Getting Started with Homeschooling
Practical Considerations for Parents of School-Aged Children
© Beverley Paine
Index
Homeschool
Australia
Correspondence Courses
Many families believe following or enrolling in a correspondence course is essential to home schooling. This is not the case, and you are able, in most cases, to prepare and carry out a superior educational program compared to anything currently offered by correspondence.
Some families prefer the security of the rigid structure offered by correspondence courses. You can, however, include and implement a similar amount of structure by preparing and planning lessons yourself, and although this is time consuming, it is less expensive and more relevant to your children's educational needs. There are thousands of texts and workbooks readily available in public bookstores covering all curriculum areas that you can use.
If you have purchased a pre-packaged or correspondence course, organise the materials that are sent to you and prepare any required supplemental learning materials. You may need to organise and structure your time to suit assignment deadlines. Correspondence courses usually come with adequate support services, and it is in your best interest to use these to the maximum.
Some courses may not be accepted by educational authorities, and may need to be supplemented with additional planning and programming. It is best to find this out early if you are seeking registration as a legal home school.
It is to your children’s advantage to supplement these courses with informal and less structured activities. Regardless of which method you use, either your own program or a correspondence course, it is still important to have regular contact with other home schooling families for social support for your children and yourself.
Government operated distance education courses enroll students under strict guidelines, and are generally unavailable to most families choosing home schooling. However, some are gradually making many of their subject programs and books available to the public for purchase.
It is worth noting that AUSTUDY, government funded financial support for students, has very specific criteria for the payment of study allowances, and are usually not paid to students studying courses that are not accredited or accepted. All courses have to be studied on a full-time basis. AUSTUDY has strict attendance requirements of students, which generally disallows part-time school arrangements. If your child is at post-compulsory age and needs AUSTUDY support, check with the correspondence school before you purchase your course.
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Excerpt from Getting Started with Homeschooling, Practical Considerations
© Beverley Paine, 1997
