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1.
May I buy materials without enrolling?
Yes. Anyone may purchase our materials.
2.
If enrolled, may I substitute courses from one
grade for another?
Yes. Parents are the primary educators of their
children. You may choose as many or as few courses
as you wish, from whatever grade levels you
wish, for any student.
3.
Do we have to use Academy materials exclusively
for our homeschooling?
No. Again, parents are the primary educators.
We are here to aid them. While we believe
our materials are the finest available we understand
that in some circumstances parents may wish
to continue using some materials they already
have.
4.
Do I have to buy the entire literature package
for each grade?
No. You may buy each of the books, from
any grade levels, individually.
5.
The literature list seems advanced for the age
groups listed. Why is this?
The listings are a rough guide for parents.
Certainly, in the younger grades, the parents
will be doing some, or most, of the reading.
This is not only acceptable but also beneficial
for the students, even for older students, as
they learn how the language "should"
sound and also helps the student learn to listen
well. It is a good thing for students
[for all of us, in fact] occasionally to read
a book that is difficult and makes them "stretch"
intellectually. It is for this reason
that some of the books are listed where they
will be a challenge to the student.
Of course, not every book should be difficult
as this would be discouraging. In any
case, the parents know best what the student
is capable of and the choice of books is up
to them.
6.
May I mix and match books from the different
grade levels of the literature list?
Yes. You may chose whatever books you wish from
any grade level for any student.
7.
Do we send in our daily work to the Academy?
No. However, the quarterly and semester
tests and book reports of enrolled students
may be sent to us for evaluation and grading.
8.
What is your schedule for quarterly and semester
testing?
We test on your schedule, not ours. One
of the benefits of homeschooling is the scheduling
flexibility it offers. Our Lesson Plans
divide the courses into four sections of approximately
nine weeks each (36 weeks per grade level).
However, you are free to go through the
course material as quickly or as slowly as you
wish. We forward the tests to you when
you request them.
9.
How long per day does it take to homeschool
a student?
The amount of time will, of course, vary from
student to student and family to family, but,
on average, homeschool students spend only about
2 to 2.5 hours a day studying, and still surpass
students in schools.
10.
When do you accept enrollments?
Students are enrolling at all times of the year.
Again, one of the benefits of homeschooling
is the flexibility it affords.
11.
May a student participate in the seminars without
enrolling in the Academy?
Yes. Students may be enrolled for seminar participation
only. See the tuition schedule for the cost
of this option.
12.
May a student begin participating in the seminars
at any time?
Students in 3rd through 8th grades may join
a seminar group at any time, September through
May. The readings that provide the basis for
those discussions are not sequential - meaning
that knowledge of the previous readings is not
necessary for full participation in the current
discussions.
Because the high school great books
reading/seminar program is a four-year course,
with successive readings building upon the knowledge
and understanding acquired during the previous
readings and seminars, all students start at
the beginning of the freshman year. Once
a seminar group is started, new students go
on a waiting list until the next high school
seminar group begins.
13.
When do the high school seminar groups begin?
They can begin whenever the current waiting
list fills. So a new group may begin at
almost any time of year.
14.
How do you get the students together for the
seminars?
The seminars are conducted over the Internet,
with live-audio, so the students participate
through their computers using a simple microphone
and speakers.
15.
Does my 3rd grader have to able to type to participate
in the seminars?
No. The seminars are "live"
audio. Using the software is simple.
Even our youngest students have no trouble with
it.
16.
Do I have to buy any software or hardware for
the seminars?
The software is free. You will need speakers
and a microphone - or a headset. A good
headset can be purchased for less than $20.00.
The computer can be, by current standards, old
and slow. It should be a minimum of 200
MHz with a minimum 28.8 BPS modem.
17. Does the software work on a Mac?
Not at present.
18.
Are you accredited?
CLICK
HERE
for information on accreditation.
19.
Q. I noticed that on the Academy "Course Overview"
some courses are listed as "Principal Courses"
and others as "Additional or Enrichment Courses".
What is the difference? Should we do them all,
each year?
A. The Academy allows parents to pick and choose
whatever courses they wish, from whatever levels
they wish. We believe this is a parental right,
and duty. But as many have requested our suggestions,
we separated the courses on the overview chart
into those we believe are more critical or important
(principal courses) than others (additional
or enrichment courses). We do not believe every
student should take every course we offer, all
the time nor every year. There is a give-and-take
in education, that is highly individualized,
which is why it is called a co-operative art
by Aristotle, like medicine and animal husbandry.
If a doctor gave all sick folks the same remedy
for every illness, many would die needlessly.
Likewise, if a farmer gave all animals the same
food, or same quantity - many would needlessly
grow sick or die. Education too has a large
element that is best left to the parents who
know and love the individual student best. It
is natural to love to learn. Most parents are
in the best position in the early years to cultivate
and nurture this desire. Schools can too easily
stifle this by one-size-fits-all approaches
to education, killing the innate desire to learn,
by forgetting that education is a co-operative
art. This is one great advantage homeschooling
offers. A loving, safe (emotionally and physically)
learning environment is another, in most cases.
