Virtual School

[bowtieguy]

i'm really frustrated with this underachieving and overspending US gov't at ALL levels. we're considering the virtual school avenue and i'd like to know what you all think.

anyone that is internet savvy or is/has been in education please take a look and comment, thanks.

http://flvs.net/

[GasSavers_BEEF]

It looks like a way to get college credit in high school or even high school credit without having to physically go to a high school.

it talks about home schooled kids taking up to 5 classes at a time if it is their sole source of education. that leads me to believe that it is taking the place of high school in a way.

it almost looks like that "university of pheonix" kind of thing where you can get credits on line. it does however say that they don't grant diplomas so I guess you would have to go somewhere else to finish up whatever classes in your cirriculum.

it is truely an internet world we live in.

[bobc455]

I could give you a PhD, but unless the institution awarding you the degree is accredited, any degree is not worth the post-it note it is written on.

Some accreditations are better than others, find out who (if anyone) is accrediting the school you are considering. Unless you are just trying to obtain knowledge and don't want to put it on a resume.

Edit: Is this something you are considering for your kid(s)? Or for yourself?

[Nrggeek]

"FLVS is not a diploma granting institution." - Your children would either have to be registered at your local public school, or be registered as home schooled.

Do you know for a fact that your local schools are sub-par? Or are you just generalizing based on your opinion of the government?

It looks like there's no reason you couldn't enroll them in the local school and have them attend, while also taking FLVS courses. Then you would have a good basis of comparison after the first classes and decide how to continue.

Best of luck,
Bill

[bowtieguy]

Bob and Bill,

this would be for my kids. public schools in the south, generally speaking, are "sub-par."

it is also a matter of safety. i have all girls, and there is bullying involved. and just like our inadequate law enforcement(another subject), the school is not doing much.

there is also the added bonus of saving gas, as well permittting us to be the only adults counciling my kids. no offense to secular views, but biblical principles work just fine for us.

if the gov't comment seemed like a cheap shot, my apologies. we believe in God, family, and small gov't.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

first of all, I am not a big fan of home schooling. this is actually a better alternative to that because you have a cirriculum that put together by a professor and via the internet is actually conducted by someone qualified.

the other big issue is the social atmosphere. I have been around some home schooled people that are like fish out of water. there again I have been around some that are just fine and you would never know they had been home schooled.

if you do decide to undertake this endeavour, make sure that they get the social interaction that they need to function well.

and as far at the biblical principles, I'm right there with you on that one.

[bobc455]

Home schooling is different than virtual schooling.

We homeschool our son, and I'm extremely happy with the results- if you work one-on-one with a kid, you really get to focus on exactly what that child needs. That can't happen in a classroom. I'll stop espousing the wonders of homeschooling here since you'd obviously agree...

Anyhow, we use a curriculum that is Christian based. I'll get the name of it and post it this weekend, it is very well done.

In our town, the local school system has to "approve" the curriculum, and this one was surprisingly well received. (I was expecting them to find some reason to object, but they seemed quite happy to approve this one.)

-Bob C.

Edit: Beef, we have our kid involved in many other programs (YMCA etc.) and make sure he hangs out with his friends a lot. There are a few kids that are socially isolated, but I find that others are much BETTER socializers than your average public-schooled kid. Probably many more the latter...

[theholycow]

Opinions from someone who is NOT a parent and went to public schools, for whatever they're worth:

Socialization: Highly necessary, but it sounds like that can happen anyway. The experience I had in public schools didn't exactly do a great job on me, so public schooling isn't a guarantee of good socialization. I've mostly learned to work around it, but I still don't socialize particularly well; this is especially evident in large groups (which I try hard to avoid, but when necessary I tend to stay out of the way and nearly alone in a corner).

Shelter: Kids need to have different teachers on a regular basis and get unfair/inappropriate treatment on occasion that a parent or a repeated teacher could never do. They need to get bullied and mistreated by their peers. They need to learn to accept some of it, and they need to learn how to fight some of it. I question just how well these character building life lessons would be learned by home-schooling. Perhaps the online school would provide at least some of this (from teachers if not from peers).

Those opinions are specific to things I've read in this thread.

[bowtieguy]

HC,

good post! i was brought up in a Christian home, so i was isolated somewhat by the "evil" in people. i did go to public school, but trust me when i say tolerance for bullying and lack of respect(for peers and teachers) was ZERO.

my kids are attending THE same schools i did. MUCH has changed, specific to the schools and also the "new world order"(law suits and such).

i was REALLY suprised and taken advantage of when i began working. but, i became resilient and grew from the "dog eat dog" lessons. we all don't have that ability if it(bullying) is grinded into us day after day. to this day, i'm known as a little dog w/ a big bite. i'll help anyone who needs it, but don't backstab me.

we all know girls are a different animal. the bullying has gone on for quite some time, and i'm afraid it could be damaging in the long term. NOW, difference of opinion and learning to accept personality conflicts is something else entirely.

it would put me in a compromising situation if i ever saw the parents out in public--WORDS WOULD BE HAD. certainly those parents would be shocked to know the language their child uses.

we've all heard stories about an "equalizer" being used to protect the inferior child--be it a weapon, gang, or boyfriend.

the teachers, many, are just there to collect a paycheck. or worse push their worldly and political views on the kids. teachers should teach; i'll raise my kids!

By the way, not bragging, just some background...my girls are honor roll students and are given many positive refferals and only a very rare minor infraction. and there is a no tolerance rule for fighting(you know defending yourself to stand up to bullying).

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by bowtieguy

the teachers, many, are just there to collect a paycheck. or worse push their worldly and political views on the kids. teachers should teach; i'll raise my kids!

Those shortcomings of teachers seem to be an important character-building experience; we have to deal with the same type of things once we're out of school, too. I'm not saying that makes public school superior, it's just an important point.

and there is a no tolerance rule for fighting(you know defending yourself to stand up to bullying).

Yeah, some of those zero-tolerance rules just make the bad stuff easier and prevent kids from taking care of themselves (while still not providing the care they now lack).