Homeschoolers frequently combine an online class or two with some other approaches to helping their kids learn at home. For homeschoolers, online schools have long been seen as one homeschooling style or approach among many possible approaches.

Online schooling is not the only option in the 'learn at home' menu. We'll cover details of the landscape of online public schooling, online private schooling, and online homeschooling later in this article, but first let's take a look at why parents consider online schooling. Avoid paying for expensive aspects of online schooling such as accreditation that will have no benefit for you or your child because of where you live and your approach to education.Use a program for which you may be eligible for reimbursement.Smooth your child's future path if you plan for them to re-enter face-to-face school (especially if they might attend public school later and need to transfer homeschool credits to public high school).You need to understand the tricky landscape of online schooling in order to: Parents may give each other incorrect information on social media, not realizing that laws in another state affect how online schooling may be paid for or administrated for families in other places. Public school administrators or school board members may tout their online programs as homeschooling-and be completely wrong. Online schooling administrators or their marketers may (intentionally or not) conflate requirements of charter schools in one state with requirements for homeschoolers in another state-and be completely wrong. Check our listings to find the local and state homeschool groups near you-your state homeschool organization can help you understand homeschooling and online schooling in your state. That's because homeschooling laws and compulsory school attendance laws vary in every state. How the options work for you and your child will vary depending on your state and locality, even though the specific online schooling programs you are considering may be available to public, private, and homeschooled students in every single U.S. Rule 1: Get clear whether-in your state-you will be using online schooling as part of public school, private school, or homeschooling.

You first need to understand that the online schooling options typically don't work the same way for public school kids, private school kids, and homeschooled kids. The Online Homeschool, Public School, Private School Landscape.

And sometimes, parents discover virtual programs do not work the way they expected-or their child doesn’t thrive when learning online.Īnd surprise: accreditation may have no benefit at all! Online schooling opportunities have grown exponentially in the last few years, but the options are still getting sorted out. Sometimes online education is a solution or part of the solution. You may be looking for a solution that will allow your child to learn independently and effectively-and if possible- from a high quality, accredited, free program that will provide a smooth transition to school, college, or work. You may be looking for a solution that will provide a comprehensive education that also gives your child the flexibility to learn at home. Is online schooling the answer for your family? If you’re considering this option, educate yourself about online schooling before educating your child with online schooling.

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