Frequently
Asked Questions
What
is the Gateway Preparatory School? Gateway Preparatory School, Inc. is a private
school in Texas established as a non-profit corporation providing educational
services in resident and distance education. Started in 1996 as the Gateway Institute,
over 1,000 students have attended resident courses at locations throughout the
Dallas-Fort Worth area and Waco. In 2002, Gateway shifted its focus from a resident
program to a distance education institution. Since then Gateway has distance education
students throughout the US and Canada who take courses via the internet, and has
established new site-based schools to support local networks and resident students.
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Is Gateway a “real”
school? Yes. Gateway Preparatory School, Inc. is a legitimate school. Gateway
is recognized by the College Board (the SAT people) as a secondary diploma granting
institution (CEEB Code 440-226) and is listed on the National Roster of Secondary
Schools by the Educational Testing Service. In addition, the Defense Department
recognizes Gateway as a “Tier 1” school and accepts our diploma. (Back
to top)
What are the requirements for a high school
diploma? Diploma requirements vary depending on the track taken. The minimum
requirements are based on standards established for high school diplomas in the
State of Texas. These are adjusted for students who live in other states or countries.
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Will colleges accept
the Gateway diploma? Yes. Gateway graduates have not only been accepted, but
many have received scholarships and national honors (including National Merit
Scholarships). Colleges that have accepted Gateway students include: Austin College*
Baylor University* Berean College Collin County Comm. College* Dallas Baptist
University* Dallas County Comm. College* Excelsior College Geneva College LeTourneau
University Navarro College North Central Texas College Pepperdine University*
Southern Methodist University* Southwestern Assemblies of God Univ.* Tarrant County
College* Texas A & M University* Texas Christian University* Texas Tech University
United States Air Force Academy* University of North Texas University of Texas
– Arlington* University of Texas – Austin University of Texas – Dallas* University
of Texas – Tyler * Indicates students were offered scholarships or received honors.
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What makes Gateway different
from other homeschool curriculums? Many other curriculums have online and
PC based programs. However, they probably do not have a curriculum engineered
to be streamlined or offer our specialty instructional material:
- The
Gateway Advantage Read-Study-Test-Write (RSTW) accelerated learning training ·
- Learning skills integrated and embedded in courses ·
- Comprehensive
College Prep to include SAT Prep ·
- Individual Mentors ·
- Opportunity
to accelerate and graduate early ·
- Dual High School-College Credit opportunities
Other
programs may have some of these or have something similar, but we don’t know of
any that have all of this. (Back to top)
Do
my children have to take an entrance exam? No. Gateway takes you right where
you are and will provide you what you need to complete your diploma. In some cases,
you may need to take a Leveling Course – a customized course written specifically
for you that will bring you up to speed if you have been out of school a long
time or if your previous courses did not cover all the required subject matter.
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What is the minimum
age to start? Students can start in the 6th grade, regardless of age, as long
as they have demonstrated sufficient responsibility to do this type of program.
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What about elementary
grades? Gateway has a full elementry program! Just launched in time for the
2006-2007 school year. (Back to top)
How
can your Accelerated Learning Program help my student? Accelerated Learning
is simply engaging more parts of the brain and training the brain to better organize
information. Just about everyone can learn these skills and benefit from them.
We train students to:
- Access information through better and faster
learning methods,
- Evaluate the information to determine what is important,
- Integrate that information with other knowledge the student already has,
- Organize the information so it is easier to absorb, remember, and recall
- Understand the information as patterns of thoughts and ideas. (Back
to top)
What is the Accelerated Learning
Program? Our Accelerated Learning Program has three components:
- The
Gateway Advantage DVD program consisting of the Read-Study-Test-Write (RSTW) learning
strategies on DVD. ·
- The Gateway Advantage online course with 48 Mentored
lessons on how to put the RSTW strategies to practice. ·
- The Gateway
Preparatory School curriculum, which has the accelerated learning skills embedded
right into the course material.
The Gateway Advantage DVD and online
components are available to all students regardless if they are enrolled in Gateway
Prep. Gateway Prep students receive the Gateway Advantage components as part of
their overall curriculum package. (Back to top)
How
does Gateway address the issue of teaching with a Biblical worldview? Gateway
was sponsored originally by a Christian evangelical ministry. Though Gateway has
been rechartered as a separate educational organization, we still hold to our
Judeo-Christian roots and worldview. Our academic curriculum is non-sectarian
and presents other worldviews so that our students have a working knowledge of
what other people think and believe. We believe that knowledge of other major
worldviews is essential when engaging others in a free market of ideas. For example,
evolution and creation are presented in some of our courses, but are presented
as academic information, not as doctrinal perspectives. In addition, we have elective
courses in Old Testament, New Testament, Bible Survey, and Church History. Fundamentally,
we hold that specific doctrinal issues are the purview of the family, we respect
them, and will make adjustments to course content that parents deem inappropriate
for their children. (Back to top)
Does
the military accept a Gateway diploma? Yes – The Department of Defense fully
accepts our diploma. (Back to top)
My
husband is transferred frequently with his job; can Gateway accommodate us moving
overseas? As long as you can sign on the internet, Gateway can accommodate
you. We have people in Latin America, the Far East, Canada, and all over the US.
