“After registering, the home-schooled student must send the following information to the clearinghouse:
· Standardized test score (must be on official transcript OR sent directly from the testing agency);

· Transcript (home school transcript and any other transcript from other high schools, community colleges, etc.);

· Proof of high-school graduation;

· Evidence that home schooling was conducted in accordance with state law*; AND

· Lists of texts used throughout home schooling (text titles, publisher, in which courses texts were used).

“Because home-schooled students will not receive a preliminary evaluation from the clearinghouse, it is best to register after completion of high school (usually in late spring) when all above listed documents are available.”

*THSC Association will be happy to notify the NCAA in writing that graduates of schools of member families attended home schools conducted in accordance with state law.

The post NCAA Forms Clearinghouse for Home Schoolers’ Eligibility appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

- Eligible high school students may be allowed to take a college credit course, which will earn college credit and also satisfy the high school graduation plan’s required course.

Trying to find the way through the many alternatives of early higher education can almost cause migraines. Honors class grades and CLEP, SAT II, and AP test results are all viable means of persuading an admissions counselor that a child belongs in the higher-level classes once they reach college. These usually work, but some colleges will not accept certain CLEP test results, or they are skeptical that a mother’s version of an honors class (and maybe even a public high school’s) is not “good enough,” so what can she do? How can a parent make the best choice for her child? Which option yields the best dividends?

My daughter is now an eleventh grader, but she is also in her second semester of taking dual credit—or as called by some, Early College Start (ECS)—classes and is doing wonderfully. Why are dual credit classes such a good option?

PROS

Credit for each course can be earned at the high school and college level simultaneously.

The early college classes are just that—college classes. Once a student takes classes and passes them, those grades become a part of the credits necessary toward earning a college degree, but they can also be added to a high school transcript as credits.

Whereas some colleges will not accept various CLEP test results as acceptable credits, they will usually accept fundamental community college credits as classes taken. Examples of basic classes would be English Composition I and II, U.S. History I and II, and U.S. government. Students can also take elective classes or classes toward a specific degree. For example, a student working toward a computer science degree could take Calculus I and II, introduction to philosophy, fundamentals of programming, C++ programming, and speech.

The quality of education is relatively good.

Having heard many horror stories of liberal professors spewing their jargon and cramming atheism down students’ throats, I was understandably nervous about exposing my little darling to such prejudiced slants on the truth. I was pleasantly surprised to find that textbooks, in our experience, mostly seem to shy away from opinions and exaggerations and instead try to present things in a factual manner. They cover the necessary points and leave the student with a better knowledge of the subject matter. We did have to talk about one short story in the English composition class that basically presented a glazed-over account of adultery as being nothing about which to worry, but I welcome these opportunities so that I can discuss them with my child while she is at home, rather than have her process them alone at college.

My daughter’s teachers have been very helpful, and they responded quickly via e-mail whenever she had a question about an assignment.

Grading is taken seriously.

I was nervous about my daughter being awarded high grades simply based on the fact that she did the work. As most home schoolers would concur, just doing the work is not enough—a student must do the work well with conscientiousness. So far, I have seen the grading requirements of both English I and II and American History I and II. The student must get above seventy percent on all tests, which are taken on campus in a supervised room, in order to pass the class.

There is a variety of subject choices.

The counselors were great at recommending subjects with which to start. I was given a notebook, with a 1½-inch-thick spine, of information on the various classes, what kinds of classes a student should take based on his degree plan, course descriptions, student services, admissions procedures, and testing information—all of which was very helpful.

Driving to and from class is not a necessity.

This was my favorite part. I opted to enroll my daughter in online classes. I would not have to drop her off at school or leave other kids at home to pick her up again, although I did do this whenever she took an on-campus test.

It is highly affordable.

Dual enrollment classes are the same classes that a student would take upon entering college—basic English, history, government, etc. Most dual credit classes are considerably cheaper, and some community colleges even offer them free of charge for students in the tax district. A high school graduate entering, for example, Austin Community College (ACC) would pay $400 for each class, whereas high school students can take these classes for free! (If the student lives outside of the tax district, there is a fee. We paid $40.),
ECS students who reside outside of ACC’s taxing district will be charged a $40 per course fee unless the scheduled class is held on a high school campus. Financial need may exempt students from this fee. For students who reside within ACC’s taxing district, ACC classes are tuition and fee exempt.

One can complete the first year of college while still in high school.

There are three trimesters in each college year, so an ECS student can complete twelve classes over a period of two years. Financially, this could save approximately $2400 of tuition money, not to mention the cost of travel, food, lodging, etc.

CONS

Naturally, with every choice we make for our children, there are always the negative aspects to consider. The main difficulty for me was the first one below.

Parents have no say.

At ACC parents must sign a form stating that they understand they cannot access any information on the student, they cannot talk to the teacher about their child’s performance without the child’s permission, and they cannot speak for the child once the child is enrolled as a college student. Each student is treated as an adult, regardless of his age. I questioned the admissions counselor about this policy, and she said that one child’s parents ruined it for all parents to come—they changed their child’s major from dance to biology, without even informing their child of this change. Granted, if I were the one paying for the classes, I would be relatively upset to find that my money was going toward making my child a prima ballerina instead of the next Nobel prize-winning scientist.

Grades can be forwarded to prospective four-year colleges.

This is a great perk if the student can do the work well, but if ECS is used to fill time or as an experiment, low grades could work against acceptance at a future four-year college. South Texas College (McAllen) comments on this policy:
A student’s final grade in a dual enrollment class, or withdrawing from a class past the deadline, can affect financial aid eligibility and admission to an institution of higher learning upon high school graduation. Students SHOULD NOT enroll in the dual enrollment program unless he or she is committed to meeting the admissions requirements and deadlines as well as passing the class.

The number of classes a child may take per semester may be limited.

Often ECS students may take only two classes per semester, and these classes may only be taken in the junior and senior years of high school. A local admissions counselor said that their youngest student was fourteen and took the ECS classes because she had already completed all of her high school work, but while they would consider younger students, they do not recommend it.

A high school transcript is required.

This is not a negative thing if a parent is highly organized and has recorded the quality of work completed over ninth and tenth grades. I compiled a small portfolio of all of my daughter’s grades, achievements, and work samples, only to discover that all the college wanted was a page of listed credits, but even that was a chore. Parents should check with the college to determine exactly what the college requires on a high school transcript and what denotes an official transcript from a home school student. Some colleges prefer to have home school transcripts notarized, and others simply want the parent’s signature as the administrator of the school.

Not every child can qualify.

Admission to the ECS program is only allowed if the student proves, through early SAT scores or the community college’s admissions test, that he is capable of handling the level of material. For example, according to Houston Independent School District, high school students may co-enroll in Houston Community College based on these criteria:

The rules for dual enrollment/credit are developed by the Higher Education Coordinating Board, and not by TEA. Since the fall of 1998 in order to be eligible for courses awarding dual credit, a high school student must take the Texas Higher Education Assessment (THEA—formerly called the TASP test).

