMO! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

[The Girls' Mom]

We attend a drop off coop. It works for us. I use it for outsourcing courses I feel I can't teach well, such as their foreign language classes. I like that they have paid teachers, mostly because I have found that parent taught classes (that I have seen personally) aren't as rigorous as I would like. The girls also use the coop as a social outlet and take some electives there as well. If you spend time volunteering at these coops, you can get plugged in. It just takes a little more effort. I don't tend to use the coop for my personal support, so that really isn't an issue for me.

[EndOfOrdinary]

You could always start a book group. That wound up being the best option in our rural area. We kept trying the homeschool group or homeschool co-op, but it wasn't working. The book group is a great mix of academic, social, and recreation.