• Pros and Cons to Online/Homeschooling
    42 replies, posted
Hey guys. I'm a sophomore in High School. School causes extreme anxiety for me, to a point where I can't do my work a lot of the time. It fuels my social anxiety, self harm, and suicidal thoughts. I want to try online schooling. I feel like I would do much better and be much more comfortable and then I could focus on getting everything straightened out with my life and be on a path toward mental stability. If any of you guys were homeschooled, I have a question or two that I would really appreciate you answering. Does it affect you getting into a good college? I have full intentions to attend a 4 year university, preferably a good one (Georgia Tech has been my university of choice for years). I don't want to risk getting into a good university. Also, what are some general pros and cons?
Secluding yourself would only make your problems worse, I feel. And in general, the classes offered in a brick and mortar school are higher quality and are held in a higher regard. If I were you, I'd stick it out and try to branch out and meet new people. If all else fails, buckle down and get good grades, it'll look better than if you just go through online school. Also, go Yellow Jackets. GT is a great school if you can get in (being a GA resident, I sure as hell didn't). Good luck.
You should see a psychiatrist. Avoiding your problems doesn't solve them, and sooner or later you're going to have to go out in public. How do you expect to survive college if high school causes so much anxiety you can't function? That's no way to live a life.
[QUOTE=urbanmonkey;46162080]You should see a psychiatrist. Avoiding your problems doesn't solve them, and sooner or later you're going to have to go out in public. How do you expect to survive college if high school causes so much anxiety you can't function? That's no way to live a life.[/QUOTE] I start seeing a psychologist in two weeks. I just feel like I need to take a break. Maybe I would go back senior year or something. I want to focus on fixing myself psychologically and then maybe re-introduce myself to public schooling. I just don't think there is any way I could possibly get better when I send myself to a place that makes me want to die more and more every day. You know? I don't know how to explain it honestly, lol.
My brother dropped out of high school and does homeschooling right now, as he wasn't able to cope with the stress of it. In terms of health, he's a lot happier and he's learning the stuff he's more interested in, such as programming. It depends on the type of person you are, but I wouldn't say it disrupts you socially that much. If you keep up a job and still keep contact with friends you'd be fine, high schools are pretty shitty places to socialize anyway. You shouldn't need to force yourself through something that makes you suffer each and every day, which is what I went through for a major chunk of my education.
I was homeschooled all the way till college but I'm only doing Jr. College and then transferring to a university. However, I do know many homeschoolers that have gotten into really good 4 year universities. You should be fine but as said above, try seeing a psychiatrist first before you make the decision because homeschooling doesn't always work for everyone.
I was homeschooled, sort of. I actually just did a charter school but did all my shit at home. Honestly I really wouldn't recommend it, I had the same problems you did but just secluding myself had the opposite effect that I wanted, I ended up really fucked up and I'm just now approaching "regular" levels of social awareness and general personal awareness
I did my last 3 years of high school online and I feel like I learned a proper amount from it all. Went to the local college here and was in the top of my class, so I clearly gained the knowledge I needed. The one thing it DIDN'T prepare me for is actually applying for colleges and such, so I'm stuck in my hometown for at least another year until I can figure out how I'm going to go to a university.
I did home-schooling all the way through secondary (middle) school and I would definitely avoid. I know that's not the answer you want to hear, and I'm sorry, but it's true. I also have social anxiety and doing this made it so much worse, because I wasn't interacting with people outside my family on a daily basis any more. I was a mess by the time I did my first year of college, but after two years more on another course with two old friends from primary I was 200% better off. It's counter-intuitive, but if you have SA the last thing you want to do is become a hermit. It would also help immensely if you were going to this college with some old friends, or people you know/are comfortable with.
I did it for a year because the school I went to was totally shit. It helped me catch up on so much shit and improve what I already knew. I would have kept doing it, but I felt so depressed after a while, even worse than the things I had to go through at school. I didn't speak to anyone, I didn't have time to catch up with my friends, and eventually I just couldn't get the motivation to do any of the work. As long you can go back to the school if things go sour and you have a few friends you can meet up with, I reckon you should try it out.
Have you guys ever been to the little social events that the online schools host to basically prevent kids from being hermits? Like the little field trips or social gatherings or whatever the hell? Are those any good? Also I do have several friends that I interact with daily and hang out with in real life often. Honestly I basically only experience my anxiety in school. I mean, I get it in public, but nowhere to the scale of how I get it in school.
