As many of you know, this past Christmas Liz and I drove to Texas to get our 14 year old niece who has now moved in with us, both willingly and happily. Can't say that in December she was so spry!
We chose to keep her home to school and in making that choice had to find a suitable school for her to attend, there are lots of options out there and because most cyber schools are public, they are also free! I want to get the misconception that it costs money to home school kids, it does not. The only things we are out of pocket on are trips and stuff like that which are normal fees you incur when in a regular public school.
After much deliberation we chose 21st Century Cyber Charter School for Jess. The school is no lacky school like some we had encountered. She is tested and challenged on a daily basis and the great thing is, the teachers in all her classes are always there, even in the evenings we have someone we can call in each of her subjects to discuss any problems or misunderstandings she may have. We get progress reports, just like in school. Only difference is everyday, I get to go online and there is a parents place, I can go in and check her daily progress, if there is a problem I can catch it way before the 4 week mark. Meaning every tool I need to help my child succeed is there and it makes it easy to keep her on track.
The teachers also give critiques on everything, and are very positive with her, which is exactly the encouragement she needs. The feedback also helps us to see where her weaknesses are and her strengths, we can then target those areas and fix them, way before there isn't time to get on track again.
We also do not have to deal with bullying, peer pressure to do drugs or any of the social negativity that go on in the High School. She would be in the Freshman Center this year, and well where we live teen pregnancy is rampant, and I have personally witnessed teachers walking past students who were displaying way too much attention to each other. I expect that when my child is in school that the teachers pay attention to both their teaching of my child and the behavior my child is having. It takes a village to raise a child - African Proverb, and Hilary Clinton. So, if it takes a village...why does it always seem we are alone at it? I can honestly say, that the teachers at 21st CCCS are wonderful with helping and making sure they have time for both us as parents and Jess as a student. All of the activities and field trips we take always has a teacher from each department at it so that we can interact with them and get information and any help we may have.
There is a lot of things our kids go through on a day to day basis that is totally unnecessary, its good to know that cyber schools are available now and that we can take advantage of them.
For anyone who has thought about homeschooling, here is a link to our school and you can see for yourself why we chose 21st CCCS. http://www.21cccs.org/web/home.htm
2 comments:
An extremely interesting article. I had no idea that there were cyber high schools, let alone K-8 programs as well.
Thank you for sharing your experiences.
This is so encouraging especally when brick and mortar schools are failing. I give you my prayers so you can continue to guide Jess and make her special. You are already special in my eyes.
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