So far we’ve worked with a diversity of available (online) homeschooling programmes and curricula like e.g. Wolsey Hall, Cambri-Learn, WES and Think Digital Academy.

 

All programmes are great options and there is a wide choice available. Our experience is that many learners still struggle to complete the year groups following the same time frame as a mainstream school. A possible reason may be that the child learns at a slower speed due to many possible causes or is in need of a different, maybe lengthier, instruction and/or overall approach.

 

This is where our expertise and experience is so valuable to either make adjustments to the programme –always in full cooperation with the available spokesperson of the homeschool and parents- and create a ‘tailor-made’ programme that is achievable and fun.

 

Often parents struggle to guide their own child in its homeschooling journey and that is where we can take over the parents’ role and provide the guidance needed in a more structured and social setting.

 

Together with parents and learner we will always look at a more achievable and fun way of following the chosen homeschooling programme. We may adjust the programme or create a more suitable learning environment to achieve better results and first of all a happier learner.

 

If a learner is capable of writing an examination like IGCSE or A levels, we organize these examinations to take place at or through e.g. the British Council in Lusaka. These examinations can take place at two moments in a calendar year: October/ November or May/June. For other examinations we may have to resort to online exams or exams to be taken outside Zambia.

 

Examinations for different subjects can be taken at once – this may be a requirement of the future school/ college/ university- or one or more at a time. We tailor-make a programme in cooperation with the learner and parents to complete the learning necessary for an exam in satisfactory manner and time. for each examination we can offer more learning time than any mainstream school or homeschool can offer. The learner may need more time (months, years) to complete the full learning programme for an examination. This makes a pass more achievable and opens doors to further education.

 

We may also choose to decrease the amount of subjects to be taken. In our experience learners perform better if each subject is covered in a flexible time frame and if less subjects are taken so that understanding, success and a pass may be achieved.

 

At GiGi we are open to all possible solutions to help a learner succeed. We often see that learners need more time and/or a different approach or different resources before they are ready for any exam and that is to be preferred over failing an exam. We don’t see age as a limiting factor, knowing that any further education allows learners of all ages to join.