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The K¹² International Academy is an accredited, private online school that offers the world-renowned curriculum from K¹², the market leader in online curriculum programs for grades K-12. K¹² also offers a virtual public school; be sure you understand the difference as the virtual public school is under the umbrella of a local school district.
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Contributor Reviews
Reviews are solely the opinions of the contributor.
Cons: Everything else
Grades Used: 11
I am now a senior in k12 Georgia cyber academy and i have been with them since last year. last year i will admit i did not put 100% in but some of my teachers set me back months. The schedule is not flexible at all. The teachers have honestly not helped me at all. All the teachers have done is call my dad every morning waking him up just to tell him the same thing every day. There is way too much online work and they go at an extremely fast pace. I will not graduate with my class because not only did my algebra 2 teacher set me back 3 months last year but two science classes i had last year are no longer available and some how that made me lose those credits. So now i have to do two completely different science classes in order to graduate. PLEASE DO NOT PUT YOUR CHILD IN K12 GEORGIA CYBER ACADEMY!!
Cons: you will have to be a tech professinol
The beginning of year we got a laptop and it said that my kid had over 79 over do! but he started on the starting date an after that was sorted through by over hundreds of emails his laptop took a crap it made the teachers sound like the chipettes or they will sound like there stuck in a well so we called tech support they gave us a new laptop then maybe 2 weeks later it took a crap! and that day i called tech support 6 times and you have to wait over an hour just to get oh we will have to do a partition restore and it did not work the same thing happened 3 more times and my son is on his fifth laptop and surprise it took a crap so i emailed the principle and she responded with the nastiest tone i have ever seen in an email then 3 weeks later it was fried it deleted everything on the desktop including the browser and my kids work so that brings me to now i called tech support they said they will send another laptop and that we will get it in 2 days one week later i call the principle and she said that they will not sent another laptop! and she said that there files say that we went through eight of them but we accully went through five and she said that the other laptops where modified and i told her does changing a wallpaper fry the computer and she responded in the most nastiest tone in the world and she said that WE WILL HAVE TO BUY ONE! and the teachers barely respond to emails you will be lucky if they send you one word and my kid gets A's on mostly everything but his main grades just keep going up and down and they say my kids missed over 20 some grades but 99% of them where without a laptop the other missed days was when my kid was in the hospitable and also near the beginning of the year my kid loged in and got into the class connect but his teacher kicked him out for no necessary reason and would not let him back in and i just think its not even the end of the year
When the school year started I thought this was a great school. I was dearly mistaken. My daughter is in the 8th grade. The math/home room teacher [name redacted] has lied, changed her story and bullied my daughter. This lady even went as far as to tell my child that she didn't have the intellectual ability to be in her math class. Now to me that is just a fancy way of calling someone stupid... Something NO TEACHER should ever say to a child.
Sadly this school won't listen to my daughter about this lady nor me. This lady claimed she tried contacting my daughter and myself several times. This to is incorrect as she at the point of this review has called me only 3 times and one of those times was before school was even in session.
The "teacher" also cancels love lessons constantly then complains to the children that they are failing her class. A child can not succeed if they aren't taught and taught well.
So in closing if you don't mind your child being told her or she is stupid and don't care about your child's education... This school is for you!
Cons: rigid, time-consuming
Grades Used: K,1,2
We used K12 for Kindergarten and First Grade. Midway through my son's Second grade year I took him out of California Virtual Academy and went with Inspire Charter School with Odysseyware for computer-based lessons.
First let me say that K12 was great for bridging the gap between public school and homeschool. It reduced my level of anxiety by making everything essentially decided for me. No curriculum to buy or materials to select. No lesson planning and minimal grading needed. Just log on. They send everything. From the computer to art supplies to reading books to science experiment materials. It's fantastic!.....except that it isn't flexible....AND there is a lot of testing. The time requirements are unreasonable for a young child, but the lessons are engaging. The online classrooms were not valuable for my child, as his reading level was very advanced, but for a child who is at grade level I think they would be fine.