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Is there a particular
start date or can we get started anytime? Gateway operates year-round. Students
can start at any time. The academic year starts each September 1 and ends the
following August 31. Tuition is prorated to the next August. (Back
to top)
I don’t feel qualified to homeschool my
child. How can you help me? The great thing about Gateway is that it is designed
to take all the hassle out of home schooling. You don’t have to worry about grading
assignments or organizing curriculum, we do it all. Just make sure your student
does the work and sends in assignments on time; we do the rest. Both of us parents
work and it is not feasible for one of us to be home. What are our options? We
have many families in this situation. Most responsible students can work at home
without a lot of supervision (they are home alone during the summer, so there
isn’t a lot of difference). Just check the work when you get home. Some homeschool
families have set up “house schools” where a home school mom supervises her children
along with a few other children. We are also helping people set up their own small
private schools using our program. Contact us for more information on these. (Back
to top)
Why is much of the curriculum based on the
World Book Encyclopedia? Articles in the World Book treat subjects better
and in more depth than most textbooks. World Book has supplemental material and
audio/visual enhancement in many articles. For example, in the article “Music,”
students can listen to different types of music; in “Orchestra,” each of the major
instruments can be heard. PLUS – the high-speed access reduces time. (Back
to top)
Why is so much based on computers and the
internet? PCs and the internet is where the future of education, particularly
college education, is going. In most colleges today, virtually every college has
most of their courses on the internet, even the conventional “sit-down” courses.
Students going to college today, not only need to be prepared academically and
intellectually, but need to be technically competent in using the PC and the internet.
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Why the emphasis
on laptops verses desktop PCs? We push laptops because they are portable –
students can take their work with them. However, everything can be done on a desktop
PC. (Back to top)
Can my student
test out of courses? Yes. Gateway has Credit by Examination based on our courses.
Can students get credit for other things they have done? Yes. Depending on what
you have done, you many get full or partial credit toward diploma requirements.
These have to be properly documented and submitted for review. Activities such
as karate, ballet, choir, Civil Air Patrol, etc., can be used for PE and elective
requirements. (Back to top)
How
do I do math courses? You have several choices. Our preferred math courses
come from Omega Math. However, if you prefer another math curriculum, we are flexible
enough to accommodate Saxon, Abeka, and other popular homeschool curriculums.
You can validate math using online resources, you can take standardized math courses
we have available in workbooks, or you can choose from math courses available
to homeschool students. What about Advanced Placement (AP) Courses? Instead of
Advanced Placement, we use the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), which,
in many cases, provides more credit and has more courses accepted by more colleges.
CLEP exams also cost less and are available year-round. (Back to
top)
I have an older child
who did not complete high school; can Gateway help? Yes. Gateway has
an Adult Diploma Program for persons 18 years and older. (Back
to top)
How does Gateway deal with a non-college
bound student? Our high school program is tiered with a basic content component,
a learning skills component, and a college prep component for just about every
course. Parents can opt out of the learning skills component and the college component
on a course-by-course basis, and just have the student take a basic high school
curriculum. (Back to top)
What if
I am happy with the curriculum I’ve been using; can my student still be part of
Gateway? The curriculum is only one part of what Gateway offers. Families
who use other curriculum can be part of our Umbrella School – where we provide
records, transcripts, and diplomas. In addition, Gateway provides the following
programs for students who use another curriculum and even public and private school
students. Most of these are available as DVD programs and online Mentored programs:
- Gateway
Advantage – Read-Study-Test-Write Advanced Accelerated Learning Skills
- Gateway
to the SAT – Comprehensive SAT prep
- Gateway to College – Comprehensive
College Selection, Application, Financing, and Enrollment preparation
- Earning
College Credit – Mentored program with online resources to prepare to take CLEP
and DANTES exams for college credit. (Back to top)
What
if I want to do take a few courses from other sources but still remain under Gateway?
