Understanding Acellus Homeschooling and Accreditation: What You Need to Know
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Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Acellus
This guide is meant to answer a few questions new parents may have before enrolling their kids in Acellus. Keep in mind that there are three versions of Acellus: Homeschool, Tutor, and Academy. The best version of Acellus exists for your family, according to your homeschooling families budget and specific needs. Recently, Acellus Homeschool broke off from Acellus Academy. Now, Acellus Homeschool is called Power Homeschool, and the site can be accessed here: www.powerhomeschool.org
Does Power Homeschool Issue Diplomas and Official Transcripts?
It’s important to keep in mind that Power Homeschool helps parents homeschool their children by offering an online platform in which courses are offered. These courses are also given at schools around the United States. The only difference is that with Power Homeschool, the parent is the teacher as opposed to having teacher support. Acellus Academy offers teacher support, but Power Homeschool does not, so please keep that in mind. If a parent wants to have their children attend an accredited online Academy, their better option for this is Acellus Academy. Power Homeschool is not a true, accredited school. Parents are able to print out certificates of completion, but Power HomeSchool does not issue diplomas. While Power HomeSchool does offer transcripts to be emailed out to you and printed, they do not give out official school records.
Who is Acellus and Power HomeSchool For?
Acellus is for students and parents who no longer wish for public school to be part of their lives. Acellus is excellent for students who have suffered anxiety, bullying or for students who require a bit more time and patience when it comes to learning new subjects and skills. Acellus has been a lifesaver for students with ADD/ADHD, Asperger’s and children who have a type of physical disability that makes it difficult to enter a school. Acellus gives the child an opportunity to take control of their education by letting the student be in charge of what work they finish, and in what order it is completed. Acellus is perfect for any child that is ready to learn at their own pace, at the comfort of their home, away from the distractions and stress that public schools are notorious for.
The Power HomeSchool site mentions the following:
Program Benefits:
- Choose up to six courses per student
- Learn through video-based lessons
- Flexible self-paced learning format
- Automatic grading & record-keeping
- Available for grades K-12
- Placement exams included
No contracts. Cancel at any time.
How Much Does Acellus Homeschool (Power Homeschool) Cost?
Power Homeschool is currently $25 per month per student.
Acellus Trials Policy and Refunds
Does Acellus offer a trial before fully committing? Does Acellus offer refunds? Acellus has not been known to refund money in these types of instances. So no, you pay for the month, one month at a time, and if you don't like it, you just pause your subscription and don't pay for it anymore. Acellus does not offer a trial. One has to commit for a month and immediately pay the fees to have any access to the Acellus program.
Is Acellus Accredited?
Acellus Academy is, Yes. Power Homeschool is not. Acellus is fully accredited with the WGNA, which is the Web Learning Global Network Alliance. Acellus is also accredited by the University of California, the AP Course Approval (College Board), the iNACOL International Association for K-12 Online Learning, and the CLRN Certification (California Learning Resource Network).
Does Acellus Follow a Schedule?
Acellus Academy has a set schedule since it has to comply with state regulations of attendance to be accredited. Acellus Homeschool and Acellus Tutor mode do not have a set schedule. These can be done at any time, day, afternoon, evening or night.
Acellus Academy, Homeschool, and Tutor Mode
What is the main difference between Acellus Academy, Tutor, and Homeschool Mode? Tutor Mode is for families that prefer to re-do lessons, review past lessons, and view Acellus videos as many times as is necessary for reinforcement or studying for tests. The student can also see the whole class lesson plan and see what is covered all year. The student will be able to see what is included in all the future classes. Tutor mode gives the student and parent the most control over the Acellus program by making is extremely customizable.
Homeschool gives the student more control by having them watch lecture videos and take quizzes, exams, and reviews. No teachers are involved, and it’s parent-led.
Acellus Academy is accredited and follows attendance and grading rubric that is in accordance with state regulations for homeschooling. Homeschool mode does not give the parent or student the option to skip anything. The student has to start with the very first lessons. One can't start at a midpoint of a grade level.
In Power Homeschool, what are "Steps"?
In Acellus, what are 'steps'? A step is each clickable thing, so a video is one step, the questions after one step, a quiz, and unit exam and so on. A parent can figure out how many things to do for the week, for weekly goals, by glancing at the total number of steps and dividing it by the number of school weeks.
Adding Classes in Acellus and Power Homeschool
In Acellus Academy, Can a parent add classes mid-year if the students finish a class? No, the option has been removed from Academy mode. A parent will have to email Acellus every time they want to add a class or drop one. Acellus will look over the child's account and discuss what classes they believe the child should be taking, according to the child's grades, skill level and confidence in the current subject matter. Academy is teacher-led, which mostly removes the parental controls and turns the controls over to the teachers.
In Power Homeschool, parents can add and remove classes whenever they would like. If a parent wants to restart a course, they should email Power Homeschool directly for those changes that can be done under Student Account Management.
View Student Progress in Acellus
How can a Parent sign in to view Student Progress? Double click on the blue Acellus box App. Then click where it says: Parent/Teacher sign in on the right upper hand side of the screen that appeared. This presents the Gold Key Soft-Token Secure Sign in. Set up the Soft Token with email and a pin number. Check email to activate Gold Key, and follow those activation prompts. From now on, after completing the Gold Key steps, a parent just has to click on Parent/Teacher sign in, and then enter their pin number in the box that says "Enter Pin". The user can be changed by clicking where it says "Change User" on the bottom left of the Gold Key sign in the screen. From this screen, a parent will see their student's names on the left-hand side. New students can be added on this screen by clicking on the green button that says "Add Student" on the right side of the screen. Clicking on Manage account brings a parent to an important screen where they can make payments, add/remove classes, pause subscriptions, and more.
Power Homeschool: Special Lessons
Are special Lessons offered for Acellus Tutoring students? No, special lessons are offered to Acellus Homeschool students at this time. Special lessons can be accessed and printed at any time. Keep in mind that not all courses offer special lessons, and Acellus does not have a way to match which special lessons associates with what specific point within a lecture at this time.
Power Homeschool Library
Does Acellus have a special library for students? Yes, the library can be visited under the student's learning profile, when the student logs in. Almost 300 titles are included, in addition to popular titles such as The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Black Beauty.
These should answer a few questions that parents may have when it comes to Acellus. Acellus is an excellent choice for homeschooling because it offers a customized learning experience in a technological format. It's comprehensive without with an easy learning curve for children and adults.
Power Homeschool Laws and Your State
Different states have different rules when it comes to Homeschooling, so it’s best to research your state’s laws in regards to homeschooling. Some school, colleges and employers may not accept transcripts, diplomas, or certificates that are offered with or by Power Homeschool. The parents who are teachers of children should research what kind of schools accept homeschool transcripts. So with this said, it’s imperative to reiterate that parents should be familiar with local and state laws and requirements.
© 2018 Charlotte Doyle
Comments
weufehf3iu on January 11, 2019:
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