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Record Keeping SolutionMaintaining education records can be a challenge. As a result, we have witnessed families, who after home schooling their children through elementary and middles school grades; enroll their high school students into a public school or private school. Otherwise, if not for the uncertainty of maintaining high school level records, and the fear of the child/student not being accepted into college, these families would continue to home school under the 3rd option through graduation. Authority to Provide Professional Documentation In a past conversation, a parent/teacher presented a very good point. She considers her son will more than likely be the bread winner for his future family. She is deeply concerned that what she does now will have an impact on the future of her son's family. Her concern is that her authority to produce the professional educational records required for access to colleges, universities, or quality job employment opportunities will not be recognized. We asked this parent to consider the answer to the following question. Does the parent/teacher have the authority to produce an official copy of their student’s educational records?
As home schooling continues to grow, more, and more institutions are becoming increasingly familiar with home schooling. We still may find some institutions that are not home school friendly. Unexpected situations are bound to present themselves, and when they do it is important to remember a desirable outcome will depend on the home school family meeting all requirements, knowing their rights under the home school laws, and their ability to communicate. In addition to understanding the home school laws, parent/teachers should know how to properly construct their student’s educational records and skillfully represent their student at every level of the process. These areas deserve extra attention because if neglected, they could cost the student by limiting their options. Ability to Provide Professional Documentation
In another conversation, a parent/teacher with no experience writing transcripts is confident they will be able to produce the necessary documentation. They will research and do their home work in order to meet the challenge before them. While most parents are certain they can do a better job than public or private schools can, there are some that lack confidence in their abilities. If a parent is unsure about what they are doing, they need to come into contact with other home schoolers for support. Contact different groups in the area to determine if any offers some type of support for parents. When we take the time to come into contact with other parent/teachers, we begin to learn from their experiences, gain insight for different techniques, and soon we begin to realize that home schooling is just like anything else. The longer you become involved, the more skilled you become. When your skill level increases your confidence increases as well. It won’t be long you’ll find yourself comforting someone with less experience. The following is a list of record keeping solutions that are available through the Member Center of our Web site:
What is a printable? Printables are ready-made documents created for use as a basis for quality educational record keeping tools. Can’t find what you need, follow the tutorials that are available through the Member Center to make the necessary changes that provide the results you need. Tutorials are designed to provide a learning experience for students and save time for parents. Visit the Member Center, choose a category, decide on a document, and select print! Various printables are available in the printable section at the back of the Home School Hand Book as well. Web Based Documentation: Members of PIE may decide to take full advantage of the Web based documentation that is provided, and use this record keeping solution to maintain educational records. A Step-By-Step Record Keeping Solution This Record Keeping program walks you through the steps for establishing and organizing your educational records. The following is a brief list of the ways members may choose to take advantage of the Record Keeping section of the Member Center.
Transcripts, progress reports, report cards and course descriptions; personal calendars, tasks, and contact lists; journals, book lists, and lesson planners. These are some administrative tools available through the Member Center. Microsoft Office Tools Tutorials: A variety of tutorials explaining different techniques for maintaining educational records and creating printables, using Microsoft's Office Tools, are available through the Member Center. To take full advantage of these tutorials, students and teachers will need to have Internet Explorer 5, or later, and a copy of Microsoft Office Students and Teachers Edition 2002, or later. Word Document Word is Microsoft's popular word processing program. Its primary use is to help you type and format text documents using powerful features such as tables, word art, graphics, and much more. The office of PIE uses Word to create printables provided through our Building Blocks program. Excel Spreadsheet Microsoft Excel is one of the most powerful spreadsheet programs on the market. Using Excel, you can create an automated record keeping program that does everything from calculate grades to producing printouts of important records. PowerPoint PowerPoint is a powerful tool used to communicate, persuade, inspire, motivate, convince, and educate your audience. Through tutorials, students and teachers will learn how to generate a presentation, populate it with text and graphics, and add slide transitions that can be used in the classroom, graduation ceremony, portfolio, and beyond. Outlook Microsoft Outlook is a personal information manager that allows users to communicate over the Internet using e-mail, maintain a journal, create task lists, manage multiple calendars, organize important information, and much more. Windows Application So far, we have provided record keeping solutions through printables, a Web based record keeping tool, and electronic files generated using Microsoft’s Office Tools. The office of PIE is committed to maintaining and continuously improving upon these record keeping solutions. Currently, members can choose between the following solutions:
Currently on the Table: Our 4th Solution Already on the drawing table, our Windows Application Record Keeping Solution is being designed for home schools that have the task of maintaining educational records. Our experience in home schooling, record keeping, and working with the other home schoolers through PIE will provide a unique outlook important for designing this program. We have the opportunity to target specific needs and to include special features for future programs. A Senior Developer with deep skills in Microsoft products who has many years of experience in the several programming languages has graciously agreed to help PIE with this endeavor. In the future, members of PIE will have the choice of downloading PIE's Windows Application Record Keeping Solution through the Member Center, or a CD instillation. Our progress will be posted through the Member Center. Visit the following related links:
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Yes! Review the
laws and regulations of the South Carolina Code, specifically 59-65-47.
In a similar
conversation, one parent/teacher expressed her concern with her ability to
produce adequate records. She feels her documentation may be missing important
information. She has never had the responsibility of organizing, formatting, and
writing transcripts. She feels overwhelmed by the immenseness of it all.