Some
students love math and blaze through four or
even five grade levels in one year, while making
little to no progress in reading or writing;
for others it is the reverse. These areas of
interest tend to shift in time, so that by the
end of elementary school (with just a little
gentle pushing and prodding) all, or nearly
all, of the courses have been studied through
the 8th grade level. If not, there remains time
to make up for missed ground in the high school
period. We have a number of high school students
taking 3rd grade English/grammar as they simply
have not studied or been taught this in school,
at least not adequately.
20.
Q. What courses is it necessary to complete
in order to qualify for an Academy high school
diploma?
A.
Students will need to have completed these high
school level courses: math (through the introductory
calculus); high school level biology, chemistry
and physics; be able to write and speak any
single foreign language with reasonable (not
perfection) proficiency and fluency; either
the Great Books individual reading course (ancient
Greeks through the Moderns), or the 4-year,
Great Books online Socratic discussion group.
The
foregoing assumes earlier completion of elementary
level (through 8th grade level) language arts
courses (such as English, writing, vocabulary,
literature), some education in music and the
arts, and, to a lesser extent (perhaps 1 day
per week on average) philosophy for children,
history, geography and cartography. Students
who transfer into the Academy homeschool program
should take our free placement tests to determine
at what level(s) they need to begin each course
with us. It is not unusual for students to be
strong in one course - such as math - and weak
in another - such as English. In that case,
they may not need to take any elementary level
math with us, but may need to begin English
studies in a lower grade level in order to catch
up in that area.
Please note that some states require various
courses we do not offer, in order to qualify
one for a high school diploma from a public
high or charter school; some even require homeschoolers
to take certain courses we may not offer (such
as the history of that particular state or a
particular "social studies" course [which is
often, sadly, the modern replacement for much
of history]). Most colleges now accept homeschool
transcripts of high school completion, even
if certain state requirements are not included,
particularly if you are applying to an out-of-state
college. If you know which colleges you are
interested in attending, we suggest you contact
those college admissions offices years in advance
of application and find out exactly what will
be expected of you. This may necessitate adding
a course(s) to our curriculum which we do not
offer. We will be happy to add that course to
the student's Academy transcript (with the footnote:
"Grading supplied by parents in this course").
21.
Q. What courses is it necessary to complete
in order to qualify to take the tests for the
B.A. degree ?
A. The same courses as set forth in the previous
answer, except that for the B.A. degree testing
it is necessary to take the 4-year, Great Books
Socratic course online. This is because (as
is explained in far more detail elsewhere) discussing
the Great Ideas contained in the Great Books
is necessary in order to maximize the educational
benefit of reading them. Students who complete
the 4-year Great Books online courses, in addition
to having read the works, will have been exposed
to the world of great ideas each week for two
hours online, guided by two experienced Socratic
moderators. We believe this experience, together
with the other requirements mentioned above,
will produce young people liberally educated,
familiar with (at least as acquaintances if
not as close friends) most of the greatest minds
of the ages, such as Homer, Socrates, Virgil,
Dante, Chaucer, Cervantes, Shakespeare, etc.
(see the Great Books reading list).
No
liberal arts college (B.A.) claims their students
will understand these great men or their works
in great depth - that takes a combination of
years of the experience of life and time for
reflection to mature mere knowledge into wisdom.
But to be aware of them, exposed to the heights
they occupy and describe for us, to realize
our same paths were indeed trodden by giants
who can light and lighten our way with their
works - this is what we can hope to accomplish
in 4-years of readings and discussions of these
great books, which were written for us (not
for "experts"). We hope, not to conclude the
student's education (which is not possible in
the school years through college anyway), but
to impart a love of learning - through rubbing
elbows with these great authors - that will
make them lifetime learners, who will excel
in whatever fields they chose to specialize
in later. Our B.A. degree should represent,
therefore, the attainment of the basic liberal
arts of learning and general familiarity with
the greatest minds and ideas of the ages, coupled
with a desire to continue to learn. This is,
or should be we believe, the basic requirement
or introductory level of education college students
should acquire before beginning their specialization
in the arts or study for masters degrees, doctorates
or technical expertise. Sadly, few college graduates
can make that claim today.
22.
Q. What areas will be tested on the B.A. test?
Need it be taken all at once?
A. Those courses mentioned above will be tested.
The tests may be taken in sections, and may
be retaken after a reasonable interval, to allow
sufficient time for review or study.
23.
Q. What subjects does the Great Books course
address?
A. The Great Books largely re-integrate into
one course what was so laboriously divided (dis-integrated)
and taught separately in elementary grades.
Analysis and synthesis are both necessary in
a complete education. The Great Books run the
gamut of subjects from the language arts (literature,
vocabulary, English, composition) and science
(e.g. Copernicus, Einstein) to geography (Ptolemy),
philosophy (Socrates, Plato), cartography and
history (Herodotus, Thucydides), social studies,
and even math (Euclid, Nicomachus or Gerasa).
It is possible to break the Great Books course
down into some of these areas for grades if
a state so requires.
24.
Q. Does my child have to take the BA test at
the end of high school?
A. No. This is up to the parents and student
to chose this option.
25.
Q. When do you accept enrollments?
A. Students are enrolling at all times of the
year. Again, one of the benefits of homeschooling
is the flexibility it affords.
26.
Q. Do you have a payment plan?
A. We accept credit cards, money orders and
checks. We do not have a payment plan.
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