Credit recovery may sound like something for people who have declared bankruptcy or have a bad credit score but no, that’s credit repair. Credit recovery is a term that has to do with reaching the graduation finish-line of secondary education and receiving a high school diploma. Graduating from high school depends on students meeting the state’s credit requirements. For Indiana high school students, the magic number they need is 40 credits spread across various subject areas.
Few things are more distressing for parents and their high school-aged children than finding out they are short on credits as graduation draws nearer. Stress levels rise even further if they realize there is no way for them to make up or recover the needed credits within available time and class offerings during the regular school day at their traditional public high school. One course can mean the difference between graduating or not.
Achieve Virtual Education Academy offers learning solutions to meet the educational needs of credit recovery students with virtual classes. Online education is the perfect solution for making up credits because the courses can be taken outside the normal school day of traditional schools.
Online Coursework to Make Up Credits and Graduate from High School
When you look at the outline of credit requirements students must meet to graduate from high school, you can see how easy it would be for any student to suddenly find out something has slipped through the cracks. Here’s the breakdown of Indiana’s high school diploma credit requirements:
- 8 credits of English/language arts
- 4 credits of mathematics
- 4 credits of science
- 4 credits of social studies
- 2 credits of physical education
- 1 credit of health and wellness
- 6 credits of college and career pathway courses
- 5 flex credits
- 6 credits of electives
It doesn’t take much to throw this off. A badly-timed failing grade, an extended illness, or any number of other circumstances can result in your high school student being short on one or more course credits in order to graduate on time. In some cases, the result can be the student not receiving their high school diploma – a kind of passive dropping out of school because they simply can’t make up the needed credits in time. For some, this means beginning their adult life without a high school diploma. It could even derail their plans to attend college.
But none of these negative scenarios need to become reality, especially not when there is the option of enrolling in online courses to make up those missing credits. Virtual coursework puts your high school student in the proverbial driver’s seat when it comes to their credit recovery learning as they choose when and where they want to study – with your support and encouragement, of course.
A Virtual Credit Recovery Program for High School Students
When students need to make up credits and there is no way to do it through the framework and scheduling offered at their regular public school, online courses might be the only option available. In many states, such an alternative isn’t available, but Indiana makes it possible. Achieve Virtual Education Academy has full accreditation from the state. The teachers are all fully licensed in their areas of expertise. Each course is designed to fully align with the appropriate Indiana state curriculum standards.
With a diverse offering of dozens of online courses spanning nine different subject areas, students will learn what they must know to recover the credits they need leading to their high school diploma. The learning program at Achieve Virtual is rigorous, innovative, and engaging. Students work both independently and collaboratively with their peers to meet course requirements. Getting back on track to graduate is much easier when students have greater flexibility to learn when and where it makes the most sense to them and your family.
Advantages of Online Learning for Credit Recovery
The most obvious benefits of making up credits through online learning have already been mentioned: Greater flexibility to engage needed coursework than is offered by their traditional public school. They don’t need to be held back just because there’s no way it can fit into what their school offers. Additional benefits of virtual credit recovery include the following:
- Students can engage their learning and study when and where is most convenient for them, whether that’s at home or anywhere they can access the internet through a web browser.
- Students work through the educational content at their own pace.
- Continual support and feedback from course instructors who are all Indiana-certified and highly qualified.
- Personalized attention and customized lessons from instructors who want to see all students succeed.
There are those who question whether or not online learning programs for credit recovery are of a high enough quality. We certainly can’t speak on behalf of virtual programs in other places, but Achieve Virtual specifically sought and achieved full accreditation from the Indiana Department of Education because of these very concerns. Our online courses align with state standards and give high school students the knowledge and skills they need not just to meet state diploma requirements, but to set them up for future success in post-secondary education, work, and life.
While Achieve Virtual is free for full-time students (five or more classes per semester), part-time students (fewer than five classes in a semester) who need to make up credits in order to graduate must pay a modest fee of $250 for each course they take – a small price to pay to keep your student on track towards obtaining their high school diploma. These fees can be paid by the student’s family or may be covered by their regular school.
If you have questions about how Achieve Virtual works, take a look at our FAQ page where you’ll find answers to the most common questions people ask. Also visit our What You Need to Know page to find out more specifics about what’s involved in attending Achieve Virtual. And please contact us with any other specific questions you may have about our online high school credit recovery program.