You really should try to stay in normal school if you can. Psychiatrist should hopefully help. If it doesn't help you though then you should consider homeschooling as mental health is very important.
[QUOTE=Th3applek1d;46163575]Have you guys ever been to the little social events that the online schools host to basically prevent kids from being hermits? Like the little field trips or social gatherings or whatever the hell? Are those any good? Also I do have several friends that I interact with daily and hang out with in real life often. Honestly I basically only experience my anxiety in school. I mean, I get it in public, but nowhere to the scale of how I get it in school.[/QUOTE] The social events are fine, although you'll [I]probably[/I] meet a few strange people. I met a few kids at an event, who were homeschooled only because they were considered to be too aggressive and/or highly strung to be in the school environment. Needless to say, they weren't pleasant to be around. I highly suggest waiting for a psychiatrist and working through your anxiety first. You will miss out on the many good things that can happen at highschool if you are schooled online or at home, so you really need to hard about this. I only did it for a year, and I can safely say, while I definitely needed, I wouldn't do it again.
well bud for one I hope you plan to do your uni course online, cause if you can't handle high school you sure as hell won't be able to handle uni!
[QUOTE=Pelican;46164845]well bud for one I hope you plan to do your uni course online, cause if you can't handle high school you sure as hell won't be able to handle uni![/QUOTE] I want to get help and build myself up psychologically to a point where I feel stable, safe, and comfortable in a normal public schooling environment. I am actually really looking forward to college.
[QUOTE=Th3applek1d;46161921]Hey guys. I'm a sophomore in High School. School causes extreme anxiety for me, to a point where I can't do my work a lot of the time. It fuels my social anxiety, self harm, and suicidal thoughts. I want to try online schooling. I feel like I would do much better and be much more comfortable and then I could focus on getting everything straightened out with my life and be on a path toward mental stability. If any of you guys were homeschooled, I have a question or two that I would really appreciate you answering. Does it affect you getting into a good college? I have full intentions to attend a 4 year university, preferably a good one (Georgia Tech has been my university of choice for years). I don't want to risk getting into a good university. Also, what are some general pros and cons?[/QUOTE] In all seriousness, try and find an alternative school that works with people in your situation. The social aspect is huge and if thats part of your anxiety then homeschooling wont fix it, just contain it, it will also hurt you later in life when going to college which is very social. I dont know whats causing you to be anxious, but out of school placement is something you should look into before homeschooling imo. I dont know where you live and even in the US I dont know your state and alternative schools for that arent that great everywhere sadly, but im sure if you found the right one you would lose a lot of the anxiety and still get that social experience. Best advice I can possibly give though is no matter what, get your highschool diploma, no matter how shitty the road is right now that is probably the most important piece of paper you can get if you ever plan on having a career in the US, more so than any college degree. Highschool means fuck all in the grand scheme of things, but the diploma goes a long way. You do not want to get your GED, its A LOT of work which most people dont realize and hardly a better alternative than just finishing these last years. All in all, homeschooling will do nothing but make things worse especially when preparing for college, I know it sounds like a really easy solution for the now, but in the long term it will be worse for you. A psychiatrist and therapist are what you need right now, they know their shit most of the time and will help you far more than people on facepunch.
Here's my experience with online school when public middle school started getting really rough: I was shifted from an environment where you had sit and wait out the schedule, and waste time waiting for other people in the class to finish to an environment where I could learn to schedule my own time. I finished my weeks worth of classes with an A within the time frame of 3 hours on the first day. Online teachers would actually work with me to tell me where I can improve (something I saw very little of at my public schools, but it may just be coincidence). I had more time to just hang out with people in the real world. I'm sure if I were to stay secluded in the same place during your home-school experience, then you wouldn't fare well socially. I did three years of schooling (skipping middle school) and decided to go to public high school for all four years. I didn't have any problem getting along with people socially. [B]TL;DR[/B]: If you go with home-schooling, I recommend you find a social outlet. As far as the work and schedule goes, I've found it easier with home-schooling.