The THEA consists of reading, writing, and math tests, advisement and placement, and developmental education for students who do not pass one or more sections of the test. It is administered by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB). Students in high school may take the THEA after passing the TAAS exit-level exam or may score high enough on the exit-level TAAS or TAKS, ACT, or SAT to be exempt from the THEA.

Students in the graduating class of 2005 may take dual enrollment courses during their junior and senior years if they achieve the TAKS, SAT, or ACT passing standards in English/language arts and/or mathematics (as applicable) as established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

Overall, the mothers with whom I have spoken have found that dual credit classes have been a positive experience for their children, and they would recommend them to others.
Endnotes
http://www.austincc.edu/orgref/glossary.php#d
http://www.austincc.edu/ecs/
http://studentservices.southtexascollege.edu/de/guidelines.html

http://www.houstonisd.org/portal/site/StudentSupportServices

The post Early College Start appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Receiving a Diploma or Its Equivalent

Personal Graduation

You can graduate them. Because a home school is considered a private school in Texas, the administrators of a home school (the parents) have the ability to determine the requirements for graduation for its students just as any other private school. When your child has completed what you have determined to be your school’s requirements for graduation, you may graduate him and give him a diploma.

Umbrella School Diploma

If your child is enrolled in an umbrella school, he will probably receive a diploma from the school when its requirements are met. Be sure to determine whether the umbrella school requires a student to be enrolled for the entire four years of high school in order to receive a diploma or if it allows other options.

GED

Your student may obtain a certificate of high school equivalency – general educational development (GED). If you are uncomfortable taking full responsibility for awarding a diploma, your student can take the GED test to prove competency. This is certainly not a requirement or even a recommendation, but it is an option that some parents choose. Students can take the GED exam through their local school district, community college, adult education center, or university. Call the toll-free GED hotline anytime at 800-626-9433 (800-62 MY GED) for the location of a test site in your area.

Graduation Ceremonies

This is the fun part of graduating a student from your home school academy! Although a person’s education is not complete at the end of high school, home schoolers often like to participate in this rite of passage into the adult world. Many local and regional support groups sponsor commencement ceremonies in which parents and students may participate. These ceremonies are very similar to those provided by any school. An exciting difference between home school graduations and those given by traditional schools is that, usually, the parents are able to participate along with their student. This experience has provided special memories for many families across the state.

Usually the support group will have a coordinator who will deal with the issues of cap and gown, pictures, invitations, and the time and location of the event. Sometimes there may be a group of parents that gets together to do this. The program for the actual graduation ceremony will be determined by the coordinator or by the parents working together. Often these ceremonies are intimate with twenty or less graduates—and the memories are priceless. After the actual ceremony, often there is a reception at which each graduate has a table decorated to his taste, that reflects where he has been, what he has accomplished, and what his future plans are.

Beyond Graduation

Another oft-asked question from new home educators concerns what happens after home schooling. The options for home school graduates are no different from those for any other high school graduates. They include apprenticeship, college, employment, marriage and family, the military, and trade schools. On succeeding pages, several of these options are addressed. Students should feel confident about their home school education, because home school graduates have proven to be excellent students when they choose to further their education, conscientious employees, and successful members of the armed forces.

Apprenticeship

Many home educators are returning to this time-tested method of training for employment. Read an article explaining more about this option.

College

Many home schoolers successfully attend college after graduation. There are a number of ways for home school students to make the transition to college. The specifics may vary, based upon the needs and goals of the student. Some have begun college work while completing their high school-level work by taking courses at a local college for dual credit. Some begin after high school graduation by enrolling in a local junior college and later transferring those credits to a four-year university.

Employment

As home education becomes more accepted, home educators are seeing attitudes and laws change that have been discriminatory in the past. For example, in 2003 in the Texas legislature, in a measure that merged the Registered Nursing Board and the Vocational Nursing Board, the prior requirement for a high school diploma for an accredited school was deleted. Home school graduates are now accepted on the same bases as public high school graduates.

Employment application procedures are the same as with any other graduate. If asked about a high school diploma, the home school graduate has no need to apologize or hide the fact that he was educated at home. He simply needs to explain that he received his high school diploma from a home school, which in Texas is considered the same as a diploma received from any other private school. (It should be noted that, like home schools, two thirds of the traditional private schools in Texas are not accredited.)

Marriage and Family

Just as home educators have chosen a route different from that of the general public for educating their children, many are also encouraging their young people to choose a different method of finding a life partner. These are returning to the time-honored tradition of courtship rather that dating.

Also going against the trend in society, many young families are choosing for the mom to stay home as they plan to homeschool their own children as their mothers educated them. This is as viable and noble a goal as any other the other choices discussed here.

Military

The United States military is an admirable career field open to almost any home school graduate. For reasons explained in the article, Military Recruitment and Acceptance of Home School Graduates, those who wish to have a military opportunity for their students should look for classroom opportunities for their children, including dual credit classes at junior colleges or college classes after graduation.

Proprietary or Trade Schools

A home school graduate may attend trade schools in Texas. If asked about a high school diploma, he may simply explain that he received his diploma from a home school. In 1999 the Texas Administrative Code dealing with the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) and admission into proprietary schools {Section 807.2(21)} was modified to define secondary education as “successful completion of public, private or home schooling at the high school level or obtainment of a recognized high school equivalency credential.”

Law Enforcement

Another career that is open to home school graduates is law enforcement. Texas allows high school graduates to attend police academies hosted by junior colleges or cities for the purpose of training potential police officers. In 2004 the director of education and training for the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education (TCLEOSE) clarified state policy for these academies by stating, “…an academy may not require more of a homeschooler than they do for any other applicant.”

Click here to order the THSC Handbook for Home Schoolers.

The post Graduation appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Driver Education Options for Home Schoolers

Home schoolers can fulfill the school enrollment and attendance requirement that applies to all persons under 18 years of age (unless they have obtained a high school diploma or its equivalent—a homeschool diploma is equivalent to any private school diploma;  The homeschool parent will need to complete the enrollment and attendance form of the Texas Education Agency (TEA), which is the Verification of Enrollment and Attendance Form (VOE); and this form must be given to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) each time the student obtains or renews his license or learner’s permit.

There are several options for driver education courses. Many public school districts offer driver education courses in their schools. Home educators in the district may be able to participate in these classes. In many cities, private schools and commercial driving schools teach driver education as well as defensive driving courses. Some local and regional support groups form their own driver education classes, following the certification guidelines. Another option Texas home educators have is that of parent-taught driver education courses.

Whatever program you choose, please recognize that your child’s life is at stake, as is the safety of others with whom he will share the road. Just because a young person is 16 years old and has met the minimum requirements for obtaining a driver license does not mean that he is necessarily ready to drive on his own. You, the parent, may choose to have him continue to practice under your supervision and/or give him time to mature before allowing him to obtain his provisional license.

A 15- to 17-year-old who is enrolled in a driver education course and has completed six hours of classroom instruction on traffic laws can get an instruction permit upon passing the written exam at his local DPS office. A permit is now good for two birthdays, which means that if the permit is obtained at age 15, it will not expire until the 18th birthday, giving the student more time to practice.