Gateway is very flexible. If you want to substitute another course instead of
a Gateway course, you can. Just arrange it with the student’s Mentor so the credit
can be posted to the transcripts. (Back to top)
What
is the block schedule and why do you use it? The block schedule is where the
student focuses on 2-3 core courses at a time, concentrating on more daily time
on each course, but completing the course in fewer weeks. We have found this to
be better and faster for students just because there is more time on task. Many
colleges have gone to the block schedule because they have found it to be more
efficient and flexible both for the college and for the student. (Back
to top)
How are science labs handled? We can
provide a list of recommended labs that can be used at home. (Back
to top)
What about PE? Students can apply just
about any physical activity toward PE credit. A log or attendance documentation
is sufficient for the award of PE credit. The minimum requirements are 3 hours
per week for at least 12 weeks over a semester (Fall, Spring, Summer). Karate
classes, ballet, team sports, and even personal fitness with weight lifting, running,
cycling, etc., can be applied with proper documentation. (Back
to top)
What about foreign languages? Gateway
recommends Power-Glide or Rosetta Stone for languages. The student’s family arranges
these and Gateway awards credit with proper documentation. Students who have already
mastered a second language can receive credit through validation testing. In addition,
language credit can be awarded for Sign Language. (Back to top)
How
does Gateway deal with music and fine arts? Fine arts and elective credit
can be awarded for music lessons, art classes, ballet, dance, drama, choir, etc.,
with proper documentation. The minimum requirements are 3 hours per week for at
least 12 weeks over a semester (Fall, Spring, Summer). (Back to
top)
What about vacations and breaks? The Gateway
staff takes scheduled breaks during the year, usually around the regular holidays.
Families can take breaks and vacations when they wish – just keep your Mentor
informed. (Back to top)
How much
does the program cost? Individual costs will depend on the program and options
taken. The basic program can cost as little as $179 a month. (Back
to top)
How can I pay for the program? We can
arrange a monthly payment program for bank draft, credit card, or check. You can
also prepay annual tuition and receive a discount. (Back to top)
I
have two children. Do I get a discount for the second child? Yes. Gateway
provides significant discounts for multiple children from the same family. (Back
to top)
Does Gateway have a graduation ceremony?
Yes. Students may participate in a graduation exercise in the Dallas and will
conduct graduations in other locations where there are large Gateway populations.
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What if my child needs
help? What if I need help? All our online programs have Mentors and Tutors
involved with students. They are available to students and parents by email or
telephone. Individual Mentors will have standard contact times and contact protocols.
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Can my student earn
college credit? Yes. Gateway offers a Dual-Credit track where ambitious students
who have demonstrated college level ability can take college courses or prepare
for CLEP and DANTES exams for college credit. (Back to top)
How
do you prepare students for the SAT? Gateway has a comprehensive program to
prepare students for the SAT that includes these products:
- Introduction
to the SAT (available on DVD)
- Test-Taking-Techniques for Math-Reading-Writing
(on DVD)
- SAT Solutions Guide – Step-by-Step solutions for each individual
question on the SAT (Available via email in Adobe) … and these programs available
online:
- SAT Preparation Course (24 Weekly lessons Mentored online)
-
SAT Intensive [CRASH Course] (24 Daily lessons Mentored online)
These
are offered to homeschool, private school, and public school students as a separate
program. Gateway students receive this as part of the regular program at no extra
cost. (Back to top)
What if my child
needs to return to public school in a year, will the block schedule hinder their
re - entrance? To be honest, you may run into problems in the middle of the
year. However, we want to make a big point here – we have designed our system
to enhance, enrich, and accelerate the education of our students. We do not consider
compatibility with public schools to be a factor in how we design and implement
our program. Indeed, if the public schools met the needs of the families, we wouldn’t
be in business. (Back to top)
How
many hours a day will my child need to spend on school to complete their daily
lessons? We expect students to apply a minimum of two hours a day to each
subject, plus do their novel reading. The average student should carry three subjects
at a time, so 6 hours per day would be the norm. (Back to top)
Are
there any programs through Gateway that my children can access while in private
school? Gateway provides the following programs for public and private school
students. Most of these are available as DVD programs and online Mentored programs:
- Gateway Advantage – Read-Study-Test-Write Advanced Accelerated Learning
Skills ·
- Gateway to the SAT – Comprehensive SAT prep ·
- Gateway
to College – Comprehensive College Selection, Application, Financing, and Enrollment
preparation ·
- Earning College Credit – Mentored program with online resources
to prepare to take CLEP and DANTES exams for college credit (Back
to top)
Do the students of Gateway ever get
together, I am considering home schooling but I am concerned about socialization?
We can help set up local networks of Gateway students who meet periodically for
group activities. (Back to top)
How
does Gateway prepare my student for college? Other than the curriculum, Gateway
Advantage, and SAT Prep mentioned in other questions, we have the Gateway to College
program where we provide specific counseling on college:
- Selection
– Scanning information from different colleges to determine which ones meet your
wishes.
- Application – Assistance in completing applications and those
essays.
- Funding – Assistance in searching for funding sources and preparing
financial forms.
- Enrollment – Preparing the student to go to college
when a college has been selected. This program is also available to public and
private school students. (Back to top)
What
happens after my student goes off to college? We have an online college mentoring
program that continues the contact and assistance to college students with reading,
research, test preparation, and writing. (Back to top)
