In Iowa City homeschool parents have been enrolling their children in public school for the final trimester. of the 12 grade so they could receive a high school diploma.
Superintendent Lane Plugge said district officials have seen a recent increase in homeschooled students transferring into the district for only one trimester to earn a diploma.
The school board intends to put the breaks on this questionable behavior. A new policy may require students to be enrolled full time for two full years in order to receive a diploma from the district.
The district would limit acceptable transfer credits to only those earned from state-accredited public or private institutions. Additionally, it states students’ GPAs would be calculated beginning from the time they enrolled in the district.
This soon to be passe trend of homeschoolers joining their public school classmates for the last trimester of high school is quite curios. Homeschoolers don’t need a diploma to go to most colleges, so the effort of going to public school for the last few months seems riduculous.
I would guess that parents enroll children out of fear that they have not done an adequate job to get their child into college and therefore need that high school diploma. Perhaps they have not confidence that they can create a portfolio that will wow the colleges. Perhaps the kids just want to see what high school is like, if only for the last few months of school.
Either way, it is very likely that the two year or policy will pass. This means if students want to finish high school in public school, they will have to stop homeschooling at the end of the 10th grade.
Personally, I think Iowa City homeschoolers need a pep talk or two to encourage them to finish the homeschool race at home.
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Also read:
* Have you seen the homeschooling curriculum glossary?
*Have a question about homeschooling? Just ask.
Homeschoolers are not entitled to free public school online