Parent-Taught Driver Education

After almost two years of delays and a hard-fought battle in the legislature, with THSC Association leading the fight, in April of 1997 Texas parents won the right to teach driver education to their own children. Texas became the first state with mandated driver education to allow parents to teach their own children. Many families–not just home schoolers–benefited from this victory! In legislative committee hearings, proponents of parent-taught driver education brought out the fact that studies did not show any correlation between low crash rates and professionally taught driver education. (Sound familiar? Something about the education of the students and teacher certification?) Many rural schools stopped offering driver education to their students, so students had to drive long distances to take courses in nearby cities. Also affected were low-income families since commercial driving schools, often the only option, can be expensive.

Insurance Discounts

Students who receive parent-taught driver education are required by state law to be treated the same as students who receive their driver education from any state-licensed commercial driving school, and insurance companies may elect to give discounts on insurance premiums for driver education to policy holders covering such students. However, state law does not mandate that insurance companies provide Good Student Discounts for homeschool students, although they are allowed to do so. Therefore, parents of homeschool students should be aware that some insurance companies do offer Good Student Discounts for qualified homeschool students, while others do not.

Legal Requirements for Parent-Taught Driver Education

• The instructor (parent, step-parent, grandparent, step-grandparent, foster parent, or legal guardian) must be legally licensed to operate a motor vehicle in the state of Texas.
• The person conducting a parent-taught course may not have six or more points assigned to his/her driver license under Transportation Code, Subchapter B, Chapter 708, at the time the person begins conducting the course.
• The person conducting a parent-taught course must have a Texas driver license (exception for military personnel) for the previous three years.
• The instructor cannot have a conviction (including a probated sentence) of criminally negligent homicide or driving while intoxicated.
• The instructor’s license may not have been suspended, revoked, or forfeited in the past three years for traffic-related violations.
• The instructor may not be disabled due to mental illness.
• Parent-taught courses must be approved by the TEA.
• The classroom instruction (32 hours required) for the course shall not be spread over less than 20 calendar days, with not more than two hours in one day.
• The seven hours of behind-the-wheel instruction and the seven hours of in-car practice must not be completed in less than 14 calendar days. The additional 20 hours of behind-the-wheel practice, 10 of which must be at night, can be given by any licensed driver age 21 or older who has at least one year of driving experience; this person need not be a relative.
• All minors must take the driving test given by DPS officers. This rule applies to those who started their course on or after September 1, 2009.
• Anyone in a local support group offering assistance in the course may not receive any form of compensation.

Steps to Complete Parent-Taught Driver Education

1. Send the fee and the completed Request for Driver Education Packet form (DL-92; see Appendix, p. G-3, of the Handbook or get one at your local DPS) to the Austin address on the form. When the student appears at the local DPS office to obtain the learner’s permit, he will also receive this packet. This packet has forms that you will use at different times over the course of teaching your student unless you are using an approved parent-taught course that provides alternate forms. It is imperative that the instructor keep accurate and up-to-date records as indicated on these forms.
2. You must use an approved course. Currently, there are several state-approved, parent-taught driver education courses. These courses vary in quality, and some require teachers to create their own lesson plans for each hour of instruction, which are subject to review by the DPS upon obtaining the learners permit and/or license.
3. Two approaches are available to a parent teaching driver education:
   1. Block Method: The student may complete 32 classroom hours first and take the written exam at the local DPS. Once he passes the exam, the student can get his learner’s permit and begin the behind-the-wheel portion of the class.
   2. Concurrent Method: The student may complete six classroom hours studying traffic law and take the written exam at the local DPS office. Once he passes that exam, the student can get his learner’s permit, and the behind-the-wheel instruction can be taught concurrently with the remaining 26 hours of classroom instruction.
4. Required hours of driving are: seven hours of behind-the-wheel instruction, seven hours of in-car practice and an additional 20 hours of behind-the-wheel practice, ten of which must be at night. Some of the state-approved, parent-taught courses may require more hours than the state minimum. (Please note that experts advise that a beginning driver complete at least 50 hours of practice supervised by a licensed adult before he is ready to drive solo.)
5. When going to the DPS office to obtain a learner’s permit, the student should take the following items:
   1. Three Forms of Proof of Identity–the DPS has confirmed that the following will be accepted as proof of identity for homeschooled students  Click here to read the letter from the DPS):
      1. Birth certificate (original or certified copy)
      2. Social Security card (actual card)
      3. Completed Verification of Enrollment and Attendance (VOE) form, CDD-104  (Directions for Completing VOE Form below.)
   2. Completed forms
      1. Application for Texas Driver License, DL-14A
      2. Parental Driver Education Affidavit, DL-90A
      3. Classroom Instruction Record, DL-91A, or alternate form provided by the state-approved course you have selected. (If using the Concurrent Method of instruction, the parent should retain this document after driver license representative confirms information.)
   3. The required fee for issuing a Learner’s Permit
   4. Glasses, if needed to drive
   5. Proof of liability insurance covering vehicle

Please note:

Even though all DPS driver license offices are supposed to follow the same statutes and rules, there are often different “local” decisions. If, at any time, you are concerned that you are being asked for something not required (such as proof that you are a home schooler), please contact THSC for assistance.

Directions for Completing VOE Form

1. Write “Home School” or the name of your home school on the top left corner of the form and your county on the top right corner of the form.
2. Check the first box, indicating your student is enrolled in a home school.
3. Type or print the student’s name.
4. Type or print one parent’s name and phone number in Administrator/Designee section.
5. Both the student and the parent must sign and date the form.
6. The student must pass a written and vision exam. As of 2010, parents no longer have the option of choosing whether or not the student must take a driving test administered by DPS once he has completed driver education. He must take the test.

Graduated Driver License Requirements

Effective January 2002, a graduated driver license program went into effect. This includes rules such as:

Phase One (with Learners permit or hardship license):

• Students under age 18 must hold an instruction permit or hardship license for a minimum of six months prior to getting a provisional driver license.

Phase Two (under 18 years of age, first 12 months with provisional license):

• During the first 12 months in which a student holds a provisional license, he may not operate a motor vehicle with more than one passenger in the vehicle under the age of 21 who is not a family member.
• Student may not operate a motor vehicle between midnight and 5 a.m. unless the operation of the vehicle is necessary for the operator to attend or participate in employment or a school-related activity or because of a medical emergency.
• Use of wireless communication devices is prohibited except in case of an emergency. (This restriction lasts until the driver reaches age 18.)

Texas Department of Public Safety. Information about the graduated driver license program can be accessed from a link at the bottom of that page.

We gratefully acknowledge Driver Ed in a Box® for the review and update of this information.

The post Obtaining a Driver License appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

In 2012 it is uncontested that home schoolers are dominating college admission test scores, and it is growing more evident each day that they are highly qualified and successful college students when they are admitted. When I was growing up, elite prep schools dominated the college admission numbers. Today, the new “elite” are home schooled graduates. They are the most highly recruited, most highly valued freshmen, at secular and Christian schools alike. Recently on a Harvard University online chat room, I read, “If Harvard wants to be the best, the most relevant institution in the years ahead, it must recruit and admit home schoolers.” Indeed.

