distance learning regulation

[tarah47]

Hi does anyone know if the seemingly massive distance learning industry in the UK is regulated, and if so by who?

I am looking at distance learning IGCSEs for my son, but am bewildered by the choice and am, frankly, paranoid about parting with any of my cash before I research who these providers are, and whether what they offer is up to standard.

It would be great if anyone could advise or knows anything about who to approach to ask?

Cheers, Tara :)

Accredited courses should be externally verifiied by the awarding body (ie City and Guilds), so worth asking who that is.

Thanks Liz. Much appreciated.

I thought I'd do a bit more research today too and here's what I found.

I rang the Office of Fair Trading and asked "Who regulates distance learning providers in the UK?"

This is what they told me.

"No one regulates distance learning providers in the UK and so it's important that everyone really checks out these companies before parting with any cash. It is notoriously difficult to get your money back and we receive lots of complaints weekly about this industry. My advice is to go to local colleges in your area and meet them face to face. Many colleges these days offer distance learning options and by dealing with a local college you are automatically protected because colleges are regulated themselves so what they offer is also regulated. It's also worth checking with the Local Education Authority as the LEA might be able to offer funding for distance learning for children who might otherwise be in mainstream education."

The crux of the conversation was to avoid distance learning colleges that advertise on the internet, and go through physical local colleges where you can drop in and talk to someone there.

Brilliant advice I think, and this is what I will be doing.

Hi

I would be surprised if your local college offered IGCSEs. They are becoming less rare but IGCSEs still aren't common.

In England I have found that around a quarter of LAs are funding special needs or college places where children are educated at home by parental choice. ( In other words, three quarters don't fund and out of the remaining quarter some will fund SEN provision but not college or vice versa)

edyourself.org/articles/funding.php

Even when the LA does fund college places, I haven't found an LA which will fund distance learning/online courses. I am aware of home educators who would like these courses to be funded by the LA, so if you get anywhere I'd be very interested to hear how you managed!

NEC and Oxford Home Schooling offer IGCSEs.

As far as I know, Briteschool, Academus and Periplus also offer IGCSEs to home educators. These last three are a different type of provider because they offer teaching in a virtual classroom where you log on at the same time as other students. Periplus are currently researching the possibility of opening an online facility for home educators which would use the Government's Free School funding. Of course, that wouldn't be "home education" though it would be "education from home".

Hiya, this is really interesting, and certainly food for thought. To be frank I am not confident of getting funding from my LEA, but thought about perhaps getting my MP on board - vague fantasies!!!! My LEA have just cut funding for special schools for school-phobic kids and those with special needs, so what is one supposed to do. I am going to have a really good read of all your points again though and check these elements out. We are in a weird situation because my LEA has somehow put us in the too hard basket category, and we have dropped off the radar. We are seen as home edding out of choice, but that is not the case - it was because of the chronic lack of support at the school. Their argument would be try another school which we won't do. This is a possibly a very long conversation but I really appreciate your feedback and your thoughts. Will definitely keep in touch. Thanks Tara

Thanks, it's really useful to get feedback on these places. OHS seemed quite expensive when I looked at them, but I guess you get what you pay for. My LEA home education liaison officer recommended Little Arthur on the Isles of Scilly as a much cheaper option. They do look good but I am not recommending them, as I haven't used them. They are a school registered with Ofsted that is specifically designed for home educators. Am still in a state of confusion as what to do. Haven't heard back from the LEA on my request. I would be great to hear from anyone who's had luck getting the LEA to fund distance learning. Cheers.

Tara, for help on IGCSEs and providers, you might like to join the HE-Exams-GCSE-AASLevels-OU-Others Yahoo! email list. See also the home education exams wiki.

Thanks very much for this. Will definitely look at this. Thanks again. Warm wishes, Tara xx

hi,
i tried to get the lea to fund interhigh for my daughter who has a statement, but they wouldnt, offering their own virtual classroom that didnt come close to what interhigh offered, so we funded it ourselves for a year, as it was working so well for her.

Hiya, mumof4darlings, this is really interesting, and it makes my blood boil too, that we have to pick up the pieces of a thoroughly antiquated state school system that just pays lip service to 'inclusion' and 'special needs' but which has no ability to 'include' or provide provision for kids with special needs. I don't even get a courtesy response from the LEA. I can only imagine my LEA is staffed by 'examples' of our county's education system - where zero social and people skills are the norm, and the word 'initiative' in unheard of. Warm wishes, Tara xx

As FionaJNicholson has mentioned Periplus indeed are currently at the final stage of preparing the paperwork to apply for opening "an online facility for home educators which would use the Government's Free School funding". And any extra advice and/or opinion on this matter will be much appreciated.

So ignis would this facility see children as registered pupils of an online school?

I agree that there definately is a place for this, -the more choices for children who don't fit into schools for whatever reason the better-but if this is the case, it wouldn't be for 'home educators' at all would it? It would be for pupils who attend their school online, at home?

Which is a world of difference, from home education IMO.

julienoshoes indeed it won't suit all home educators but it might help at least those who would like to access some regular support from qualified teachers in core subjects and thus will be ready to sacrifice some part of their freedom allowing them to educate children in their own way. It might also be an option for those who want an alternative to mainstream school but are afraid of pure home education.

As I see it there is a wide spectrum of home educators with different views and approaches. If I refer to my own experience (I was home educated for almost a year) I'd have loved to gain some support from teachers but at the same time preserve my freedom in most of my learning. And if I had an opportunity to study online back at that time I would have really considered staying at home rather than coming back to school (though it was one of the best grammar schools in the city) after a period of home education.