MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) The ever changing world of education presents many different options for students and parents.
For Owen Civitella his learning experience is online through Connections Academy.
The middle school student has been enrolled in online classes since kindergarten. His older two siblings went through the public system but his parents always wanted to try something different. A move from New York to South Carolina allowed them that opportunity.
“I wake up, eat breakfast, do school,” Owen said. “I get to do school in my pajamas.”
Wardrobe aside his parents Don and Ann say it’s been a big benefit in their son’s educational process.
“He’s a lot more independent than most kids his age,” Owen’s Dad Don Civitella said. “He’s more comfortable being around adult as far as holding conversations with them.”
“Now the challenge is trying to find something to fill up my day because he’s becoming more and more independent,” Owen’s Mother Ann Civitella said.
He takes classes in science, social studies and language arts plus is involved in the gifted and talented program meaning he has an extra science class plus literature study and honors geometry.
“It’s a basic middle school day,” Ann said.
She adds that she like that her son gets to work at his own pace throughout the year. Owen says it was a challenge at first getting used to not having a teacher right in front of him but he has also adjusted.
As for his Karate classes, they count as a physical education credit as well as teaching him valuable life lessons.
“I’m really proud of him. It takes a lot of concentration to do what he does,” Don said of his son’s accomplishments in the sport.
