In regards to the recent submission to our group concerning high school credits:

How many stinking credits are required to graduate anyway?  Sources reporting required credits contrast.  Futures depend on understanding how these requirements are calculated.  Credits are only a small portion of high school students’ concerns.  Homeschooling students have their work cut out for them and must strive for academic excellence in order to maintain freedoms of others in the future. 

Public schools, private schools, and all other tools for educating our young have different requirements and standards.  Every state has a different guideline as well.  This can be confusing to parents who are seeking a precise answer to what they should expect from their young learners.  In the state of Alabama, a publically educated student is required to have 24 credits to graduate and be issued a diploma.  Private schools have varied requirements based on their particular classes offered, their resources, and their reputation with local universities.  Homeschooling is a bit different.

Universities look at a variety of details when making a decision on accepting a student.  If the student is coming from a public school in the state of Alabama they will look at credits, ACT or SAT scores, and extracurricular activities such as student organizations, clubs, and other details which indicate student dedication.  If the student is coming from a prestigious private school where attendance is performance based, they may look at less and require less—it depends on the particular school and their proven outcomes.  But when that student is homeschooled, they are looking over the records with a fine-toothed comb.  Homeschooled students will be accessed by transcripts, community service, tests (ACT or SAT), and recommendations from community leaders, sporting events, possible music lessons, and personal interviews.  Students from diverse educational upbringings will have diverse scrutiny placed over their heads when entering formal educational institutes. 

According to Alabama’s Department of Education, the minimal requirement to graduate and receive a diploma is 24 credits.  This is the least a student can do to graduate.  This is not a strong goal for students to use as guidelines for college entrance.  This is leaving room for failure.  Universities are aware of this.  A student walking into a university looking at a transcript with the least amount required in credits will not likely find themselves touring the school during orientation.  If a homeschooled student walks in with these same credits, 24, they too will be put in line behind all other students who set their goals higher on the scale of excellence. 

As an advocate to homeschoolers in general, Bethany Learning Academy sets standards based on university recommendation.  These standards are in place to protect all homeschoolers present and future.  We and universities understand that homeschooled students are not likely to fail a class.  Our requirement for 27 credits is based on the likelihood that all students will pass all classes attempted.  That is the nature of the majority of homeschooling families.  If we set our standards on the margins of those set forth by public schools we are setting our students up for rejection by major universities.  If our students are rejected by major universities, we endanger our freedom to home-school as we see fit.  Homeschooling is in the spotlight and it is our duty to respond as so.  By setting our standards above others, we set our goals even higher.  I challenge each student to achieve as many as 30 credits for high school graduation, participate in as much community service as possible, test and re-test for the highest possible scores that student can pull from SATs and ACTs.  Homeschoolers have an advantage over the clock that other students lack—it is a 24/7 clock and should not be taken for granted.  We have an advantage over activities that others lack—we count church choir, soccer teams, and parental driving lessons as credits.  But at the same time, universities know this.  In order for our students to have access to higher education, for homeschooling to be recognized as a reliable source of education, and for our freedoms to continue supporting home education, we have to respect our position in the spot light by demonstrating academic excellence, community awareness, and seek scores to back it all up. 

Our credit requirement is set a bit higher than our local public school and that is to be expected.  We are scrutinized on a higher level and must strive to overcome criticism from the general public and our very own government.  This is obvious in the military entrance as well.  Publically educated students have a lower expectation when testing and are not required to score as high as a homeschooled student to enter the military.  Is this fair?  I suppose all is fair in war.  The question remains, are homeschooled students expected to achieve more or are publicly educated expected to achieve less?  The latter seems most fitting.   We require our high school class to earn 27 credits to graduate.  If a parent disagrees, we are open to discuss this on an individual level based on the particular student and their plans following high school, the student’s abilities, and other extenuating circumstances.      We do have guidelines on our flexibility and nothing will be agreed to that may indirectly fuel the fires that attempt to burn homeschooling freedoms.