Connections Academy

I have a 7th and an 11th grader attending Connections Academy (Reach Cyber Charter School in PA) and we love it. I signed my children up after not being happy with our local B&M cyber option. We are very pleased with Reach Cyber Charter School. My 7th grader will be continuing Reach, even after this school year because we like it so much. We really like how many live lessons Reach offers each week, that the live lessons are highly recommended but not required, and we also love the flexibility of the schedule with Reach. We also like that they have a gifted teacher, as my son has a gifted IEP. There are definitely a few glitches happening (teachers being shifted and new teachers being hired) due to the influx in student enrollment this year but I feel that there are those types of things occurring in every school across the state and America with the pandemic.

We started our son on this school in kindergarten. He is now completing 8th grade this year. This system along with our involvement at home has helped produce a more critical thinking and independent individual than brick n mortar in my humble opinion. His mom has had health problems in the past escalating into a very challenging time for our family. She has now progressed into end of life stages. Without the flexibility of this system... the teachers and faculty that support it...constant evolution I would have had to pull him out of traditional school for sure. When the world fell apart in 2020 he lost no pace. In fact that is my only problem with the school. In 2020 when room needed to be made for brick and mortar kids to jump in due to school closures they cut 1/2 of the curriculum out for the year right away. Then there was one other adjustment. I'm not faulting them for being great human beings... it's just my only complaint. Thank you for helping us not only to educate our child but to be hands on involved. It has been some of the greatest moments with our son.

Oh my god. I'm finally out of this hell. I've been quietly suffering for 3 years because I didn't want to go back to my public school here. This school isn't "work at your own pace" because they just load these lessons one after another on your head until you're left with no option but to cheat your way out. All these reviews on here aren't fake because this is the reality of this $#*!ty school. I fell into depression and completely isolated myself from the outside world because I was busy at home completing these lessons! Guys please just sue this school already. I would not be surprised if a student ends up taking their life by stress because of this school. CONNECTIONS ACADEMY Y'ALL BETTER READ THIS. YOU GUYS SUCK! DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! IT ISN'T WORK AT YOUR OWN PACE YOU LIARS! NOW I HAVE 100 LESSONS OVERDUE WITH ONLY FEW WEEKS TO COMPLETE THEM. I DON'T EVEN HAVE A LIFE ANYMORE THANKS TO YOU SNAKES.

We pulled our 13 year old from middle school for several reasons:
Undesirable peer influence, indifferent/apathetic teachers, attendance requirements that did not fit our lifestyle as a family, and finally, a threat of violence called into the school that school officials did not take seriously enough.
Connections academy solved all of those problems and has been awesome. The work load has been totally reaaonable for my with grader- actually I think he has less work with CA than he did in public school.
He is expected to spend an average of 6 hours per day on school, but it is easy to do between assignments on the computer, reading, PE, and his art assignments, AND the schedule is pretty flexible for the most part.
They have provided us a computer, textbooks, art supplies, and science lab materials, as well as resources like tutoring, field trips, and counseling.
The teachers have been so helpful and kind, and even though my student is a challenge (as his parent I know this better than anyone!) They are never unkind, and are always willing to come up with out of the box solutions to motivate him.
I have loved our experience with CA so much that I enrolled my first grader for this upcoming semester. I recommend it to anyone who is frustrated with public school but doesn't want to go full blown home school.

My daughter is in 7th grade and this is our first year with OCA. She has always had good grades and has an impeccable work ethic. The OCA curriculum is crazy. Tons of work that takes ell over the 5.5 hours to complete. Some days she has done 8-10 hours.
The quizzes and tests are horrible too. I have had to actually sit down with her to help read these questions and many times there could be more than one answer and you just have to be lucky enough to pick it. The questions that require you to click on multiple answers or fill in the blank on 4-5 items, miss one, miss the entire question. My honor role daughter has a 67% and an F in social studies and a D- in science. Mind you, science is usually her strongest subject. My happy daughter that left regular school due to physical bullying is actually more depressed now then she was when girls were putting their hands on her. I am lost what to do. It is so late in the semester we can't go anywhere else and we don't want to repeat 7th grade because of this school. So upset and frustrated. I teach College courses and my courses are way more organized and fair than this school.

It has allowed for my child and I to have a closer bond. The teachers are incredible. And he actually wants to speak about his lessons throughout the day.

