Hello All I am a semi recent new parent and already can't help but look towards the future. I am so torn on the home school vs public/private school choice. Without getting into a pro's/cons debate over what is best I would like to get some feedback from people who have a better understanding on what the future of home schooling will be in 4-5 years. Personally I have a vision in my head that a great online program would be available that would work along with the traditional homeschooling methods. So I guess any information on current online programs and any future projects in the works. I would also like to hear flat out opinions,speculations,theories on what the future holds in regards to online home classroom advancements from the home school community Thanks for any info
crickets..... would love some insight from the community folks.... It seems after browsing the forum that I am gonna be a rare case of a Daddy being the homeschool teacher I don't fully have the 100% support from my child's Mother yet...she is still on the fence I live in a "red zone" state and the more I read..the more my heads spins I believe I can handle grades K-8 at least...but feel the direction of the world is heading to more virtual classroom..and I would only feel comfortable homeschooling if I had faith that an online program can fill in the gaps that I may not be able to handle My child is still just a baby...I just want a better understanding so we can make a more informed choice..and then in turn prepare for the years to come If the community senses drastic changes or expects similar systems to still be in place in the near years to come on the online front...I would love to hear thoughts from people who may have pondered past today Again Thanks
I am homeschooling 3 of my children now and have graduated one from homeschooling, Be aware that we have not taken advantage of any online public school options. I do believe that there will be more and more online public school options in the future. I already see a push from the public schools to advertise the current options as an inviting options for those who struggle with traditional schooling. While saying this I also believe that the future public online education will follow closely with the public school policies and therefore may or may not conflict with your reasons on homeschooling depending on what those are. There are many private options out there for online schooling some certified and some not, some religious some not and if you are able and/or willing to pay for those services you could easily find options other than the available public ones.
Welcome to the board. You will most likely get more answers from other homeschoolers over on the other portion of the boards "homeschooling" What exactly do you mean a "red zone" state? Even here in PA, where we are asked to jump through flaming hoops every year, it's not hard to homeschool. I have one kid who went to PS in 7th grade, he is now in an alternative high school and loves it there. My other 3 kids say they will stay home all the way through, there are things out there for homeschooling high school that make it easy for us if we need that. Where do I see homeschooling in 5 years? I don't worry about it, if it ever became too hard to jump through the hoops of the law, I would go with a cyber school, turn in what they need to see and still do our own thing to get us there.
I'm not exactly sure I guess of what you are asking. online schools-ambleside, and easy peasy? I am not sure what you are looking for though.
You might also check into local homeschool groups. We have a great group and our co-op actually fills many of the "gaps" for parents. Most of the homeschoolers that I know prefer not to use the on line programs. On line programs have a tendency to restrict flexibility which is one of the benefits of homeschooling. I think that in the public school sphere there is a trend towards a more virtual classroom but in the homeschool community it is not as big of a movement. There have been increases in the programs that offer DVD instruction and I think that is the trend for homeschoolers. With DVD instruction it still allows flexibility to modify the curriculum as needed. If you want to look at the variety of curriculum that homeschoolers are using these days I would look at sites like Rainbow Resources, CBD, Sonlight and www.unitstudy.com . All of those sites will show you the diversity of what is currently available for homeschoolers. You might even look at attending a local or state convention to be able to talk to vendors directly.
Not having read through all the posts.... You need to understand the distinction between HOMESCHOOLING and CYBER-SCHOOLING. Attending an on-line school, where a teacher on-line overseas the work, makes the assignments, maybe does video-teaching, grades papers, etc. is a viable option for some people. My oldest did this her Senior year so we could take advantage of a particular program. BUT IT IS NOT HOMESCHOOLING!!! Homeschooling puts the controls in the hands of the parents. The parents chooses the curriculum, the books, the subjects. The parents have the flexibility to meet the children's individual needs. We take full responsibility for their learning (or lack thereof!). Homeschooling is a LIFESTYLE CHOICE, where learning happens in all aspects of life, not just in the classroom.