Harvard has reason to worry. A Yale recruiter told me that while Yale wants home schoolers, home schoolers do not seem to want Yale; they are not applying there. I have two distance-learning students who were heavily recruited by Ivy League schools. They both chose local alternatives (a state school and a Christian school).

It is not my purpose to lobby for any particular college or university. However, mostly for fiscal reasons, the majority of Christian home school graduates go to secular colleges. Therefore, this article is about the secular colleges home schoolers will attend—how they got to be the way they are and how home schoolers can prosper in such a place.

To most evangelical Christians, the modern, secular university is a hostile place. It was not always so. In fact, the American university was built solidly on evangelical principles. There were no so-called “official,” “secular” colleges until the rise of the land-grant colleges in the middle of the nineteenth century. An early brochure, published in 1643, stated that the purpose of Harvard University (the oldest American university) was “to advance Learning and perpetuate it to Posterity; dreading to leave an illiterate Ministry to the Churches.” Harvard’s motto for 300 years was Christo et Ecclesiae (“For Christ and the Church”). In fact, most of the American universities founded before the twentieth century had a strongly religious, usually Protestant, evangelical Christian character. Yale, Princeton, Chicago, Stanford, Duke, William and Mary, Boston University, Michigan, and the University of California all had a decidedly evangelical Christian character in their early years but abandoned it by the twentieth century. By the 1920s, the American university had stepped completely back from its evangelical roots. This was true of almost every American university founded in the first 200 years of our nation’s existence.

The core curriculum at these universities included Bible courses and Christian theology as mandatory courses. All American universities insisted on doctrinally sound content for sensitive courses and often required that faculty be born-again Christians! Chapel attendance was required at Harvard and Yale. It is more than coincidental that the architects who designed early universities designed them to look like churches.

Universities were founded because early Americans earnestly believed that American society should be governed by evangelical Christian people. They believed that American industry should be run by evangelical Christian entrepreneurs. They believed that American culture should be created by evangelical artists. The early American university was committed to making sure that that happened.

The marriage of spiritual maturity and elite education is a potent combination and, to a large degree, assured the success of the American experiment. Its divorce may presage its demise.

Today the university is not even loosely a Christian institution. Religion in the university and in public life is relegated to the private experience. So-called “academic freedom” has become a sacrosanct concept and precludes anything that smacks of religiosity–especially orthodoxy that evangelicals so enthusiastically embrace. Religion is represented on campus in sanitary denominational ministries and token chapel ministries (that are hardly more than counseling centers).

To a large degree, the American university abandoned the evangelical, and the evangelical abandoned the American university, which created a crisis in both. The secular university became an academic hothouse for pompous rationalism. Evangelicals abandoned the secular university and, until recently, more or less compromised their own academic base. Evangelicals even founded their own universities, but they were poor academic substitutes for secular offerings.

The university, if it is to have any value, must be involved in the communication of immutable, metaphysical truth. The American secular university is not about to accept such limits. It recognizes no citadel of orthodoxy, no limits to its knowledge. But, like Jesus reminds Thomas in John 14, our hope lies not in what we know but most assuredly in Whom we know.

Most secular universities have concluded that abstract concepts like grace, hope, and especially faith are indefinable, immeasurable, and above all, unreasonable. Not that God can be proved or disproved. There are certain issues which the order of the intellect simply cannot address, so we must rise above those to the order of the heart. Faith is our consent to receive the good that God would have for us. An evangelical believes that God can and does act in our world and in our lives. Human needs are greater than this world can satisfy, and therefore it is reasonable to look elsewhere. The university has forgotten or ignores this fact.

That is all changing—and partly due to the popularity of the American home schooling movement. In massive numbers the American home school movement—initially and currently primarily an evangelical Christian movement—is depositing some of the brightest, most capable students in our country into the old, august institutions like Harvard. What is more exciting, the flashpoint of cultural change is changing from Harvard, Princeton, Dartmouth, and Stanford to Wheaton, Grove City, Calvin, and Liberty (all evangelical universities). Before long the new wave of elite culture creators will be graduating from American secular universities and Christian universities, and they shall be a great deal different from the elite of which I was a part in the middle 1970s. I am not saying the secular university will change quickly—intellectual naturalistic reductionism makes that extremely difficult. However, I do see the whole complexion of university graduates changing significantly in the next twenty years. Never in the history of the world has such a thing happened.

Young people, make sure that you know who you are and who your God is. “By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.” (Heb.  11:24) Theologian Walter Brueggemann calls American believers to “nurture, nourish, and evoke a consciousness and perception alternative to the consciousness and perception of the dominant culture around us.”

Refuse to be absorbed into the world, but choose to be a part of God’s kingdom. There is no moderate position anymore in American society—either we are taking a stand for Christ in this inhospitable culture, or we are not.

You are a special and peculiar generation—much loved. But you live among a people who do not know who they are, a people without hope. You need to know who you are—children of the Living God—and then you must live a hopeful life. Quoting C.S. Lewis, we “are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea.”

Take responsibility for your life. Moses accepted responsibility for his life. “He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time” (Heb. 11: 25). If you do not make decisions for your life, someone else will.

Get a cause worth dying for. Moses accepted necessary suffering even unto death. You need a cause worth dying for (as well as living for). “He [Moses] regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward” (Heb. 11: 26).  “We are crucified with Christ, yet it is not we who live but Christ who lives in us.” (Gal. 2:20)

Finally, never take your eyes off the goal.  “By faith, he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:27). What is your threshold of obedience?

Young people, if you are part of this new evangelical elite, you have immense opportunities ahead of you. A new godly generation is arising. You will be called to guide this nation into another unprecedented revival. We shall see.

Jim and Karen Stobaugh have four home educated adult children. They have a strong burden for the new leadership group that God is calling forth from the home schooling community. Jim has written one of the best resources for the SAT exam, SAT and College Preparation Course for the Christian Student as well as a language arts critical thinking literary series, American and World History Unit Studies, and three new books, Fire that Burns but does not Consume: Devotions for Thoughtful Christians, A Companion to 50 Classics, and A Gathered Inheritance. Jim and Karen reside in Hollsopple, Pennsylvania.

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Myth #1: The confusion of forms to complete just to enter college and apply for any financial aid is overwhelming.

Although it may seem that way at the outset, there are a couple of basic steps that will help you begin the process. Anyone planning to attend college should plan to take the PSAT during his junior year and the SAT and the ACT during the first part of his senior year. Forms for application may be found at any local high school or obtained from their source. It is always best to take both the SAT and ACT, as the design of each test is different, and some students may do better on one than the other. It is recommended that tests be taken early in the year so if the scores are not satisfactory, the student may repeat them later in the school year.

The second step is to complete the FAFSA (Free Application for Financial Student Aid), also available at local high schools and usually libraries. Along with scores from tests, these results should be sent to universities the student is interested in attending. Of course, the student also must fill out an application for admission and be accepted prior to the college’s computation of a package of financial aid based on information supplied in the FAFSA.

Myth #2: Colleges and universities provide all the aid within their packages that students need to attend.