People complaining about how connexus gives u to much work, I highly disagree. That's the same amount of work u get in public school, people just dont pay attention in public school. Ever since I've been to online school in connexus, it's been a big help since I was able to focus and not fight with other kids in my school. The problem is with the kids themselves, they would make false accusations and lie. Teachers are much more dedicated with their students to passing the grade. If u cant focus on ur own, then that just means ur doing other things while ur working. Other than that I've been here for 4 years and on my first time with this school I did discover some problems but decided to fix it by telling my teachers and they listen if they're mistaken. Teachers are very welcome to hear for better improvements. Public school nowadays are just kids fighting and making a lot of drama. If you are having trouble with socializing, go outside to the park. Talk to some people around ur age. Have a family member or a friend to come with u. This has helped me so much to be more active and social. It really has helped with my job also which requires a lot of socializing. U need to find alternatives. Education is all that matters.

The can you get the support if you need it whenever you need it and that's what I like it's a nice teachers and the support that you get from connection Academy it is great I love how that the kids can work at their own pace and it is just great that they get the experience on the computers and learn how to use them and we have been I am just so satisfied because you get the support and gets to connect with the online schooling it has been the best.

This review is for International Connections Academy the private school version of the school. There is so much wrong with this school, I don't know where to begin. The teachers don't care about the students and are so lazy that they can't even write new test questions each year. All of the test questions can be found on Brainly. Really? The bad part about it is, even if your student doesn't cheat by looking at the answers they will try to accuse them of cheating if their answer is anything like the answers found on Brainly. I'm sorry but if you have a math problem then your answer should be the same. It is ridiculous. Another thing is, my son started the school wanting to participate in the dual diploma program. Halfway through his sophomore year they discontinued the program without letting anyone know! I would not have paid almost $7000 per year for him to receive the exact same curriculum he could have received from the public school version of Connections Academy. These people don't care about your students. Stay away!

My daughter took online courses through tecca for 3 years. When she returned to public school it was a hastle getting her records... took a month to get a response. Not to mention, they gave her sophmore work as a freshman... she reported every week to her homeroom teacher, which was expected and never an answer... she left voicemails... i recieved emails saying they were going to call officials for a well being check... ridiculous... would not recommend

I notice most of the reviews on this site are from students, so beware to take those for what they are. This school has top notch curriculum and an average of 20 lessons a week. It is not for children who are not motivated or think that independent study is easy. I have two children enrolled; one in 4th grade and one in 6th grade. The work is not unmanageable, but it does require time to complete it. Compared to the local brick and mortar curriculum, my children are learning more. The teachers have all been excellent and there are Live Lessons, clubs, and field trips for social interaction. The curriculum does include portfolios which take longer to complete as they are basically project-based learning assignments that allow the student to use the knowleadge they have gained in the unit by applying it to real world applications or projects. Overall, I highly recommend this school for its top-notch curriculum and as an alternative for those that the traditional brick and mortar is not working for. Both of my children like this school and the extras that come with it.

This is not an online charter school in the sense of what you think. If you sign your kids up for this - you are not simply an "Aide" to the learning process - you ARE the teacher. The live lessons do not deliver course content. All content is electronic with learning coach providing context and assistance. And while you might think "sure - I can spend a few hours a day with my kids working on school - I've done that with homework" this is completely different. Every day I regret this decision.

Content is not consistent - and assessments can be poorly written. End of content assessment has 4 or 5 questions so miss one or two - goes against grade greatly. Assignments in the course content - as I've spoken to a couple of teachers - are poorly written so make sure to check the message boards for the correct information.

We selected this school to avoid live instruction until Covid is under control - and now I fear that this experience has significantly increased the negative impact of this pandemic.

To be fair a couple of pros:
- teachers are very responsive when you do have questions
- If you truly want to homeschool - this might be the place for you so you don't have to submit any homeschool paperwork and you know the content is inline with your state's curriculum

There is very little help from the teachers. When my daughter fell behind due to illness, we were belittled, laughed at (by the principal), and made to feel very small and generally stupid. Instead of helping my daughter with the algebra 2, they dropped her, mid-semester, into consumer math. There was so much reading to do, and she is a slow reader. When she complained to a teacher about falling behind in the reading, she was told not to read the lessons any more. The teacher said that was what she did in college. When her computer died, she had to use an IPad, which does not allow access to everything. They have an assistance program which helps students who are in need. I was not told about this until a woman called me to re-enroll her. Lt would have helped to get her a new laptop, but instead they chose to harass her about her attendance and her inability to get much schoolwork done on the tablet. I did not enroll her for a second time. It was a truly horrible experience and I would not recommend it for anyone.

