Educational Options in BC
BCHEA realizes that there has been much confusion regarding home-based learning options in BC in recent years. We support minimum government intervention in homeschooling and are an advocacy group for homeschoolers who are registered under Sec. 12 of the BC School Act. We offer information about home-based, public or independent school enrollment options as a public service and to help clarify the difference between home-based learning options currently available in BC. (For more information on BCHEA’s position, you can see our Positional Statement. For the differences between registration and enrollment options, please see A Word on Online Learning Programs and the Ministry of Education’s chart.)
The BC government generously allows for faith-based choices in two-thirds of the home-based options and three-fifths of all educational options in BC. If you wish to use a faith-based curriculum as a foundational part of a child’s education, we encourage you to consider only those options that allow for such a choice.
Registration brings with it the most freedom for the family to choose the path that best suits the family’s needs and/or convictions. BCHEA has always supported minimum government intervention, and will continue to do so. Individual families will need to decide for themselves which option suits them best.
For the purpose of clarity, the following terms with these definitions are used:
Register
– to state your intent to the government that you will be educating your children autonomously in accordance with Sections 12 and 13 of the BC School Act.
Enroll
– to have a child participate, at school or at home, in an educational program provided by a public or independent school and administered and assessed by a BC certified teacher
Homeschooler
– a child registered under Sec. 12 of the BC School Act.
Home-based Student
– a child enrolled in a distance education/online learning program, provided by a public or independent school.
Click a link below for an explanation of each option.