Are online/distance high schools worthwhile?
My online course experience (which was along with a traditional land-based experience) was AP American Gov through a company whose name I forget). My experience was similar to ThePinkSuperhero. For me, I figured I had a good handle on American government before going in, and that was the best way to demonstrate it to colleges (my school only taught traditional government). Given that the school of my choice didn’t take the AP exam, neither did I. Essentially, the course itself ended up being worthless because: a) my state’s government requirement for high school graduation was *not* filled by taking AP Gov; and b) if I knew the material, I could have just as easily sat for the AP test without the course. I would get one of those books that gives you sample questions (or tells you what’s on the test) and study it independently with old textbooks / online materials, hang the expense and time of the online “course” and sit for the test.
If you do pursue the online option, just make sure it’s accredited and that the course credit will be recognized by wherever your son wants to go next. I can’t stress how important that is! Even if you go brick-and-mortar, this is still vital; I know of a local public high school which lost its accreditation and never informed the students, so the diploma the kids left with was effectively useless.