I've received public school education, private school education, home education, and online education. They are all shitty in various ways. The best overall was home education and the worst was online. Online education has many of the perks of home education, except it's extremely easy and the teachers do not give a single shit about anything. It almost struck me as a scam. Public school has three kinds of teachers from what I saw, in order of frequency: 1) Old teachers who hate their jobs and will take it out on the students 2) New teachers who are optimistic and usually somewhat incompetent, who turn bitter when they realize their ideas don't work 3) Good teachers There are also obvious reasons not to be public schooled if you're an introvert or generally socially incapable. Public schools are extremely intolerant of those sorts of people, and teachers will deliberately try to 'break you out of your shell' not realizing the torment it causes you. As for getting into college, you don't have to worry especially about college entrance as a home schooler.
Don't get me wrong, I perform very well academically, but just the stress and discomfort coming from the workload and social setting and pressure and people etc just kills me. I can still take my AP classes with K12 and still do all my web design and coding classes as well. I plan to start taking piano when I start online schooling and I am currently in a thingy called TSA(don't know if they have that everywhere) that, as far as I know, I can remain in outside of school. I also have several friends that I skype and hang out with irl frequently, so I honestly don't think my social skills will deteriorate any further, and, with the help of the psychologist I am going to start seeing, they may actually begin to improve.
it's perfectly fine if you do homeschool/online schooling if you're having major social problems at high school. it is NOT fine if you do homeschooling/online schooling if you're having major social problems at high school as well as outside of high school. isolating yourself with friends and family is not good if you have problems socially. you need to talk to strangers too. sign up for an activity or something. your problems will only get worse.
[QUOTE=Th3applek1d;46165928]Don't get me wrong, I perform very well academically, but just the stress and discomfort coming from the workload and social setting and pressure and people etc just kills me. I can still take my AP classes with K12 and still do all my web design and coding classes as well. I plan to start taking piano when I start online schooling and I am currently in a thingy called TSA(don't know if they have that everywhere) that, as far as I know, I can remain in outside of school. I also have several friends that I skype and hang out with irl frequently, so I honestly don't think my social skills will deteriorate any further, and, with the help of the psychologist I am going to start seeing, they may actually begin to improve.[/QUOTE] Remember that the problem isn't that you can't make friends- anyone can function normally if they're with people they trust and consider close friends. What high school teaches you is social skills with people you don't/barely know, which in honesty is a much more valuable skill.
I fucked myself over in many ways by omitting several years of my public school life in favor of homeschooling. It sounds like you have more legitimate reasons to leave, but I strongly recommend you seek alternate solutions first.
I was home schooled for most of my life and in your case I would recommend it but you also need to make sure to socialize. If you are already a sophomore in high school you probably have some idea how to interact with people. Academics are MUCH more important at this point. If you are worried about college go to a community college after you finish. My mother had no idea how to help me with math or English so I had to take remedial classes but I managed to graduate with a 3.75 and went on to get in to a competitive nursing program at a well respected university. Don't listen to the the people who say you need high school to learn to socialize. High school is not an accurate representation of the real world. In college, most people don't give a fuck if you are weird or a nerd, you might catch some shit from idiots fresh out of high school but other then that most people are pretty nice. The only thing you can do in highschool that you can't do in college is be tried as a minor, other then that you are good. My best friend was also home schooled. He graduated from a major university at 20 with a degree in computer engineering and is at Carnegie Mellon working on his masters. Believe it or not he has a girlfriend and a social life.
Self-seclusion is treating a symptom, not the cause. If you feel uncomfortable at school, it's not because of the school's location itself, it's because of your reception of the environment. If I could give you any advice, it's stay in normal school and see that psychologist you mentioned about your problems. I feel like if you went online/homeschooled you'd regret it in a year or two.
I know how you feel man, I like hanging out with a few friends but when it becomes a crowd I feel like I'm being suffocated. You just need to work your life around your needs, me for instance; I work night shift jobs, less people, no customers. First job is security and I'm alone in the building all night and my 2nd job is stocking shelves after store hours with just a couple co-workers. If being around crowds doesn't work for you, don't try to make it work. I tried and it just turned me into an alcoholic because I was forcing myself to spend time in crowds and the only way I could cope would be to get drunk. Yeah, there's the option to see a psychiatrist but everyone is different, don't treat the way you are as some sort of 'disorder'. Just live your life how it best suits you and you'll be much happier. [editline]7th October 2014[/editline] With chance you'll actually become more social as well. I've found I appreciate socializing much more since I spend a lot of time alone and I actually can hold a conversation without feeling like I'm choking on my words.