Packages provided by universities usually contain available grants, some general scholarships for which students may qualify, and, often, work-study options. This amount is rarely enough to cover costs, especially if the student is living on campus. Many schools require students to reside in college dorm housing their freshman year, so commuting or living off campus may not be an option. This restriction necessitates a search for other offers such as private scholarships.

Myth #3: There is a myriad of easily obtained scholarships available on the Internet.

While there is a significant number of scholarships discussed on the Internet, they can be far from easy to obtain. Searching through all the sources can take hours. Most will send you to the donor’s website, where you will have to search for the requirements and the forms. Some even require a written request for an application. It is said that there are always scholarships that are never distributed because they lack suitable applicants. After looking at the maze of listings, it is easy to understand how that could be true.

Myth #4: There are individuals and companies who offer their help in searching for scholarships, and many guarantee results.

It is quite risky to expect someone to produce guaranteed scholarships. If an offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Often these companies charge large amounts of money for their services. When I was a high school counselor, we told our students not to pay for scholarships, either to the source or to whomever is providing assistance.

Myth #5: School counselors have plenty of scholarship applications and books in their offices to provide to students on a regular basis.

Although school counselors may have a few local scholarship applications and schools have a process to select applicants, counselors are far from an adequate source. Counselors have so many demands on their time that they often must spend the majority of it testing, scheduling, and handling other administrative tasks rather than counseling students on college admissions and scholarship application. What about students who are homeschooled and do not have access to a counselor? Books listing scholarships are available in counselors’ offices and in libraries, but many of the scholarships are out of date or are no longer given.

Myth #6: The only reliable source for scholarships is online, and parents and students must spend endless hours searching on their own.

Although the process of applying for scholarships is not a simple task, there are online sources that will give assistance in narrowing down the search and facilitating the process by providing the information in a readable, user-friendly format. Some of these online information providers are free, and some involve a fee.

Myth #7: All online scholarship information providers are basically the same, so it is best to utilize the free ones instead of paying a fee.

The free sites do provide savings, but some of them require more time on the part of subscribers. For instance, some sites will require students to fill out extensive forms so the recommended scholarships will be more specific. This may be helpful, but it will exclude many listings based on the choices on the form, and many students are not entirely certain about their interests and majors. Free sites are generally funded by advertisers, so their sites will contain many ads, some very distracting. Often, they will only provide national offerings and will not include state or regional scholarships.

Sites with fees may have larger databases, but be sure they are verified and updated. Scholarship due dates will change from year to year, and some of the requirements can be different, or the awards may not be given some years or cancelled. Incorrect information can clutter the listing and take up valuable time. It is also important that links are available to the scholarship sites themselves, as often there are applications that can be completed online. Last, but certainly not least, it is a plus to have an established record of success by the company as well as a customer service contact available. Most online services are very limited in this respect.

Despite the fact that applying for college financial aid can be a daunting process, there is dependable, legitimate help available. When carefully chosen, it will make the job less of a hassle. The reward comes when a student receives an award. It makes all of your persistence worthwhile.

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Preparation is the key to doing well on the SAT. Students should start at least in ninth grade, or earlier if they are participating in a seventh grade talent search such as the Duke University TIP Talent Search. The PSAT is also written by the same SAT test makers and can count for huge scholarships in a student’s junior year but can be taken for practice in the ninth and tenth grade years. When students start preparing early, time is on their side. Waiting until later in high school usually results in more test anxiety and certainly less time to practice.

There are three sections on the SAT: Critical Reading, Math, and Writing. The test is three hours and forty-five minutes long and is offered seven times a year. There are no penalties for taking it as many times as students want, since colleges usually just take the highest scores and often will combine high scores from different tests, which can result in more college money.

The first section in the Critical Reading section is Passage-Based Reading. Most students abhor this part of the test. Often they must read four passages, work twenty-four questions, and do it all in only twenty-five minutes, which is about a minute per question, not counting the four passages. Besides that, the test makers have built in tricks to make the students pick the wrong answers. It is practically impossible for students to finish this section on time if it is approached in a typical way.

Usually, students read the entire passage, and sometimes more than once, which is a huge time waster. Once students identify the three question types and reorder them correctly, they can skip generally seventy percent of the passage and still get every answer correct. Speed reading is not the key to conquering the passages, but knowing where the answers are found is.

In this section students often second-guess themselves and change their answers to incorrect ones, something that is to be expected, since the test is designed to steer students into that trap. Since the test is standardized, it also means that the wrong answers follow the same wrong patterns, and when a student learns these patterns, he can keep from falling into the trap and missing the same question types again and again.

Another common problem in this section happens when a student overthinks a question by reading more into it or by over-analyzing each answer choice to try and make it fit. This method only leads to choosing a wrong answer. In addition, the questions seem to have more than one correct answer, which makes the test confusing. Therefore students think they must pick the best version of the answer. The truth is, each question only has one right answer, because the test is objective–not subjective.

There are also trick answer choices that appear to be correct but that actually contain one of four wrong hidden patterns. A goal on the passages is for the student to eliminate them first and be left with the one answer that does not break any of the rules. Once a student has determined and eliminated a wrong answer, he should not reread the passage again, since doing so can waste time.

Passage-Based Reading questions can be answered quickly and correctly once a student learns the recurring hidden patterns. It is not about how fast a student can read the passages but knowing how to distinguish the one right answer from the four wrong ones. Knowing this can cut passage reading time in half.

The second part of the Critical Reading section is Sentence Completion. In this section, students are given sentences that contain one or two blanks, and they must find the best word that fits inside the blank(s). Unfortunately, many students pick answers that sound good, but often those are trap answers. The secret to doing well is to understand the key elements that point to the answer, which are found inside the sentence. These are things like: scope words, strengthening words, and commas.

The goal is to predict the word that would fit into the blank and then find the word that is similar. Students also must be aware of trick answers that lure them; they should never choose an answer unless they are 100 percent sure it is correct. Often, words look like the perfect word, but in reality they have a different meaning.

Big vocabulary words often permeate this section, so having a vast word repertoire is a plus, but knowing how to figure out word definitions is more important. Sentence Completion questions can be mastered once a student learns that the sentence itself generally points him to the correct answer. Since students only have about a minute per question, it is crucial to eliminate the obvious wrong, tricky answers first and spend time only on the answers that are relevant to the question. Knowing how to approach the SAT accurately results in a better score, more confidence, and bigger scholarship money.

Editor’s note:

This article is the first in a three-part series. See the series in its entirety at http://collegeprepgenius.com/satprep/psat-prep-course-published-articles/how-to-ace-the-sat/ 

The post How to Ace the SAT: Part 1: Critical Reading (3 Part Series) appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

Gone also are the days of questioning whether or not home schooled high school graduates can make it in college. There is now plenty of evidence to show that they can not only do well at higher education institutions but also excel. Even college sports, once thought to be out of the question for the home educated student, are now an option. (See p. C-8 for information about NCAA eligibility requirements for home school graduates)

Preparing for the Classroom

Many parents still wonder, though, how their home school graduate will handle the formal classroom setting of a college campus when they have not experienced it. The answer to this question is preparation. To thrive in a college classroom, students must have the study skills necessary to be independent learners. They must also have assumed responsibility for their education. The following are some areas on which students should focus to gain this vital preparation:

Note Taking

This ability gives practice in the skills of summarizing and evaluating information. Students can practice note taking with church sermons or home classroom lectures.

