HomeSchool Beach Academy – A New Approach to Learning

HomeSchool Beach Academy (HSBA) is a private school that opened in La Josefina, Huacas in August 2009. The school opened with the vision of providing a new type of education for families in the area, where small classes and individualized attention to the students is the center of the classroom dynamic. This mission grew from the objective of providing affordable education while still fulfilling the academic standards of both Costa Rican and United States accredited schools.

HSBA offers grades first through twelve, and its students range from all over the area including Avellanas, Tamarindo, Negra, Flamingo, and Playa Grande. The school was created with the purpose of allowing the children of these local beach communities to access quality, affordable education without depriving them of the joys of living in such a beautiful area.

The principal of the school is Estefania Pihen, and she explains how the school is unique in its teaching philosophy because it revolves around the idea of being a personalized teaching center; classes are customized to the individual student’s needs rather than teaching students as a homogenous group. With personalized attention being the core of HSBA’s educational philosophy, classes are taught by what the school calls “teacher-tutors.” Classes are small – each grade averages approximately five children– which allows the tutors the opportunity to really get to know all of their students and incorporate that knowledge into their teaching processes. The teaches of HSBA recognize that each student has his or her own strengths, weaknesses, and ways of learning, and by being a personalized teaching center, the teachers can create individualized learning plans for each of their pupils to ensure that the time spent in the classroom is maximally utilized. Teacher-tutors at HSBA work to develop relationships with their students in order to understand each child as a unique individual and how best to help facilitate their learning.

Each grade has a specific tutor for each subject being taught. All lessons taught are classroom-based, not online, and they are divided up by grade. The teachers at HSBA are highly experienced in both their area of expertise and in how to teach in a one-on-one setting. They all have college and/or master degrees in the subject they are teaching, with some of the faculty having 25 years of experience in education. There is also a psychologist on staff that is available to the students all day. 

The concept of teacher-tutors stems directly from the school’s four fundamental educational principles, which are as follows: a firm belief in individualized student attention, maximizing learning time, moving at the child’s own pace of learning, and working with the child’s learning style. With the non-conventional small classes and grades that HSBA offers, individualized student attention allows the teachers to become aware of students weaknesses and help them improve, while still nurturing and fostering their strengths. One of the best examples of HSBA’s personalized teaching style is how the school can work with students who have to leave the classroom for extended periods of time. For instance, teachers will work with students while they are gone by communicating with them through email and Skype. The school even offers the option of “attending” class through Skype, so the student can actually experience the class even though they are not actually there.

The facilities of HSBA also set it apart from other schools. Located on 15,000 square meters of beautiful, green land, students have access to soccer and rugby fields, two swimming pools (all of which are used during physical education classes), and a garden that the students planted themselves. The classrooms are comfortable and spacious, and each classroom has its own bathroom and library. The school also offers a computer lab with wireless internet, a “living room” area, which includes a large television and comfortable chairs for reading, and a catering service for lunch.

The HSBA curriculum is based on a curriculum provided by one of the most prestigious homeschooling academies in the United States. The academy is registered with the Pennsylvania Department of Education and is also accredited by the National Association of Private Schools (NAPS). HSBA also includes topics for each of the core subjects that are recommended by the Ministerio de Educacion (MEP).  Therefore, at the end of each academic school year, students in both the elementary and high schools are given both certified diplomas and certified transcripts which render them the possibility to reenter the public or private education system in both the U.S. and Costa Rica, as well as the possibility to apply to scholarships, grants, and financial aid when applying for college.

The curriculum used is built on the principle of subject integration, and it gives students an academic foundation by layering core subjects with the arts and special subjects, all complemented with labs and field trips. The core subjects include science, math, social studies, English language arts (grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and literature), and Spanish, while the supplementary courses consist of physical education, art, music, and computers. An extensive list of extra-curricular activities is also offered for students, such as golf, yoga, tennis, dance, French, guitar, and surfing lessons.  The HSBA golf team recently won the local school golf competition.

HSBA costs $175 a month for children in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and first grade, $315 a month for children in second through sixth grade, and $330 a month for students in the high school. For more information, please visit the school’s website at www.homeschoolbeachacademy.com/costarica.