Bottom line: For my family, once we got our feet wet doing homeschool, and gained confidence with it and with our child, this program wasn't a good fit. We could not, despite MULTIPLE requests get them to adjust the curriculum to meet my son's capabilities. They finally assessed his reading level, KNEW he was reading five grade levels above his peers, and still just kept telling me to skip lessons, rather than assigning a higher level. It was frustrating for both of us.
I am not pleased with k12 (Kansas Virtual Academy) the teachers are nice and helpful. BUT most of the time my son's work does not save, nor does it track attendance of online connects, there is no daily log of activity. Just completed versus uncompleted. So you can't tell what your child was doing on the site.
I physically completed a course online with a director with me and the site did not record the work, attendance, or grades. Later I did the same lesson again with tech support and it did record it. But s of now they have almost o records for my son after 2 months of work- all he did just went done a black hole.
Cons: Stressful, not flexible, unnecessary pressure from teachers
Grades Used: K, 1, 2
My kids have done 2 years with K12 through the Ohio Virtual Academy. The first year was okay, although I was very forgiving, as I was new to virtual schooling. The second year, we made it halfway through the year when I decided to withdraw them from the program. The "teachers" are not understanding, the schedule was grueling, and it is NOT flexible. I would wake up to what I called "hate mail" every single morning about how my kids were failing miserably. This made my children hate school, and I resented teaching them. The teachers will call you over and over again to remind you that you aren't doing enough. There was not enough time in the day to do the required 7-8 hours of school for EACH child. It was extremely stressful and overall a very negative experience.
Cons: No support for parent (teacher) with questions on material.
Grades Used: K
Great program. We're enrolled in the independent study program.
Keeps track of all subjects learned/mastered, lessons ahead, attendance. Easy to print out to submit to school department.
I like the fact we can make our own schedule to fit our lifestyle. We can move at our pace. Make up classes on weekends if need be. We can schedule our own school vacation, no need to follow the traditional school schedule.
The program seems to be on a more advanced level. This could be a pro or con depending on each student's situation. In our case my daughter is being challenged, which keeps her motivated.
We have run into situation where it would have been nice to have someone to call, with questions or for suggestions on how to teach a lesson. Instead had to google to find other methods/suggestion on subject.
The materials and online cost are not cheap. It's about $1300 for the year all together. That includes all books teacher and student, all extra materials and books needed to go with lesson, and online for 4 subjects.
I would recommend the independent study to anyone who is looking for the perfect balance of school, home life and learning at your own pace.
Cons: Not flexible, not self-paced, lots of technical issues
Grades Used: 7
I used K12 through Georgia cyber academy for the first two months of my son's 7th grade year. It is advertised as being self-paced, but the reality is that you get a checklist from the teacher every week telling you exactly what must be accomplished during the week.
There are virtual class meetings, but my son really didn't get anything out of them. After two months, I withdrew him from the school and began traditional homeschool.
It wasn't all bad, though. The teacher and all of the administrators with whom I spoke were very nice and helpful. The curricula seemed solid to me, and it is a great confidence builder for someone like me who has never homeschooled before.
Cons: Highly structured
Grades Used: 3
My son has used K12 for his third grade year through a charter school. He used the second grade level for math, science and language arts. He loved receiving the science kit in the mail, the other material he didn't pay much attention to.
It has taken some time to figure out the system and how to tweak the lessons. He did not like the online work so much, so I would look through the lessons and did most of the teaching away from the computer.
All in all, it has been okay, but I would not pay for this curriculum for my child who I believe has ADD and some dyslexia.
Cons: NOT flexible, too much pressure
Grades Used: 5th and 7th
What a relief at the end of that school year! When my child was struggling in a subject, we were repeatedly told by our assigned "teacher" to just press on, try harder. We were not free at all to set our own pace, as the advertisements stated. I was constantly bombarded with emails from the "teacher" reminding me of what a horrible job I was doing. My sister also used this program and had to quit half way through the chool year because of the extreme pressure and stress from the "teacher" and the grueling schedule.