[QUOTE=Tarzy;46173073]I know how you feel man, I like hanging out with a few friends but when it becomes a crowd I feel like I'm being suffocated. You just need to work your life around your needs, me for instance; I work night shift jobs, less people, no customers. First job is security and I'm alone in the building all night and my 2nd job is stocking shelves after store hours with just a couple co-workers. If being around crowds doesn't work for you, don't try to make it work. I tried and it just turned me into an alcoholic because I was forcing myself to spend time in crowds and the only way I could cope would be to get drunk. Yeah, there's the option to see a psychiatrist but everyone is different, don't treat the way you are as some sort of 'disorder'. Just live your life how it best suits you and you'll be much happier. [editline]7th October 2014[/editline] With chance you'll actually become more social as well. I've found I appreciate socializing much more since I spend a lot of time alone and I actually can hold a conversation without feeling like I'm choking on my words.[/QUOTE] The thing with me is I am beyond uncomfortable around large crowds/people i dont know, but when I become friends with someone and get close and comfortable with them, I am extremely sociable and I act perfectly normal (other than being self conscious body-wise. I am like that around everyone, even my parents).
man, and i felt that I needed an alternative route to schooling damn. For most my highschool life i despised it, sadly i dont have much of a choice but to just continue pushing because i'm almost done with it. 3 years of a whole new environment, for the worse, changes you. anyways hope you get what you need. tell us how it goes with the psychiatrist if you want, it'd be an interesting read.
There are different methods of learning and studying online is one of them. It depends on the student as to what method is applicable to him. I guess if you have set your mind that classroom setting is not good for you then you should try studying online.
The benefit of going to public school is becoming socially adjusted. I understand that you have social anxiety, but you [b]need[/b] to be around other people regularly in order to learn how to cope with that. The rest of your life is going to be dependent on how well you interact with other people and it's a skill you need to start learning now. If you're having difficulties with mental issues like social anxiety, see a counselor about it. They'll help you learn coping mechanisms for your anxiety. Keep in mind that even a professional is going to tell you that you need to be exposed to social situations in order to overcome that anxiety - this isn't a problem you can run away from.
As someone who left high school due to mental health issues and tried to finish out a semester online: [I]do not fucking do it.[/I] I was homeschooled up until my freshman year of high school, and I was socially awkward and anxious until my junior year. I seriously advise you to just continue with it. Visit a psychologist, see if there's medicine that you can take - but don't run from it. Every problem I had with high school, from inattention to stress to anxiety, was worsened at home. Learning how to overcome social anxiety is a critically important stepping stone in human development, and hiding from it at home will seriously worsen it. High school's tough as fuck when you have social anxiety, but one of the only things you can do is to take risks and put yourself out there. Try to talk to people. Fake confidence. Eventually, with enough time and practice, you'll reach a point where that social anxiety starts to dissipate or reduce. I'm still uncomfortable around large crowds. I spent the weekend at a music festival and I was uncomfortable half the time - but that's something you just have to learn to deal with. I could've just not gone to the festival, but I would've missed out on a great opportunity - which you absolutely will if you hide from your anxiety. All you can do is learn to cope with the anxiety. Do not try to run from it - the stress you feel from your anxiety is the anxiety, not you. By putting yourself in situations you aren't comfortable with, you're killing the anxiety inside you. If you run away and hide at home, the anxiety will [I]never[/I] go away. You don't "grow out of" anxiety. It'll stay with you until you finally choose to stare it in the face and dive into a crowd and deal with it. I ran from high school when I was stressed out of my mind, and it made things worse. Beat the shit out of your anxiety by doing exactly what it's begging you not to do - socialize. It'll suck, but eventually you'll beat your anxiety. And then you win. Or, you know, run away, and it'll grow and grow until you can't even handle being with two friends without social anxiety. Kill it - do what it doesn't want you to do. [editline]9th October 2014[/editline] If you're self-conscious about your body - treat it just like any other anxiety. Dive into it. Exercise. Make yourself sexy. Stare into mirrors until you've utterly convinced yourself that you're the sexiest person you know. Anxiety can only be defeated by disobeying it. It's well-proven in science: arachnophobia can be cured by dunking your hands into a bucket of tarantulas. It's traumatizing and it's hard, but a trial by fire will burn the anxiety right out of you.
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