<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Thursday, March 28, 2024
March 28, 2024

Linkedin Pinterest

Internet gives homeschooling a new look

By Howard Buck
Published: February 28, 2010, 12:00am

The Internet has turned homeschooling on its head.

From a fairly narrow niche of families who sought flexibility and control over their children’s learning, access to new online tools has sparked an eruption of mainstream options.

• Clark County Home Educators: www.cchomeed.org

• Washington Homeschool Organization: www.washhomeschool.org

• Family Learning Organization: www.familylearning.org

• Washington Home Educators Network: www.wahomeednetwork.homestead.com

• Homeschooling information and resources: www.homeedmag.com

And, Clark County is right on the front lines.

After watching the creation of a few statewide “virtual academies” — where students anywhere may take online courses, with their Olympia-alloted state education dollars paid to the sponsoring district — Evergreen Public Schools decided to jump in.

Evergreen landed the IQ Academy franchise for Washington, padding the list of states in the private firm’s lineup. Free of charge to students, the program provides them a free computer and stipend to purchase an Internet connection at home.

By late 2009, Evergreen had enrolled 585 students for full- or part-time study, two-thirds of them from outside the district. They were among 13,000 students counted in a statewide 2008-09 survey of all “virtual learners.”

&#8226; Clark County Home Educators: www.cchomeed.org

&#8226; Washington Homeschool Organization: www.washhomeschool.org

&#8226; Family Learning Organization: www.familylearning.org

&#8226; Washington Home Educators Network: www.wahomeednetwork.homestead.com

&#8226; Homeschooling information and resources: www.homeedmag.com

Evergreen has about 10 full-time instructors to oversee students’ work. That includes weekly live sessions to check their progress and an ongoing discussion board.

• IQ Academy: www.iqacademywa.com

• Insight of Washington: wa.insightschools.net/

• Vancouver (district) Virtual Learning: www.highschoolontheweb.com/vancouver

• Washington Virtual Academies: www.wava.org

Meantime, Vancouver Public Schools has launched its own Virtual Learning Academy, limited to Clark County residents (about 100 total, by late 2009). Three certificated teachers help guide courses, while students pay weekly visits to meet directly with academic coaches.

“I decided to give it a try,” said Lexi Christenson, 15, who switched after one year at Fort Vancouver High School. A big plus: “I can just get up at pretty much any time of the day and work on (studies),” she said. She does miss her school friends, though.

All the while, traditional homeschooling by parents continues, greatly aided by the Internet. Online homeschool networks and go-to Web sites provide crucial assistance.

Clark County public schools have reached out to bridge gaps, such as elective language or arts classes or tougher calculus and chemistry courses difficult for parents to teach.

Parent partnerships include Battle Ground Public Schools’ HomeLink, Evergreen’s Home Choice Academy and Vancouver’s Home Connection. They provide a mix-and-match approach that works well for many families.

“Each (program) has a distinctive purpose,” said Steve Lindbloom, who directs Vancouver’s Home Connections and Virtual Learning programs. “Each kid … we can find a home for them, and that’s where we want to be.”

&#8226; IQ Academy: www.iqacademywa.com

&#8226; Insight of Washington: wa.insightschools.net/

&#8226; Vancouver (district) Virtual Learning: www.highschoolontheweb.com/vancouver

&#8226; Washington Virtual Academies: www.wava.org

Loading...