softwareengineermom Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 Hi I'm new to home schooling. I work full time and need an online program that my daughter can complete to finish school. I plan on getting her a regents diploma. We live in New York. She does not have any learning disabilities. Can someone recommend an on line program that is affordable and is able to provide instruction, attendance records and lesson plans that the school district requires? Thanks, Heather 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
softwareengineermom Posted February 20, 2020 Author Share Posted February 20, 2020 58 minutes ago, questionlover96 said: What about a online college course? Would that work or not? I'm looking for her to graduate high school first. I found the k12 portal: https://www.k12.com Here I am finding private online schools for about $6000 a year. There is The George Washington University Online High School and Destinations Career Academy @ K12 International Academy. Does anyone know is 6k a year about the going rate for an online high school when the parents work full time? Are there better options out there? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Random Posted February 20, 2020 Share Posted February 20, 2020 55 minutes ago, softwareengineermom said: I'm looking for her to graduate high school first. I found the k12 portal: https://www.k12.com Here I am finding private online schools for about $6000 a year. There is The George Washington University Online High School and Destinations Career Academy @ K12 International Academy. Does anyone know is 6k a year about the going rate for an online high school when the parents work full time? Are there better options out there? Hello and welcome! As to the bolded, I don't think there is a price difference for working parents, but some schools do offer scholarships. I think price will vary hugely depending on what you want. There are many different options, but 'better' really depends on what is most important to you. What would you say is your top priority in selecting an online school? Some things to consider would be: price, record keeping, rigor, live teachings vs. recorded teachings, hands-off for the parent vs. hands-on for the parent, accreditation, etc. This very helpful thread is pinned towards the top of this forum: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 (edited) Welcome! I believe NY is one of the few states that is very "sticky" about homeschoolers -- while homeschoolers may take the Regents TEST, they can NOT earn a Regents DIPLOMA unless they attend and graduate from a NY public high school. So if you need a Regents diploma, your daughter will need to attend high school -- you will not be able to homeschool. If you do not need a Regents diploma, then yes, you can homeschool through an online course provider. From a quick online search, I do not see any free "virtual" school options in NY -- all of the full-service (instruction, grading, administration, and transcript services) online schools charge tuition -- it looks like $6,000/year or more. The NY online schools, such as the K-12, do not straight-up mimic the lesson plans, materials, and schedules of the NY public schools, so that is another item NOT meeting your original post "wishlist" of items desired. One more thing to consider is what kind of "fit" would all-online learning be for your student? Questions to consider: - Why are you considering switching from classroom to at-home alone (since you will be working) learning? Are there other options that might work, such as a private school, charter school, or a hybrid/university model school (attend the school 3 days a week/homeschool 2 days a week)? - Is online/computer learning the best fit for your student's learning style? Or does your student do better with a live teacher or mentor, in-class discussion, hands-on learning, etc.? - Does your student have the self-discipline and perseverance that working alone on a computer for hours a day would require? Another thing to consider is that even homeschooling through an all-online program (which, really is more about "schooling at home" than actual homeschooling 😉 ) is that even if most of the instruction, grading, and administration are handled by the online provider, you as the parent still need to plan on scheduling regular, daily time with your student: - to answer questions and tutor/mentor the student through topics that are confusing - to provide an opportunity for live discussion and interaction about the material - to provide encouragement and human interaction to keep going Because that's expecting a LOT out of a teen -- to sit alone all day, every day, for months on end, and complete school work on a computer. There are LOTS of people on this homeschooling forum that can attest that their students tripped up with online courses (raising hand here, with both of my DSs, who were in COLLEGE at the time, lol), because it's so easy to become "out of sight out of mind" and fall far behind. As the parent, it's important to be able to BE there on a regular basis -- daily check-in, question-answering, and just sitting with the student as live human encouragement. 😉 Two more things to consider: 1.) high school students have a high social need, 2.) the high school years are a prime time for students to explore extracurriculars and discover personal strengths and new interests. Are there after-school or community activities or groups that your daughter could participate with to both fill social needs, explore personal interests, or support her interests/goals? And finally, what are your daughter's post-high school goals or plans? (Not all students know what they want to do until into the college years, but some DO have a passion or interest in high school.) And if there are any goals/plans, what will best help her prepare for that future? Online homeschool can provide more time for sports or dance or a time-consuming interest. But it may not provide enough opportunities to explore STEM coursework or other Academic or rigorous interest/possible future career field... The last 2 years of high school can be especially used to focus on a student's future interests/goals, and that's where you want to consider what type of school setting (at home or in a school) will best support and help the student towards that future goal (if there is a specific goal at this stage). NOT trying to dissuade you from switching to homeschooling, but it is important to have worked out the details for ALL the aspects involved in homeschooling a high school student. Wishing you and your daughter all the very best! Warmest regards, Lori D. Edited February 21, 2020 by Lori D. 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lanny Posted February 21, 2020 Share Posted February 21, 2020 Heather you are IMO very late to be thinking about switching horses for the High School education of your DD. Your DD began High School in 9th grade. It is frequently (extremely) problematic to change schools during high school, for example, moving from one state to another state, or even to a nearby school district. In your case, you Home Schooling your DD seems to be the goal, but you wrote that you want her to get a Regents Diploma and as Lori and others have pointed out, NY is known for rigid laws and that may not be possible. It does not seem like the Distance Learning school my daughter attended (Texas Tech University High School) would be an option for your DD because of the fact that she has already completed 9th grade or will finish 9th grade in May 2020, and because you want her to have a NY Regents Diploma. The same would apply to the Distance Learning High School of Stanford University (far far more expensive) and to other similar Distance Learning High Schools. We are overseas so TTU K-12 (formerly TTUISD) was a blessing for my DD and she is at Carolina now, which is a very difficult school for OOS students to get into. As Lori pointed out, that is Asynchronous schooling and requires HUGE amounts of self-discipline and time management from the students. My DD began with Texas Tech in 6th grade (Middle School) so by the time she was in the 9th grade she had a lot of experience with their teaching and testing methods and they began to switch from Hard Cover textbooks to ebooks. Now, she is in university and those experiences have served her well, IMO. I am not trying to play "Devils Advocate" regarding where your DD might continue her High School education and get a NY Regents Diploma, but my guess is that is going to prove extremely difficult to do and that you and your DD need to Google around, varying the search terms, to see if there might possibly be one or more providers who can offer that to you in NY. Much good luck to your DD. 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.