Accredited Online Courses: The Educational Benefits
The primary online high school advantages and benefits you’ll read about in this article include flexibility, credit recovery, homeschool support, college prep jumpstart, education at your pace, and accelerated diploma completion. Keep in mind, however, not all online schools are created equal. Achieve Virtual is Indiana’s trusted virtual high school program that delivers quality virtual learning that supports students in achieving their academic goals.
Flexibility is the Star of Online High School Advantages
High school diplomas continue to be an important stepping stone not just to higher education, but also to better opportunities in the job market. But what happens when students, whether teenagers or adults, simply cannot fit traditional high school education into their lives? The normal weekday school routine at a traditional high school may not be feasible for medical or scheduling reasons, and even traditional night school opportunities may not work out if they require being in a specific brick-and-mortar location for in-person learning at specific times. This is what makes the flexibility offered by virtual learning one of the most important online high school advantages. When weighing the pros and cons of online learning, the flexibility made possible with the internet becomes a powerful benefit. When all you need is a laptop computer and a solid internet connection, online learning can happen when and where it best suits the learner. Whatever the reason may be for why you need this flexibility, Achieve Virtual delivers!
Credit Recovery to Keep You On-Track for High School Graduation
Few things are more frustrating than a high school student finding out they’re short a credit or two for fulfilling their diploma requirements in order to graduate with the rest of their class. Looking forward to life after high school is suddenly in jeopardy, and it’s not a good feeling. This situation may be further complicated if they can’t fit making up the credits within either the available time remaining before graduation, or their class schedule. Some of these students cannot graduate until they can make up the credit(s). But for motivated students who want to get back on track for graduation and necessary diploma requirements, digital learning may be the perfect method to solve such problems. Achieve Virtual has helped many students over the years make up a needed diploma requirement in time for graduation to put them back on track for stepping into the life after high school they envisioned.
The Support Homeschooled Students Need in High School
One scenario we’ve seen quite a bit over the years has to do with the changing needs of the homeschooled learner as they get older. While many parents are more than comfortable teaching what their children need to learn through the elementary grades and middle school, some begin to feel less confident about their ability to teach a rigorous high school curriculum. But these parents and their children may still prefer to learn at home rather than attending traditional brick-and-mortar public schools, charter schools, or paying the high cost of tuition charged at many private schools. The online courses we offer through Achieve Virtual have been a great way for homeschooled students to get the academic support they need for meeting Indiana diploma requirements while still receiving that education in the desired home environment. Each online course is taught by a real Indiana teacher qualified and certified to teach in their subject area, and they are all truly passionate about student success.
College and University Preparation Through Online Learning
For many learners, their vision for life after high school includes attending a college or university in order to begin shaping a vision of what kind of career they want to eventually pursue. For highly motivated and organized students who want to get a jumpstart on their higher education ambitions, Achieve Virtual is here to help. Whether it’s an Advanced Placement (AP) course not offered in their school district or more advanced dual-credit coursework, we offer both types of advanced education opportunities. For AP classes, we typically offer ten different options. You can always find out what AP opportunities are on tap by visiting our course page and looking at each subject page for AP classes. Our dual-credit courses are designed and offered through Vincennes University, but should also transfer to any number of colleges and universities if you check with each institution. The value of both types of advanced education opportunities (AP courses and dual-credit courses) is that you can test out or receive credit for a number of general education classes required at most colleges and universities, which frees up time to focus on classes related to your intended major or that interest you, take on a double-major, or add in a minor that fits with your goals. Note that dual-credit courses carry higher per-class fees that do not include the cost of required textbooks and also have learning prerequisites that must be met for eligibility.
Learning at the Pace that’s Right for You
The kind of online high school program we offer at Achieve Virtual doesn’t require as much synchronous learning (students online at the same time interacting with the teacher and each other in a virtual classroom) as the kind of online learning many students have experienced when schools went remote during the pandemic. Because flexibility is among our online high school advantages, students not only get to choose when and where to do their learning, but also move through the material at their own pace, whether that’s faster or slower than others.
Accelerated High School Diploma Completion
This final in our list of online high school advantages is closely related to the work-at-your-own-pace advantage. When you have the chance to do this, there is the option of accelerating your high school education, obtaining your diploma early, and moving more quickly into life after high school, whether for entering the job market or going on to an institution of higher education. The ability to move through a high school education more quickly than the normal timeframe is not for everyone. This is an option for learners who are highly motivated, exceptionally organized, and have developed advanced study skills.
Achieve Virtual: The First Online High School in Indiana
Any student in the state of Indiana is eligible to attend Achieve Virtual Education Academy. Students who enroll with a full-time status attend free of charge while part-time students pay a modest fee per course. Because Achieve Virtual is managed by the Metropolitan School District of Wayne Township, students in that district attend for free regardless of whether they are enrolled part-time or full-time. Achieve Virtual is fully approved and accredited by the Indiana Department of Education to award Indiana Core 40 or Core 40 AHD (academic honors) high school diplomas. Registration for summer semester classes opens on April 6. Find out the details in our 2021 Summer School Session brochure. If you need more information or have any questions about how online high school works at Achieve Virtual or if it’s right for you, please feel free to call us directly at 317-622-0915 and we’ll be happy to assist you!