They can take notes or make outlines from texts. Taking notes on recorded talks gives the student the additional advantage of being able to listen to the information again, assess the completeness of the first note-taking attempt, and look for areas of improvement.

Time Management

One of the greatest strengths of home schooling is its lack of rigid structure. However, students must develop their own mental structure that enables them to follow through on assignments, meet goals and deadlines, and use time efficiently. They must know how to use assignment sheets, organizers, calendars, etc., to track studies, projects, responsibilities, and activities. If they work under the pressure of immovable deadlines at home, they will be prepared for the immovable deadlines of unsympathetic professors. If they suffer unpleasant consequences when they fail to meet deadlines at home, they will quickly learn to manage their time wisely.

Test Taking

Although they are an unreliable way to measure learning, tests are an integral part of the college experience. Consequently, knowing how to take a test is critical to succeeding at the university level. Parents should give students opportunities to experience the different types of tests: multiple choice, true/false, fill-in-the-blank, essay, and oral. In addition to seeing how well the student has mastered the information on the test, parents should also use the test as an indication of how well the student’s test-taking ability is developing. If the student’s performance is under par, the parent could work with the student on finding a better way to study, take notes, memorize, etc.

Standardized tests are a necessary evil that all college bound students will encounter. To prepare themselves, it is recommended that students take the SAT and ACT every year beginning in their freshman year or earlier. Taking these tests repeatedly makes students familiar with the testing format and environment. It reveals test-taking weaknesses on which students can work before their senior year. It provides a “bank account” of scores from which students may draw for scholarships and college admissions. Also it allows students to recognize the test as a tool, not a judge. For more information, see Testing below.

Use of Reference Materials

It is important for the student to be familiar with reference books (e.g., dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the Readers’ Guide to Periodical Literature). The Internet is a reference tool of vast proportions. The student can learn to locate needed information by using search engines or by following Internet references. Train the student to depend upon these resources for research and report processes.

Research Papers

Do not decide it is too much trouble to be worth it. The discipline of seeing a long-term research and writing project through to completion is invaluable. Set aside six weeks of English lessons for students to work on an in-depth, single-subject paper. Helpful teaching tools for research papers are Writer’s Inc., The Write Source, and the MLA (Modern Language Association) Handbook.

Organization

Require the student to put papers away neatly and in chronological order. Establish certain places for books, pens, pencils, and other supplies. Organization can be learned; be a good example to your student—put your things away.

Projects

Do them. There are usually many opportunities for participation in science fairs, history fairs, etc. Start small so you and your student will not get discouraged.

Preliminary to Making Application

Academics

It is important for all students to have a strong background in reading, written communication, oral communication, math, computer skills, and critical thinking. If a student is strong in these five areas, he will be mentally prepared for whatever life has in store for him.

However, the college-bound student should have an additional list of more specific academic goals. The place to begin making this list is the admissions office of the colleges in which the student is interested. Make an appointment to visit with an admissions counselor, either in person or on the phone, during the student’s freshman or sophomore year. The counselor will be able to explain what the school’s admissions requirements are for high school academics. Based on the counselor’s information, work with your student to create a plan that will enable him to meet the school’s requirements.

If your student knows in what majors or career fields he is interested, the admissions counselor should be able to tell you what additional academics are required by those fields of study. If he is undecided on a major, consider administering a career assessment or interest inventory test. See if your local institution or college of choice offers this service. This should help determine what extra requirements may be necessary.

Typical years of high school credit required per subject for general college admissions:

English 4
Math 3
Social Science 3
Laboratory Science 2
Foreign Language 2
Electives 3.5

Testing

Colleges rely more on test scores than on transcripts for home schoolers. Find out which test(s) and what scores are required for admission to the colleges or universities your student is interested in attending. His test scores could determine which school he eventually attends.

Testing takes place at local high schools, community colleges, and universities. Check testing websites (See p. 4-8) for information about testing dates and locations and to see if the student can be registered online. When he goes to the test site, the student should be prepared to show a photo ID.

The following are the most common test scores requested by colleges and universities:

THEA (Texas Higher Education Assessment) is the new name for what was called the TASP (Texas Academic Skills Program) test. The THEA test is designed to provide information about the reading, mathematics, and writing skills of students entering public colleges, universities, and educator preparation programs in public institutions. It has been approved for use by Texas institutions of higher education as an assessment instrument for entering students.

The GED (General Education Development) test measures knowledge and academic skills against those of today’s traditional high school graduates. This test is not required for admission of home schoolers to Texas state colleges and universities.
The SAT® is a three-hour test that is intended as a measurement of the critical thinking, mathematical reasoning, and writing skills students will need to be successful academically. Many colleges and universities use the SAT as only one indicator among others—class rank, high school GPA, extracurricular activities, personal essay, teacher recommendations, etc.—of a student’s readiness to do college-level work. SAT scores are compared with the scores of other applicants and the accepted scores at an institution and can be used as a basis for awarding merit-based financial aid.

The ACT® (American College Testing) test is designed to assess high school students’ general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work. The tests cover four skill areas: English, mathematics, reading, and science.

While the SAT and ACT are very different tests, they fulfill the same role in the admissions process. The SAT and ACT exams are designed to provide college admissions officers with two things: a predictor of first-year academic achievement in college, and a common yardstick to use in comparing students from a wide range of educational backgrounds. Many schools accept either SAT or ACT test results, or both.

The PSAT/NMSQT® (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test) is used in the National Merit Scholarship competition. The PSAT is administered once or twice a year in October, unlike the SAT and ACT which are administered many times throughout the year. Although students may take the PSAT more than once, only the score from the student’s junior year is used for the National Merit competition.

Visit your local high school to register and to get a copy of the PSAT/NMSQT Student Bulletin. Schools can set their own fee for administering the test, but legally they must charge the same fee for home school students as they do for public school students. The tests must be ordered, so contact your local school as early as possible. Most large bookstores carry test preparation books; computer programs are also available.

Test Code Numbers

Home educated students in Texas should use these numbers when completing their applications for the following tests:
ACT Code: 969-999
SAT Code: 970000
PSAT Code: 994499

For more helpful information, see the following:
ACT: www.act.org
PSAT: www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/psat/reg/homeschool.html
National Merit Scholarships: www.nationalmerit.org/nmsp.php
SAT: www.collegeboard.com

Develop a Transcript

A transcript is simply a list of classes taken, along with grades and credits earned. It may be traditional or built on a spreadsheet on your computer. A transcript must have an explanation of grades, grade point average (GPA), and honors classes. A GPA is calculated based on grades for classes, points assigned for grades, and total number of classes/hours. The transcript should include the signature of the principal. Class ranking is usually required but does not apply to home schoolers. TranscriptPro, available from EdPlus+, is a tool for recording classes and assigning credits for your student’s high school career. (See www.edplus.com.) Other helpful information may be found elsewhere on the Internet.

