Lesson 8: Homeschooling for the Long Run
Preparing for College
Not all homeschooled children will go on to college, but if there is any possibility that your child will be able to do so, you need to begin preparing early for the event. Homeschoolers do go to college and to very good ones. However, they need good standardized test scores, an excellent portfolio of their work, and outside activities or achievements. Colleges also like proof that a child can work with a teacher, including one who is not related to him.
A student who needs accommodations for his disability must have documented proof of disability and need. You can wait to obtain this when the student is nearing graduation, since it must, in most cases, have been done within one year of starting college. If you have documented it previously, however, you will have established a relationship with a professional and you will be able to show exactly what progress the student has made. You should also know if he needs accommodations for the standardized tests.
By the time your student goes to college, he should be able to discuss his disability calmly and intelligently, explaining the nature of it, causes and the ways it affect his learning. He should be able to talk to others about what help he needs to succeed in school. You won’t be able to walk into the office and help him this time. Colleges are cautious about homeschoolers who are too dependent on their parents.
By the time your child is in middle school, you should have him thinking about college. Let him explore colleges on the internet, and visit a few in your area. If the disability is a challenge, research the school carefully to see how disability-friendly the school really is. When your child enters high school, it is time to begin making sure he can be accepted. To do this, ask your student to select five colleges that interest him. One should always be the school nearest you, since it may turn out to be difficult, for whatever reason, to live away from home. Most colleges now have web sites that list the entrance requirements, and many even explain the special requirements of homeschoolers. Print these out and use them to plan your curriculum. You need to be able to show that he took difficult classes and did well. A portfolio can include exams if you give them, a list of books read, sample term papers, descriptions of real-world experiences related to the subject, and experts consulted. If your student did experiments or projects, photograph them and have him write about them.
Include test preparation skills in your school. If you don’t want your transcripts to show a test preparation class, simply list it in other subjects. The reading portion of the test can be included in English as grammar, comprehension or vocabulary. If you use a standard test preparation book and try to simulate the test conditions, you will quickly discover whether your student will require accommodations on the exam. If you suspect he will, find out how to get them.
Colleges I’ve spoken to at college fairs mention that they want the student to have participated in his education. They want a student to have helped to choose and create his own classes, tracked down his own resources, and in general, shown himself to be an independent scholar. This is what makes our children unique in the educational world, and it is something that must be prepared for far in advance.
For more about homeschooling and college, check the resource lists for this course.