Cons: NOT flexible Under Some Charters
Grades Used: K, 2,3,4
I used this system for 2 1/2 years with my children. It provided an all in one solution with lots of structure. However when I found myself wanting to modify daily lessons or bypass them, things got a little difficult. Depending on the charter who facilitates the program in your are (public school option) you not be able to use the program at your discretion. Your student must complete (or test out of) the units in order to receive credit in that area. Your student may not get credit for other courseword or activities even if it covers the same topics. Be sure to check with the facilitator of the program before you begin if this may become and issue for you. Also, my children had to spend way more time online than I was comfortable with. It felt like we had to be attached to the computer in order to complete the requirement of the program. The good part is that it is accredited, all-in-one, and the materials are supplied. Be sure to ask LOTS of questions before starting this program.
Cons: curriculum included far too much busy work, the pace was too fast, curriculum was not Christian based, if you do this through a virtual school you have a teacher who will call you to have a meeting once a month, you hace to send in work samples frequently, submit to testing in different locations during the year, far too much online work
Grades Used: kindergarten
There was nothing positive to say about our k12 experience. I thought there was too much busy work as well as too heavy a workload for such small children. I disliked having someone calling themselves my child's "teacher" who never taught her one thing. The meeting felt intrusive and the testing was totally unnecessary. if you are looking for freedom to make the choices in your child's education this is not the method for you.
Cons: If your older student is struggling in school to keep up and doesn't learn well at the public school pace this curriculum is not for you. If you do this privately it is very expensive
Grades Used: 1st, 2nd, 9th
We did K12 through a virtual academy. It was ok for my elementary age but too much public school accountability. High school was structure like being in a public school. i.e. you had to keep up the pace. This was not good for my high schooler as he cannot learn at that pace and failed every one of his classes. Theses comments do not apply to k12 privately bought.
Cons: unable to resell some materials
Grades Used: K-8
I used K12 for over six years for Kdg-8th grade. I would use them for high school, but I do not need teacher-led courses. I only used K12 as an independent homeschooler/consumer, NOT as part of a virtual school. I was a parent representative, K12 Star, for over three years. I also helped two K12 virtual charter schools get off the ground.
The online planning and progress/tracking tools are outstanding. The visual production is wonderful. The content is both broad and deep. There are many elements from the Core Knowledge Foundation. The history, both American and World, are taught chronologically. Art and History are tied together (moreso in upper elem and up). Non-musician parents can teach music. The phonics program is fabulous and multisensory (as are all lessons).
Each lesson and unit has clear objectives to work toward. The curriculum is mastery-based, but you can also assign grades. There is a great online support system of users (on Yahoo Groups). K12 works well for gifted/advanced learners and all learners can go at their own pace. You can mix and match grade levels and switch out course subscriptions for new courses.
Cons: teacher guides sometimes lack specifics at upper grades
Grades Used: 2-10
This curricula is challenging. A lot is required of the student, and often at a deeper thinking level than other curricula. The curricula helps the child transition from being teacher taught to being self taught, with the adult just checking work if you want to do it that way. K12 uses the computer for a lot of the learning, and the lessons and graphics on the computer are engaging, especially in the science and history lessons. The art is excellent, though my children didn't care for the music course. They took piano, and except for the history, the music theory was below their level much of the time. (Their piano teacher taught them theory with the keyboard stuff.) My children have enjoyed the demands of the curriculum. It could be tough for a child who has learning issues.
Cons: It is not a Christian based curriculum
Grades Used: 2-3
The lessons and activities are geared toward many learning styles. There are teacher guides and student pages provided that are very comprehensive. There is a very good balance of online and offline work for the student. It is easy to adapt the curriculum to your schedule, learning and teaching style, and to your beliefs and values. They welcome parents input on how k12 can improve and increase flexibility of the curriculum.
Cons: Motivating your children to do the work!
Grades Used: 3,5,7, 8
My kids did well in K12, and one has returned to regular public school. Two have now become homeschooled, but not from the curriculum being poor, more from a desire to remove the restrictions of a public school over what I choose to do.
I thought the curriculum very good, I especially liked that what they studied in History was covered in Art, and Language Arts. Very well rounded and complete.
The teachers were great to work with, and we enjoyed the experience.