Build a Resumé

Your student should prepare a resumé for college admissions and scholarship interviews. This resume´ should briefly describe experience the student has in community service, leadership, major-based employment or apprenticeship, etc. It will be most effective if it contains action verbs and states facts, not opinions. Some of the information in the resum&eacute’ might also be used in a portfolio. (See Other Options below.)

Financial Assistance

It is advisable that neither you nor your student go into debt for college. Consider having your teen pay for part or all of his college. This could mean taking PSAT, SAT, or ACT prep courses; many schools offer partial or whole tuition scholarships for high test scores. If your student earns his college money by working, it should be for less than fifteen to twenty hours per week. That will provide enough money to help him start taking responsibility for his own life.

Many home school graduates have been able to receive financial assistance toward their college careers through numerous scholarships and grants. Be aware that scholarships and grants abound, and many go unclaimed because no one knows they exist or goes to the trouble to apply for them. Scholarships and grants are awarded according to several different criteria: academic, ministerial, athletic, departmental, need, ethnicity, etc. There are books in the public libraries that address scholarships in certain fields.

In 1998 the U.S. Congress passed legislation clarifying that home schooled graduates meet the eligibility requirements to receive federal aid (grants and scholarships). (See Appendix, page C-4, for directions to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.) The clear intention of the U.S. government is that home schooled graduates should not be discriminated against in college admission policies and procedures.

When seeking financial aid, complete the necessary paperwork early in the process. An admissions packet from the college/university will have financial aid information. Application for financial aid can be started on the Internet site for Free Application for Federal Student Aid (www.fafsa.net) and finished by providing the needed financial information to the school the student plans to attend. It is very important to start researching during the junior year. Get an admission packet in the summer and apply in the fall. Do not postpone until spring; by then it will be too late for many scholarships.

In 2001 the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board issued a memorandum to all colleges and universities in Texas to explain that home school graduates are eligible for Texas grants and scholarships. (See p. C-5 to see a copy of the memorandum.) In 2007 the Texas Legislature amended the Texas Education Code to make home school graduates eligible for B-On-Time Loans. (See letter from Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Appendix, p. C-9.)

Other Options for Earning College Credits

Dual credit

Consider enrolling your high school student in a local college to receive dual credits for high school and college credit simultaneously. Community colleges in Texas are now required to offer dual credit courses to private school students, which includes home schoolers, in the same way they are offered to public school juniors and seniors. Your student could graduate from home school with many college hours already to his credit. Be aware, though, that credits earned through dual credit can jeopardize the student’s eligibility for certain scholarships. Check with the college admissions or financial aid officers to see if this applies to your student.

CLEP (College-Level Examination Program)

The CLEP examinations cover the material taught in introductory courses that students are often required to take during the first two years of college study. Frequently, these courses cover material that should have been learned in high school. Therefore, students who, through disciplined study at home, independent reading, and life experiences, have achieved a solid high school education, may be able to “CLEP out” of some college classes. Credits earned through testing generally do not affect a student’s scholarship eligibility. In addition, credits earned this way do not affect a student’s GPA, making a CLEP test the perfect way to get credits for those subjects in which a student struggles. Check CLEP testing at www.collegeboard.com to learn about the tests and to locate testing sites in your area. Costs will vary according to location, as will the procedure. Be forewarned that if you have a child trying to take a CLEP test, he must have a picture ID and a Social Security number.

The College Board website will provide a downloadable free demo that will familiarize your child with the computerized test format. There, you will also find more information about the individual subjects that CLEP offers. In general, there are tests for English and literature, foreign languages, history and government, mathematics, and science. There is no minimum age limit, so a student can gain credits and experience at any time. Credits for tests are granted at the college or university’s discretion. This means that a school may not accept a particular CLEP test for credit.

Portfolio

A portfolio may translate prior college-level experience and learning into college credits. A student begins creating a portfolio by taking a thorough inventory of his learning experiences. He should evaluate special skills he has learned and knowledge he has gained on a particular subject through personal study, classes, or workshops. Unique volunteer or ministry work and leadership experiences should definitely be included. Music lessons, landscaping, counseling, home economics, computer skills, and mission trips are just a sampling of the activities eligible for credit.

A portfolio has two parts. The narrative part describes in detail (five to fifteen pages) how and when the learning took place. This is the student’s opportunity to “make the case” that his efforts are worthy of college credit. The documentation part is a compilation of reports, pictures, letters, certificates, etc., verifying specific learning. If the college of choice does not offer a portfolio program, the Internet will be helpful in locating one that will offer transferable credits.

Online and Distance Courses

These options offer the flexibility for a student to study on his own time with accountability to an instructor. There is a vast selection of online courses offered today. With e-mail and the Internet, a student can pick classes and instructors from virtually every continent. Online courses are usually the most expensive of the credit-earning options unless taken from a junior college. Your student might benefit from taking self-study courses in accelerated reading, writing, and memorization that can help streamline and enhance time spent learning. The student generally will read assigned text, write several essays in response to chapter questions, and then e-mail assignments to a course mentor for grading. Sometimes there are online lectures and group discussions in which to participate. The course mentors are available to answer questions by phone, email, or live chat.

Some Cautions

Even though the prevailing thought in our society is that a person cannot make a good living without a college education, there are some things a family should consider before automatically pursuing college for their young person.

One set of questions to ask would be: Is college necessary? Can my young person accomplish what he desires without spending the time and/or money that a college education will require? What is the ROI (return on investment)?

Also many Christian young adults lose their faith during their college experience through discouragement, moral temptation, and indoctrination—even at some Christian colleges. Parents and students should pray, and the student should enter college only with clear confirmation from God.

If the family concludes that the student is to pursue college, the parents might want to consider the following suggestions to help prepare their young person to face the onslaught of evolution, humanism, liberalism, and immorality:

1. Read and discuss good books about worldviews, such as Understanding the Times, The Case for Faith, and The Evolution of a Creationist. Talk about what can be expected.

2. Summit Ministries or Worldview Academy camps are highly recommended. The students spend time examining worldviews in light of the Creator.
3. Seek Christian ministries on campus. On many campuses, there are active Christian ministries; denominations also might have ministries. Visit area churches with the student to help him find a church home.

4. Have the student live at home. Some students will thrive on campus but can still have a safe haven at home.

5. Consider the distance learning options when more education is needed but God has not given a go ahead for college.

Suggested Timeline for the College-Bound Student

Before high school:
• Start high school subjects, if possible.
• Take the SAT and/or ACT in the spring.
• Pursue community service and leadership.

Freshman year:
• Carry a full academic load.
• Take CLEP or AP tests for subjects studied.
• Take the SAT and/or ACT in the spring—send scores to favorite schools.
• Pursue community service and leadership experiences.
• Discuss possible majors/career paths with parents and other adults.
• Discuss universities and colleges with parents, other adults, and alumni or current students of various schools.
• Fill in transcript/curriculum list for freshman year.

