HOW TO CHOOSE ONLINE SCHOOL/ HOMESCHOOL PROGRAM FOR YOUR CHILD
1.1 WHY ONLINE SCHOOLING
The world we live in has been growing at a fast pace. We have slowly yet gradually seen changes in how teaching and learning are being conducted. During the pandemic, the world had to come to a stand still and learning institutions had to find other ways to continue teaching and allow students to learn from the comfort of their homes. Online learning became known widely then but it has always been a practice that has been growing even before the pandemic and even when the world opened up, some students actually preferred to continue with online schooling. Giving learners and their parents access to high quality programs and qualifications wherever and however they choose to study should be a priority.
There are many reasons a parent may want to choose online education for their child. Your child can study wherever they are even if you may be moving to another city or country. There are no limitations to online schooling since all you need is the internet. Your child may need support to meet their individual needs. In traditional classrooms, there are large number of students per class. This makes it difficult for your child to get their needs met and may lag behind. Online classes tend to have smaller classes, one on one support from tutors and a more flexible learning experience. At Caplora, our classrooms have a maximum of 10-12 students which makes it easy for our students to have their individual needs met and the teachers are able to focus on smaller groups at a time.
If a child has medical or well being reasons, a parent may want to have their child attend online school so the child can continue learning. Also, another reason a parent may want to consider online schooling is so that your child may be able to study subjects that may not be available in your local school. Bullying has been a thing that been a concern for a very long time in schools. Physical schools especially have had this issue since time immemorial. If as a parent your child is getting bullied at school, then online school may be a good option. This is because in online schools, physical meet ups happen once in a while so bullying is not as common as in physical schools.
1.2 HOW TO CHOOSE BEST SCHOOL FOR YOUR CHILD
Choosing an online school can be a task, especially if your child is from physical school. There are many things to consider before making a decision and the parent should know it is important to do due diligence before deciding on a school. In a way, the process of picking out an online school is similar to picking a physical school but there are unique factors for picking out an online school. Questions like how the school delivers the curriculum online or how does the school keep parents updated about the progress of their child are some of the things to ask the school administration. It is important to know if the school organizes physical meet ups for students, and when or where they take place and if there are extra curricular activities available. Caplora ensures school trips every term, and our students have a variety of extra curricular activities to pick from like coding, gaming, robotics and we even have clubs for these plus others like Science and YouTube clubs et cetera. This gives our students the opportunity to get to know other students socially from anywhere around the globe.
Other things a parent should ask the subjects and qualifications offered in the school, resources provided by the school and what support is available to your child. Caplora offers text books to our students to supplement what they learn in class and we also offer tutoring for students who may need an extra class or two so that they do not get left behind. Something else parents should ask, especially if you are in different time zones is if they fit and the time that your child will be expected to study.
There are different approaches that different online schools use. The first one is Synchronous Approach– Here there are live online lessons and homework given to be completed by students individually. Asynchronous Approach- Here the students learn individually by interacting with a range of texts, quizzes and other content through a learning platform. Some schools use a mix of the two. While the two can be effective, the parent should consider whether the child would be more comfortable spending time in live lessons with other students or working individually. Caplora uses daily, structured, live, interactive online classes taught by expert subject teachers. Our lessons are supported by simulations, quizzes, gamification and auxiliary resources.
Something to also consider are the subject choices your child would like to study. Some online schools may not be able to offer such as Cambridge Global Perspectives, art and design, media studies and drama. This is because these subjects are not available to private candidates and most online school students take their exams as private candidates. Caplora offers Global Perspective, STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), Art and Design, Performing Arts-Music and Drama, Film and Theatre and Public Speaking. Some online schools may have challenges when it comes to practical subjects like Sciences. Many schools offer some experience of practical work through videos, simulations, encouraging simple experiments at home et cetera. If your child is going to study a science at an online school, it is important to discuss the approach to practical work with the school before enrolling them to the school. Caplora School ensures that our students do practical work which prepares them well for their exams.
One of the most important considerations before signing up for online school is where your child will sit for their exams. Students sit for their exams at a physical exam venue and for many online Cambridge Schools, this would be another registered Cambridge school. There is a large network of Cambridge approved schools therefore choosing an online Cambridge school like Caplora would mean you are most likely to find an exam venue that is close to where you live. At Caplora we help our students find a suitable exam venue, regardless of where they are and we give them an option to select a first-choice exam venue and a back-up venue. This means your child will not have to travel long distance at exam time.
With this guide, it should be quite easy to decide on if you want your child to join an online school and which school to join. Joining a school like Caplora will ensure the best experience for online schooling since we offer the globally recognized Cambridge British Curriculum from Year 1 to A level. Our curriculum standards are high and are based on those recognized by PISA and OECD as world class. We use a blend of Singapore, UK, New Zealand and Finland standards to create bespoke curriculum standards that best fit the needs of our international learner community.