Friday, August 3, 2018

WHAT IS THIS ONLINE SCHOOL I'M HEARING ABOUT?

 
Many of us are interested in the virtual school that is now available to children in Limestone County.  We have a few of them here in Elkmont who tried it last year.

SIGNING UP
The sign up process was very easy. I called and talked to one of their representatives and they walked me through the whole application process, step by step.  Once you are accepted, they send you all the materials needed for the school year. If you meet, income requirements, they will send you a loaner laptop to use and a printer. It is all shipped to your doorstep. I was afraid the process would be very long and confusing but it was so easy. We had our approval with two weeks.
Ashley Mcelyea



MORE INFO:
It isn’t a traditional school but a statewide public virtual school for grades K-12 that’s partnering with the Limestone County school district. The school, called Alabama Connections Academy, will offer a “high-quality, rigorous curriculum that is a great fit for many families who are looking for an alternative.

The Limestone County Board of Education in May 2017 agreed to a contract with Connections Education LLC to provide online education services and authorized the opening of Alabama Connections Academy . Though it’s a statewide school, the offices will be at Owens Elementary. 


The program provides the basics, such as language arts, social studies, math, science and languages; electives; honors and advanced placement courses; and reading and math remediation, among other offerings. Alabama-certified teachers are hired for the program, and a state-approved curriculum is used. Students are required to take the same state tests as traditional public school students.  As part of the program, a student must have an identified "learning coach," a parent or other adult, to help monitor student attendance, verify classwork and communicate with teachers. Administrators and teachers communicate with students through phone calls, webmail and person-to-person and live classroom sessions.

“There will always be a need for traditional bricks-and-mortar schools,” Limestone County Schools Superintendent Tom Sisk said. “But this partnership with Connections allows us to move a step closer to personalized learning. We get the opportunity to be transformational and be a state leader in virtual learning.”

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