New Homeschooler Q & A: Part 1

Not too long ago I received an email from a future homeschooler with a list of questions. It took me longer to get around to answering her than I hoped, but I have finally conquered the flu, children, laundry, Girl Scouts and I am now answering the questions. Aussie Kim and I decided to answer separately because we each have half a brain. Together we combine to make one whole thought. Kim's answers are in blue, mine are in green. Also, in the interest of not overwhelming you (or us), and because Kim and I can be rather long-winded, I'll be posting one or two Q&As per day. Here goes.

What do you think about distance learning academies as opposed to full-on homeschool?

I need to preface this response with the statement that "full-on" homeschooling means very different things to different people. For the purpose of this answer, it means a relaxed approach, while not un-schooling, definitely not school-at-home.

I am fairly certain that a child could receive a decent education from a distance learning academy. Certainly, for a parent who was very unsure of full-on homeschooling, distance learning is an option. There are several good programs of that type available from K-12 to ABeka (for a fair list of these curriculum, you can go to this homeschool review site. I know there is another one that is good. As soon as I find it, I'll post it for you).

Having said that, I have a few concerns with this type of instruction. There are certain advantages to full-on homeschooling children that are completely negated using canned curriculum of any kind. Primarily, it limits your ability to individualize your child's education. If the video or computer or man on the phone says that you need to work on problems 1-30 on page 11, then that's what you do. What happens if your child needs extra work in that area? What if he's bored to tears and ready to move on? Your options are limited. Also, what about the interaction between you and your child. Are you the teacher, or are you the person who plugs in the DVD?

Another issue I have is the idea of a child learning primarily from DVDs or computers. I like books. Lots and lots of books. Perhaps it's the binding glue, but I get a little loopy over books. I much prefer the idea of using the computer and videos as a supplemental tool. Finally, I like a much more relaxed approach to learning. You will need to find what your approach is, but I'll leave that discussion for a later question.

I have no experience with distance learning academies except for the School of the Air in Australia (government run) which is a wonderful organization and a great curriculum.  I am sure you are not after that!

I have a friend who used the k12 curriculum which I understand is used in the distance learning academies (?) I think.  She found it was so much learning she rarely got through in normal school hours, and that was just with one child.  There are alot of curriculums out there that cover school work similiar to a school, in half the time of a school day.  So make sure you shop around, look at the number of hours they indicate the work should take and add them up and look at the work that is covered.

I suspect the only thing you will be relieved of if you use distance learning academies is being the bad guy who chooses the curriculum and how much to cover each day. You will still have to sit with the kid while they do the work until about grade 3 (I’m guessing).  Or at the very least you will have to sit with the kid while they do their homework.  Sometimes, the homework can take as much time as it would to teach the kid yourself using other methods.

I also suspect that in order for the academy to be able to gage if your child is understanding the work – the kid will have to do weekly tests.  The benefit of doing the home schooling yourself is that you KNOW if a kid gets it or not.  I test my kids once a year with Stanford Achievement Test mainly to get them familiar with this sort of testing. (I know they're on track). You don’t need to waste time on weekly tests when you could be devoting that time to learning whatever they are not getting. 

Here is a website that reviews some curriculums.  It has a very interesting side note on some online-academy type sites that she has simply marked with a !!!

Next question & answer tomorrow!

Comments

[Marie]

The one I'm looking at is Laurel Springs. They do allow customization of the curriculum, the students are part of a class, and have an actual teacher that I can call or IM anytime (and even visit if I'm in the area). They also interact with others in the class. The main reason this appeals to me is that I really really need direction. But it's also really expensive, and unless something drastic happens in the next six months we won't be able to afford it.

[Aussie Kim]

Marie,
I suspect it may be a blessing in disguise if you can't afford it!
Here's some direction in a nutshell: Teach them Math, Reading and Writing. I now strongly believe everything else at this age, should be learned by DOING. Make your direction be this: Aim to feed their natural curiosity, then learning will be fun for them. Putting them in a distance academy with 5 hours of sit down time at an early age, I suspect,will not do this. But of course, this depends on a lot of other factors...