If you were enrolled in school in the last few years, chances are that your education has been seriously impacted by COVID-19. But there are many other reasons why you might be missing credits, and there are lots of ways to catch up!
What’s your plan to Catch Up?
If you answered “I don’t know,” you are not alone! Students all across the country and even around the world are experiencing the same frustration, disappointment, and helplessness that you might be feeling right now, and wondering how they are going to catch up on their missing credits when everything is still so up in the air.
The number of failing grades has increased dramatically across the country since the pandemic, and for students who have had to suddenly attend classes virtually, the rates are even higher. And if you struggled to gain access to the devices and support you needed to succeed, your chances of failing a virtual class were even higher. In fact, the rates of failing grades have doubled in some areas, and the full impact of these failing grades may not be fully understood for years to come.
Parents, students, and school districts are looking for solutions, but the good news is that there are many ways to catch up on missing credits, graduate as planned.
Options for Students Looking to Make Up Credits or Courses That They Missed
You might have heard of credit recovery, where a condensed course is offered in an attempt to make up for credits missed, but the results of these initiatives have yielded less than satisfactory results in many circumstances, especially in conditions that stemed from the pandemic.
In order to compensate for the lost credits, courses, and learning, students, parents, and schools are going to have to get a little creative! So if a traditional credit recovery program isn’t a good fit your you, here are some other options, including online school solutions.
So what online options are available?
Online Credit Recovery Programs
There are many online credit recovery programs online that offer more flexibility than traditional credit recovery options. Many are free, but some charge, and it’s best to assess this upfront. Online school isn’t a good fit for everyone, but the pandemic has allowed the platforms, software, and methods that many online providers utilize to become more streamlined and effective.
Test-Out
While not an easier route by most means, testing out is a potential option where you can arrange to study the material, and take a comprehensive exam that demonstrates that you have mastered the material not reflected by your attendance, regular tests, or exams. This is an option that may seem like a simplified route to catch up, but it requires a lot of in-depth study of the material, and you are required to know all the material at one time, as opposed to testing throughout a term as usual.
Incomplete Grades, and Extensions
Depending on your school and its policies, one option may be to talk to your teacher and administrators and see if you could be given an “I” or incomplete instead of a failing grade, with some conditions that you will be able to meet the requirements in a certain period of time.
Summer School
We know that attending summer school isn’t something that most people like to do, but it’s a method that has worked for decades when students needed to catch up on credits for all sorts of different reasons. Speak to your teacher, your counselor or other support staff at your school to see if summer school is an option for you.
Community Colleges
Many community colleges (known as 2-year schools in some regions) offer classes that can allow you to earn high school credits in order to graduate. While they are mostly limited to some core classes like math and English, you may be able to work with your school counselor to explore this option and see if it might be the best way for you to catch up, and graduate with the necessary number of credits.
Online High School
If traditional and online credit recovery programs aren’t the best fit for you but you know that online school might be, it will make you happy to know that there are many great virtual options, and they are better than ever! So how can an online option help you catch up, or stay ahead, and graduate on time? Would being able to go at your own pace (not according to a schedule) help you achieve your goals? Whether you are behind due to COVID-19 or any other reason, online high school offers a blend of flexibility and support that makes it a perfect fit for many students and their families.
Looking for more information about online school and how it can help you catch up on credits?
If personalized, one on one support and a flexible schedule could help you catch up or stay on track, ICON could be a great solution for students who are looking for a better way to graduate given the current uncertainties regarding the pandemic.
ICON isn’t a public school that decided to go online, ICON is a public school that specializes in and has optimized online learning to fit the diverse and changing needs of students, who enroll for many different reasons.
The pandemic had significantly disrupted what it means to be a student in Idaho, and so our solutions have to evolve beyond credit recovery, or continuing to do the same things and expecting different results! ICON can be a part of the creative solutions that Idahoans are looking for in an online school. Our courses aren’t in-person classes conducted virtually, and we don’t offer a one-size-fits-all solution.
We serve students from grade 6th through the 12th, with 24/7 access, and it’s tuition-free! We encourage students to explore all their options and make the choice that gives them the best opportunity to start adulthood with a High School Diploma in their hands.
If you're ready to learn more about ICON School and our tuition-free online options, contact us today!