I find thus to be easier on my son. He is more focused on his work with little to no distraction. He gets longer time to do homework and is not pressured like my girls are in public schooling.

This is my sons third year at OCA. The one on one attention is amazing, the teachers are always there if he needs help with anything, He has grown academically and has more self confidence.

My daughter is in 3rd grade. This is her first year at connections. As we're approaching the end of the year I asked her if she wanted to go back to a Brick and Mortar school and she refuses! She loves Connections Academy as it gives her the freedom to work at her own pace and skip through sections she doesn't need to waste time on. I noticed other reviews say you cannot work at your own pace. THIS is untrue. The day after a lesson is scheduled it WILL say overdue but that doesn't mean much. Just the fact that it's past the day it was scheduled. You can still finish it in your own time. You can always reschedule all of your assignments and that overdue warning will disappear. As long as you finish all of your assignments by the last day of school you're good. Because lets not forget this is STILL PUBLIC school so they do have to follow state requirements.

A lot of the reviews on this page are from students so, parents, take them with a grain of salt and from a child's perspective lol

The teachers and staff are helpful and it's taught her time management and responsibility. It's also given me the chance to be hands on with her education. I know exactly what works for her now, what she excels in and what she needs help with. We'll never go back to B&M schools.

If you are considering this school DONT WASTE YOUR TIME! They kept kicking back our paperwork to register, leaving my 9 year old in limbo with starting svhool on time! Then when I call they leave you on hold for over an hour with no one answering after you get transferred to another department for NO ONE TO ANSWER. They just kept giving us the run around! If I could give this school a negative stars I would! DONT WASTE YOUR TIME!

My story is too long to tell it all, but I have 3 children now enrolled in Ohio Connections and I regret this daily! I never claimed that any of my children were "geniuses" but all four of my children ate extremely bright. With the curriculum and the absence of teaching, my daughter's self-confidence has plummeted! Because I withdrew my children's enrollment in ECOT later in the year, my kids fell way behind, and it seems as though its impossible for them to catch up without completely overloading themselves with work. It was suggested by a teacher, that they add an extra hour or two daily and work on the weekends to get caught up! You as a teacher, don't even work the weekends! I'm disgusted with this school, if you should even call it that! Its simply a program for the rich family that has stay at home parents and no life outside of SCHOOL! I DEFINITELY SONT BE BACK NEXT YEAR!

We are a California Connections Academy family and may soon be a Connections Academy Florida family. Our student is a 10th grader. The connections Academy curriculum is splendid. Focused on academics, classroom teachers are attentive and communicative, subject content is of susbtance - not time-wasting, online resources are splendid, and our student is as well-socialized as most healthy high-schoolers. We are grateful to Connections Academy for the opportunity to support and guide our high-schooler.

Teachers only teach subjects for one hour per week live per subject. The kids get different assignments with each subject on different topics everyday. I have transferred my son to K12 which has teachers teach live everyday with homework help daily. Daily assignments parallel weekly topics.

PEARSON IS NOT WORTH THE MONEY AS PARENTS WILL END UP BEING THE STUDENT'S TEACHER (FULL-TIME).

I have seen so many reviews and I am absolutely astounded. I see a lot of "Too much work"... considering the alternative of a regular school (going for 7-8 hours and then 2 hours of homework each night, connections is less time and work for sure). There is so much flexibility in schedule. Your child can work when they are more alert and ready. My son is more of an afternoon/evening person, so that is when he completes most of his work and can take as long as he needs to do the work. My son is in his junior year and second year with Connections. My son was failing in regular school and getting bullied everyday. He was unable to focus on his school work with all of the distractions. I am proud to say that he is now receiving a quality education. I have never had a teacher that was not willing and eager to help with any situation. They are wonderful and well qualified. To sum up: This is your child(ren)s education. They need to be working hard and spending a reasonable amount of time doing it. If you want your child to have a quality education with out outside distractions, Connections Academy is a perfect choice!

Yes the teachers help your child if needed yes you can do school at your own pace BUT this online school has given my 13 year old anxiety that if she dose not get out of the house once a day she has a mental break down that she is worthless and dose not do anything. Another thing that is wrong with this online school is that if you start late you have to do all the lessons that you "missed" because you were not registered yet. Even if you tell the teachers the reason why your child has not been doing their school work they won't do ANYTHING about it they will say "okay well she just has to catch up" WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL never make your kid do this terrible school save your kids from this hell of an online school.

My son has thrived far more in this school than he did in his previous district. He enjoys the activities and the live lessons as well as the freedoms that come with at-home learning.