Sophomore year:
• Carry a full academic load.
• Take SAT and/or ACT.
• Pursue community service and leadership experiences.
• Take CLEP or AP tests for subjects studied.
• Visit with admissions officers from at least one private school and one state school you are considering.
• Visit with deans or department heads for the majors you are considering.
• Discuss what adjustments need to be made in your academics and extra curricular activities.
• Register for the PSAT/NMSQT for October of your junior year and obtain a picture ID for the test.
• Update transcript/curriculum list.

Junior year:
• Adjust academic load per recommendations of admissions counselors.
• Take SAT and/or ACT.
• Pursue community service and leadership experiences
• Take CLEP or AP tests for subjects studied.
• Take the PSAT/NMSQT in October.
• Obtain catalogs from favorite schools and begin researching degree plans and credit by examination opportunities.
• Check into dual credit courses.
• Familiarize yourself with admissions timelines for specific schools.
• Research scholarships—deadlines, paper trail, etc.
• Update transcript/curriculum list.

Senior year:
• Finish up home school academics.
• Take the SAT and/or ACT (have at least 2 scores on record).
• Acquire credits through CLEP, AP, classes, etc.
• Pursue community service and leadership experiences.
• Find practical ways to experience your major.
• Follow application/admissions procedures for your preferred schools.
• Begin scholarship application process as early as possible.
• Visit with the dean/department head of your major at each school.
• Check into the honors program at your schools.
• Enjoy planning your graduation.
• Finalize transcript/curriculum list.

The post The Home School Graduate and College appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

My husband, the ever-present balance to my jump-before-looking approach to life, helped me to carefully examine how, in the relatively little time we had left, we could round out my child’s education to help him be better prepared for life. In looking back over what was at the time nine years of home education, we concluded that while there was still work to do, we were, over all, doing well academically. What our son was lacking was experiential learning from a global perspective. Unlike many home schoolers in our area, we did not come from a missions background where our children saw and experienced, firsthand, life in another country. How could we remedy that?

Well, seeing our need in a new way, the church mission trip to Mexico became not just something that would “be nice” if we could come up with the funds but a necessary ingredient in helping to make sure our son gained the global perspective and experiences we wanted to help shape his worldview. He will never forget the fifteen-by-thirty-foot foundation that he helped pour and the walls and roof he, his dad, and the youth group built for a family that, prior to that time, had been living in a cardboard shack. What a blessing to observe this incredibly grateful family move into this tiny new home that he helped to build. At the same time, he had the sudden realization that he had taken his own home for granted for years. Simply hearing that there are people more unfortunate in the world who live in hovels is far removed and impersonal compared to seeing and experiencing it firsthand.

Mission trips were not enough, however. I found it very frustrating that I could not find a travel group?a group that I trusted?that would give my son an overseas learning experience from a biblical worldview. While we valued learning abroad, our family had nowhere near the funds required for a family “learning trip” overseas.

Other than deciding where we wanted to go, one of the first things we had to do was to get past our desire for immediate gratification. If we had looked at England through the dollar signs that would be required to get us there, we would have closed the door on this possibility before ever beginning. Instead, we prayed about it and decided to take it one day at a time. Because seeing the great museums of the world and visiting the England of Bronte, Lewis, and Dickens, as well as the country from which ours was birthed, became a long-term family goal, it meant we would all be required to save, and we also knew that we would not have the funds at the end of just a month or two.

We came to a couple of conclusions:  (1) We were not going to be able to go on our own, and (2) we could not go immediately. We knew from years of experience helping my in-laws run a family business that group rates are almost always significantly less expensive than individual rates. In addition, because we had never been to England, we knew we would need someone who knew all the ins and outs, who could guide us to the most student-friendly attractions and help us not to waste precious time trying to understand the public transportation system. We formed a group large enough to get us “group” air, hotel, and entrance rates, found a travel provider willing to coordinate a custom tour according to our needs, and worked for months ironing out detailed itineraries that emphasized the history, art, and literature we were studying. One of the most difficult aspects of the planning ended up being eliminating sites from our itinerary. We quickly discovered that we could easily spend a month in southern England doing two to three activities a day and still not see everything on our original list.

Obviously, the largest obstacle for us as home schoolers on a very limited budget was not the time to go but raising the funds to make it a reality. Therefore, we developed a plan of fundraising during which each of us did research on various aspects of our goal destination, and before we knew it, everyone who committed to the trip had raised enough money to get us where we wanted to go. For months the students babysat, took care of yards, and hired themselves out in numerous ways in order to raise the funds. We were on our way.

What we learned as a family during this process was that delayed gratification has its rewards. We learned that if there is something that is important enough, no matter how daunting the initial monetary estimates may be, there are ways to get there, but it may take time.

As a group of travelers, we learned that those of us who have chosen a more relaxed form of church fellowship and worship are capable of reveling in the beauties of a formal service at Westminster Abbey, no matter how unmoved the rest of the congregation may appear. At the Tower of London, we learned that it really does not matter how rich and powerful or popular you are—if a government is not held at bay, it has the power to take everything, including your life. We learned that over there, we are the foreigners—the ones with the accent. Our students were astonished when in March of 2008 the Italian students they met on a square in Ravenna knew all about our presidential candidates eight months prior to our national elections and wanted to talk politics. We learned that there can be great beauty and great darkness in the same place. We were humbled to realize that as magnificently beautiful as the cathedrals are, God chose to live, not there, but inside of us.

More than ten years have now passed since my first child and I took our first trip abroad together. So far, each of my three oldest children has traveled overseas at least twice before graduating from our home school high school. These trips have provided amazing opportunities to see up close and in person the beautiful art and architecture from their history lessons. It has provided them a much broader perspective of the world. We walked the same path that Julius and Augustus Caesar walked in their triumphal marches. We sat in the cell where Marie Antoinette awaited her appointment with the guillotine. We recited Shakespeare in the backyard of the house where he was born. We strolled across the same square, over the same cobblestones that Galileo, Dante, Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci once roamed. We visited the prison cell where Paul was held in Rome and from where he probably penned the second book of Timothy.

None of these things would have been possible had we concentrated just on the immediate obstacles we faced in the planning or had we not joined with others who shared our conviction that there is value in seeing in person the countries that laid the foundations for our western culture. Do not dismiss the possibilities so quickly because of immediate circumstances. There is a great big world out there, waiting to be explored, that can bring your child a new perspective that will better prepare him for the challenges to come. Go find it!

The post It’s a Great Big World Out There appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.

In those early days of homeschooling, I always knew (or at least thought I knew) where my children were, who they were with, and what they were doing. As they grew — and honestly, especially when they got driver licenses — that changed. It was time for me to do some changing as well. I had to learn to let them go, and thereby grow. I now try to warn home school moms that this is in their futures too.

During a struggle with one of my teens, a friend told me that I should “trust my raising” of that child. However, I had been there; I knew that my raising of my children had not been perfect. I did have to learn to trust their Heavenly Father.

We hope you will benefit from these articles and find some encouragement and tools for enjoying your teens because, no matter how old your children are now, that time will come!

May you have a wonderful holiday season with your teens and the rest of your family!

The post Letting them G(r)o(w) appeared first on Texas Home School Coalition.