Will I be considered a homeschooler? I do need some suggestions

KupLor94 · 08-10-2012, 12:49 PM

Hi there!
I'm an international student from Italy and I'm willing to take my senior year of high school off 'cause I'm seriously kind of upset with my school and it would be the 5th year in there (since we are required to attend 5 years of high school here), and also because then I will have time to work, travel and do some kind of REAL volunteer activity which I'd love to but I haven't had much time yet . Here, if we take a year off, we can take our final exams in July and graduate anyway (maybe it is the same in US but, since I do not know, I thought it would've been better to say). How does it work there?
BTW, am I considered a homeschooler? My grades have always been great, I was in the 5% of my class, and my teachers respect me, so I think I can have the letters from them even in this case, but what about the counselor's one? Is it up to my mother now? Will taking this year off hurt my application?
Sorry, but I'm really not used with all of this, so I will be so grateful to you if you can give me some info and suggestions about it.

KupLor94 · 08-12-2012, 10:09 AM

Seriously? 400 views and no answers?

GeekMom63 · 08-13-2012, 11:18 AM

I viewed and have nothing to say. I have no clue. Good luck, though.

xoxoviviannnn · 08-13-2012, 12:43 PM

Mehhhhh, I don't think anyone's going to know the answer - most people have some kind of unique situation anyway. Best thing you can do is call/email the schools you're interested in and explain your situation and ask how you should apply. My guess is that if prior to completing your high school education (since you said five years) you do some classes at home and you're counting them on your transcript, and when you say take the last year off, you intend to continue studying the same subjects that you should have at home, then I guess that'd be homeschooling. If you're just quitting without studying then it's not really a college preparatory track so that sounds more like dropping out than studying. Just an opinion, it's best to hear it from colleges themselves.

Best of luck

mmmgirl · 08-14-2012, 01:55 AM

You might be considered a homeschooler, it depends on how you go about it. I mean, you can't just drop out of school and then a year later show up at a college admissions office and say, "Well I was a homeschooler." I don't know how it works in Italy but in the US each state has special requirements for establishing yourself as a homeschooler and proving academic progress. My state, Florida, for example requires my mom to send in a letter of intent and I have to either take a standardized test or be evaluated by a teacher each year. Check with whatever government organization is in charge of education in your area and ask about homeschooling requirements.

What you described can be considered homeschooling. There is a type of homeschooling known as "unschooling" that some of my friends do that considers travel, work and volunteering to be educational rather than book learning. You might want to look into that. I've also heard of something called the Clonlara School which operates as an umbrella and lets you do homeschooling however you want, then they convert your various activities into school credits and awards you an accredited, US high school diploma. Just Google "Clonlara homeschool" for more information.

mmmgirl · 08-14-2012, 01:58 AM

You might be considered a homeschooler, it depends on how you go about it. I mean, you can't just drop out of school and then a year later show up at a college admissions office and say, "Well I was a homeschooler." I don't know how it works in Italy but in the US each state has special requirements for establishing yourself as a homeschooler and proving academic progress. My state, Florida, for example requires my mom to send in a letter of intent and I have to either take a standardized test or be evaluated by a teacher each year. Check with whatever government organization is in charge of education in your area and ask about homeschooling requirements.

What you described can be considered homeschooling. There is a type of homeschooling known as "unschooling" that some of my friends do that considers travel, work and volunteering to be educational rather than book learning. You might want to look into that. I've also heard of something called the Clonlara School which operates as an umbrella and lets you do homeschooling however you want, then they convert your various activities into school credits and awards you an accredited, US high school diploma. Just Google "Clonlara homeschool" for more information.

Finally, some colleges have trouble understanding nontraditional academics. If you're worried about that, you can still homeschool and either purchase or create a curriculum of courses. It will probably take you a fraction of the time school does and you can take it anywhere so it still lets you work and travel. That way you have all your bases covered but still have flexibility.

mmmgirl · 08-14-2012, 02:00 AM

Argh double post! Sorry!

Also I just saw that part about graduating if you take final exams. In that case it's different from what I gave you and you definitely want to check with colleges.

xoxoviviannnn · 08-14-2012, 02:19 AM

Wrt what mmmgirl said about how different states have different requirements, yeah that's how it works but not so much for people who live abroad. Basically you have to comply with the homeschooling laws in wherever you live. In US it's based on each state, eg in New york there's lots of regulations to follow, but in Texas it's pretty relaxed and there's no need to even notify the state if you wish to homeschool - you just don't enrol in another school, and there's no testing required each year. It always varies.

The point is to make sure you aren't violating any laws. I'm a homeschooler living abroad (moved to Singapore from California) and basically I'm above the age of compulsory education (ages 6-15 need to be formally enrolled in school and if you wanna homeschool you need the Ministry of Education's approval to do so) so they don't care if I leave public school and homeschool. If the Italy government is going to come after you for leaving school, then you need to find out how to establish yourself as a homeschooler. If there's no restrictions on homeschooling, then you can just start homeschooling.

The curriculum in Italy may differ - I'm not sure about this, but make sure you're on track for college if you intend to go.

xoxoviviannnn · 08-14-2012, 03:35 AM

HSLDA | Home Schooling - Italy

Just something for you to look at. I'm going to assume that you're above 16yo, which means you're above the age of compulsory attendance. In that case, you're not going to be subject to state approval or testing requirements or whatever (stuff that mmmgirl mentioned, about testing and portfolios and evaluation), and you don't need approval to homeschool so I'd say just go right ahead as long as you're sure what you're doing

KupLor94 · 08-15-2012, 07:50 AM

Thank you all for your replays.
What you said, @xkxkviviannnn is true, we are required to go to school until we are 16 and then, if you want not to go to your high school anymore, there's this thing called 'study as a private': you study basically alone and give just some exams in order to have the credits for the classes you would've attended, and that is considered exactly as you actually have attended classes. And then we have this final exam called 'Maturità' that each senior has to take in order to graduate, if he fails it, then he has to take the classes of the senior year again. So I would take the exams for the classes of my year and then the 'Maturità'. This to say that I will not either drop school or go against the law. LOL
That's exactly why I have no idea whether I'll be considered a homeschooler or not. Because in some ways I will actually study at home alone, supervised by my parents and all, but, on the other hand, I will have credits and exams done by my former high school where, practically, I will just not attend classes in the morning like any other student will.
Now I'm going to read what you sent me! Thank you for the link!

xoxoviviannnn · 08-16-2012, 01:15 PM

You're welcome

I suggest you speak to a school counselor or something! Since you're taking a full courseload at the school and no self-directed classes, your classification as a homeschooler is in question. Ask if you'll be awarded a high school graduation certificate after you complete your final year, I think that's the easiest way to identify yourself. If you study at home, but take school tests and are considered a full-time student at the school and the school will give you a GPA and transcript and diploma and everything then I guess you're not a homeschooler. Just my opinion, but definitely speak to a counselor or teacher about it so they can advise you. Another option is to speak to someone who has 'studied as a private' and then gone on to US colleges, ask them about how they applied to college, and their advice can definitely be very helpful