Dual Enrollment for Homeschoolers Who Learn Differently

Dual enrollment typically refers to students taking college courses while still in high school. Georgia offers tuition-free dual enrollment programs for high school students with a 3.0 GPA and qualifying SAT or ACT scores. Other states may as well.

If you are interested, there is a wealth of information available on the internet. There you will find answers to such questions as requirements for dual enrollment, whether these classes affect college GPA, and whether AP classes are better than dual enrollment courses. You can also learn which colleges in your state participate in this program, if there are scholarships available, and how to apply. The admissions requirements differ for each academic institution. Georgia students may look at Gafutures.org or Gadoe.org for program information and an application.

A homeschool learning center or co-op may have an administrator who will help you or you may visit your local college for assistance. Dual enrollment is a wonderful way for students to get a jump start on college and for families to save thousands of dollars.

Some children have a learning disability and do not do well on their first standardized test. This is what happened with my children. At first, it seemed unlikely they would qualify, but eventually they did. Do not lose hope. Students can improve test scores in a number of ways.

• They can practice answering SAT questions online or in a study book.
• They can read SAT vocabulary cartoons and take SAT/ACT prep classes.
• Many improve scores by reading books which contain hundreds of SAT vocabulary words or watching online math tutorials.
• Khanacademy.org offers free SAT practice tests and so does collegereadiness.collegeboard.org.
• Some two-year colleges provide their own standardized test to qualify students for dual enrollment.

Give your child a fair chance to succeed. There is no disgrace in failing, as long as we do our best, but it’s a shame if we don’t even try.

(From my book, Treasured and Teachable: Homeschooling to College with Hope, Joy and Asperger’s)