Sunday 16 August 2015

Preparing for High School Classes Online

Attending classes online is very different from attending classes in a brick and mortar classroom. While it's a valid educational choice for many students, it also comes with a number of challenges. Preparation is very important. Prior to beginning your high school internet classes, you'll need to make sure that you have everything you need.

Make sure your computer is updated and ready.

Prior to the start of your classes, make sure that your computer has all the necessary programs downloaded and that your antivirus is up to date. When the time to comes to begin your internet classes, you'll want to be able to dive right in instead of wrestling with your computer.

Set a schedule.

Your courses will be available to you twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. While this is a great opportunity that allows you to do your schoolwork when it is most convenient for you, it also makes it very tempting to ignore your schoolwork while you concentrate on other things. That means that you;ll get behind quickly. By setting your schedule early in the school year, you'll develop good habits and teach yourself to stay on task during school time.

Set aside a place to work.


This doesn't mean that you have to have a desk set up facing the wall with no distractions. The beauty of taking high school classes online is that you don't have to worry about doing things the "right" way--just the way that works for you. You do, however, need to have a special area set aside for all of your books and other materials. That will ensure that when you are ready to work on schoolwork, you have everything that you need all in one place. Having a specific place set aside for schoolwork will also help you concentrate during school time.

Make school a priority.

When you attend classes in a brick and mortar high school, you have no choice but to make school a priority. You simply have to be there five days a week no matter what else is going on in your life. When you attend classes online, you have the option to prioritize other things ahead of school. This practice, however, will ultimately be detrimental to your education.

Online high school can be very different, but for many students, it's well worth it. If you're thinking about attending high school online, contact us today for more information.

Tuesday 11 August 2015

What is Online High School Really About?

Online high school sounds like a great opportunity, but many parents and students wonder what it's really all about. Understanding what online high school really means is the first step in the process to making an educational decision for their child.

For many students, a traditional brick and mortar high school simply doesn't cut it. Some students are bullied mercilessly, making it impossible for them to function on their work throughout the day. Others work at an advanced pace, leaving them bored out of their minds. Some students have commitments that are hard to schedule around school days: sports practices, family commitments, or even a work schedule that doesn't sync up with a traditional school schedule. Then there are students who have health issues. Some days, they're perfectly able to participate in normal classroom activities, but others, it's all they can do to get out of bed.

If any of these sound like your student, online high school might be the best choice for you. American school high school opportunities have increased several times over in the last several years, and it's become easier than ever before to find a program that will work for your student. Still, online high schools seem to be shrouded in mystery. What is online high school really about?

Online high schools provide the same quality of education that you'd get in a brick and mortar school.

In fact, in many cases, you'll discover that they get a higher-quality education than they would receive in a brick and mortar school. Online high schools provide your student with all the materials that they would get in a traditional brick and mortar classroom. They have the same opportunities afforded to traditional high school students. The difference is that instead of getting up and going to school every day, students are able to stay home and attend school in their pajamas if they wish.

Online high schools have high-quality teachers.

You aren't taking on traditional homeschooling when you allow your student to attend online high school. You'll have high-quality teachers available to help your child on this educational journey.

Online high school allows you to choose your own schedule.

With online high school, you don't have to worry about whether or not you need to change the time of an appointment because your child has missed too many classes at a specific time. You won't have to worry about getting a reluctant child up at the crack of dawn. Online high school fits into your schedule instead of you being forced to work your schedule around it.


Online high school means that school time is about school.

During a typical school day, there are a host of interruptions. Announcements, bookkeeping, and classroom maintenance all take up a chunk of the school day--and that's on a normal day. Then there are the events that take place during the school day: pep rallies, in-school performances of plays or concerts, fire drills, bomb threats...many days, your student might not accomplish anything academically, and yet if they aren't in class, they're penalized. With online high school, your child is able to spend their school time actually engaged in learning, freeing up the other hours normally spent in school for other activities.

For many students, online high school is an open door that allows them to excel both at school and in other areas of life. If you have more questions, check out our website for more information.