Ok..I see the points My thought process was more along the line of the child is not outside the home for learning that it would fall under "homeschooling" I also agree with your statement of learning is an everywhere adventure. My main mentality(edit among a zillion other things) on not going with a "school" is for years I have lived near several bus stops..I live in an ever changing climate of mostly cold and colder..lol Everyday I drive and see kids shivering and all trying to be the "coolest" not in the sense of uniqueness rather all just trying to outdo the "cool thing" at the time...this is just in a matter of a few stop signs I can make these observations. I could only imagine what it is like nowadays in school. When I was in school being blessed with a unique name was not such a treat as it is now being in adult hood. Add that with a few different school systems boy it made life rough at times. The tall weird named kid with bigger ears cuz my head was smaller then meant I had to fight or make em laugh. Lets just face the facts turning the other cheek,showering them with kindness,or showing off intelligence is not the approach to gain "acceptance" to meet that "socialization" standard that is sold as some anti serial sociopath medicine called pier interactions Sorry ranting there. Not even bitter or holding on I just refuse to accept that nor live my life treating people like that ever. Before I was even in school I was taught not to treat people how I wouldn't want to be treated. That is not socializing it is merely IMO other parents poor parenting all converging in one place calling it a school...lol Well anyways I chose mostly to make em laugh. Great for making friends and catching the hearts of girls not for impressing administrators which greatly affected my in and out of classroom learning that then carried into my home as constant friction at school usually means trouble when ya arrive off the bus(if you don't get kicked off it) I could go on about issues at schools..and heck relative to what parts of the country have had to deal with in recent years that is trivial I want my child to want to learn everywhere from everything. I want her to be active and eager to explore. The less restrictions I can put on learning leaves the freedom to adapt and ensure her ability to learn is never limited So back to the point... I get that homeschooling is not cyberschooling. I guess to clarify my goal would be to homeschool using tools via online technology. Is there a way to pick just 1-2 subjects online if you desire or need help with and mix that with your curriculum Are the cyberschools even worth it? Is there any programs that have a live teacher giving a lesson for X period of time. This can be live at X time or available archived for view at any time. Do most cyberschools have restrictions on time frames for completion of work/etc Are there any homeschool parents streaming/archiving lessons as a group or solo? I could see a group of parents that all homeschool/share similar views splitting up strengths in a format listed above How long has the oldest cyber school been out for? I wouldn't be shocked if some close before duration of graduation..what then lol Personally I work from home and no matter the school situation would still need to log some time working. That said I would love if I could find some situation where for say 2 hours throughout the "school day" I could still have a break(once at appropriate age of course) to catch up on a few things so in turn would have a lil extra time for work related items. I think it would also be cool to not always have Dad being the teacher. I don't know my head is spinning sorry for the scattered thoughts w/i the post...that is why I am getting an early start on all this. Trying to spend a lil of my valuable free time sorting through all this and making some small preparations. Gotta love being a parent..one minute giggling and playing..the next wiping up poop..the next preparing to ensure they have a great future. The worlds best multi taskers in the only real job that matters Thanks for your replies I look forward to learning from you all
I push the distinction because there are many who believe that ALL schooling at home is "homeschooling". There are cyber-schools that will give computers to the kids to use, etc., and people think this is "homeschooling", and that it takes funds away from public schools. They think parents get paid for teaching their children at home, which is the farthest thing from the truth. We don't even get to deduct the cost of materials from on our tax forms, though I've heard that one state (Oklahoma, maybe...?) is considering a tax credit. Cyber-schools vary as much as private schools do. Many of them are charter schools. The one my daughter attended, ECOT, has been around for quite some time. You'd need to do research into the one(s) you might be interested in. Another in Ohio that has been around for quite a while is OVA (Ohio Virtual Academy). I've friends whose children attend there. The rules of each will vary, also. As far as time schedule, my sil had kids who did a cyber-school for one year. She had a 2nd grader who takes longer to grasp things. Jonathon became ill, and had to take a week off. The instructor told her not to worry about it, that Jonathon could "double up" his lessons when he was feeling better. But a child who takes longer to learn something CANNOT "double up"! But my daughter was with another cyber-school. She was taking high school classes on-line, and also classes at the community college. Her high school English teacher wasn't so much concerned as to WHEN she turned things in, as long as they got turned in by the end of the term. That meant she was pretty much able to "blow off" that class during finals week at the college to concentrate on her finals. The week after, when she no longer had college classes, she worked to finish her English. But in the end, all her work WAS turned in on time, which is what mattered. Oh, and the high school teachers DID have times when they taught the class via computer. They are set up to be able to give feedback to the teacher and to one another. But this was only once or twice a week. Again, it might vary according to the school (and perhaps the age of the child!) Working independently is often learned behavior. My children are currently 19 (the affor-mentioned daughter. She is now in her second year in the Honors program studying Electrical Engineering; was on the Dean's List this past semester!), 17, and 14. The two at home I pretty much give them their assignments in the morning, and then they're on their own to do them. I check them the next day. My 14yo is a bit of a challenge right now. I need him to write down everything, and he now needs to bring his list to me every day so I can check it off before he can be "done" (ie: get on computer!!!). But that's just how 14yo boys are sometimes! It avoids him trying to play the "YOU DIDN'T TELL ME THAT!!!" card, or the "I FORGOT!!!" card, lol! Yes, there are co-ops. Some are VERY organized with lots of rules, others are very loosely controlled. Usually, smaller ones have less hoops. You would need to see what is available in your area. The one I currently attend has the emphasis on middle/high school. There are classes for younger siblings, but you must have an older student taking classes to join. And you must be a homeschooler, not a cyber-schooler. Some require parents to stay, others are more of a drop-off program. Some require all parents to teach/volunteer/whatever, others don't. And the costs vary, too. At the same time, there are those who chose not to take part in a co-op, and that's OK, too.
seriously...wow I have pondered that..but yet to actually research that Can't parents of "public/private" schools deduct certain items connected to school..? I mean various non profits..and lets face it some are a joke can even deduct most expenses Not that it makes or breaks my choice...just wow if that is really the case Actually that would just be one more reason to not want my child's learning adventure to be clouded with regulations/policies under the same political structure that governs no exemptions for home classroom expenses
No, we get no tax breaks for either my homeschooled kid's needs or my oldest public schooled child's needs.
