EdOptions Academy Review Summary

Edmentum EdOptions Academy hires certified US educators to teach K-12 schoolchildren remotely 1v1. You must be available daytime Mon-Fri and able to respond to students within 24 hours. Employee benefits are offered, but pay is reportedly not very high, and teachers have been terminated when student enrollments drop.

EdOptions Academy Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Well-established and reputable organization
• Employee benefits including PTO, medical insurance and pension contributions
• Variety of student support work, not just conventional teaching
• Supportive coworkers

Cons:

• Position not the most secure and can be terminated if not enough students enroll
• Pay not advertised but reported to be relatively low
• Must provide student support outside of taught lessons
• Must have full daytime availability across weekdays, grading and responding to students within 24 hours
• Teaching materials need to be customized
• Training program not extensive enough for some teachers

What Is Edmentum EdOptions Academy?

EdOptions Academy is a virtual school operating under Edmentum, a major provider of online learning programs. It was founded as Educational Options in 1997, before being acquired by Plato Learning in 2011, which subsequently joined forces with Archipelago Learning to become Edmentum in 2012. Together, they provide web-based instruction to 14 million students in nearly 40,000 schools in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

Here is a brief video overview of Edmentum EdOptions Academy:

Is Edmentum EdOptions Academy Legit?

Edmentum EdOptions Academy has academic credibility through its historical links to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and its PLATO (Programmed Logic for Automated Teaching Operations) system, which in 1960 was a pioneer in computer-aided instruction. Its legitimacy is further supported by several education partnerships, including partnering with over 8,000 districts in the United States, as well as being the recipient of multiple awards.

Edmentum EdOptions Academy Accreditation

Edmentum EdOptions Academy is fully accredited by Cognia and the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC), and is approved by dozens of state and third-party agencies, including Certica, the NCAA, ISTE, and QM (Quality Matters).

How Does Edmentum EdOptions Academy Work?

Edmentum EdOptions Academy is an online school catering for K-12 students who are assigned certified teachers to assist them in their virtual learning. EdOptions Academy teachers are there to provide real-time instruction through live lessons, offer extra help during virtual ‘office hours’, be available to answer questions through video conferencing software, email and phone, set benchmarks and manage student grades, assignments and tests through the Edmentum learning environment.

Here is a short video outlining what is expected from an EdOptions Academy teacher:

This video introduces the Edmentum courseware that is used for their curriculum, while additional EdOptions Academy resources can be viewed here:

How Much Does Edmentum Pay Teachers?

The Edmentum teacher salary is not advertised by the company, and you are asked to state your ‘Desired Compensation’ at the point of application. However, the Edmentum salaries reported on Glassdoor range between $39,397 and $54,037 per annum. One Edmentum Indeed review mentions being paid $10 per student, however, this was written back in 2019.

An advantage over the casual contract work more typical of online teaching jobs, is that employees receive Edmentum benefits, including PTO/holiday pay, medical insurance, and pension contributions.

Edmentum EdOptions Academy Hours

EdOptions Academy tuition takes place over 18-week semesters, though students may register at any time of the year. Teachers are expected to be available to students and parents between 7:45am-5pm, Monday to Friday, responding to queries and grading work within 24 hours. Federal holidays are observed.

Edmentum EdOptions Academy Requirements

Here are the requirements to become a Virtual Teacher with Edmentum EdOptions Academy:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
• Teaching certification for the state and age being taught
• Meet highly qualified teacher requirements
• Strong content and subject matter knowledge
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Organization and time management skills
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and other online tools
• Ability to maintain a flexible schedule

Applicants may be located anywhere within the United States.

Edmentum EdOptions Academy Hiring Process

Open EdOptions Academy jobs can be searched and applied for through the Edmentum careers page. Some are also advertised on the Edmentum Indeed page.

The Edmentum application form requests the following information:

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number
• Resume/CV
• Cover letter
• School
• Degree
• Discipline
• LinkedIn profile (if applicable)
• Certifications/License 
• How did you hear about this opportunity?
• Desired Compensation
• Are you related to anyone that is a current employee of Edmentum or Apex Learning, if so who?
• Are you legally authorized to work in the US?
• Have you ever been terminated for misconduct from a prior employer?
• Have you resigned or been terminated from a role in which you were being investigated for misconduct at a prior employer?
• Current city/state of residence?
• What state are you certified to teach in?
• Demographic Questions
• Voluntary Self-Identification

Edmentum Interview Process

The Edmentum interview typically takes place via Zoom 1-2 weeks after submitting an application, and lasts 30-60 minutes.

The interviewers will provide additional information about the job, what the expectations of the role are, and what the compensation is, whilst providing you with an opportunity to ask your own questions.

Edmentum interview questions will relate to your past work experience, ability to teach specific subjects, and how you handled past situations. Here are some that previous candidates were asked:

• Why do you want to work here?
• Why did you want to be in education?
• Which subjects do you have experience teaching in?
• What does a day in your classroom look like?
• Are you comfortable learning new software?
• How do you approach giving written feedback to students?
• How do you work with students who are having difficulties with a topic?
• Describe a time when you had to motivate a student.

EdOptions Academy Reviews – What Is It Like Working for Edmentum?

The Edmentum Glassdoor page currently gives the company an overall rating of 3.6 out of 5, with a 67% recommendation rate. Below is the summary of these Edmentum reviews, which praise the flexibility, people and benefits, but criticize the pay and lack of student contact:

A similar score of 3.5 out of 5 is provided by the Edmentum Indeed page, though there has been an increase of more negative reviews recently based around staff lay-offs:

While this review is positive about the supportive teacher community, it does confirm that the job is not the most secure, being dependent on student enrollment numbers:

Here are two more reviews which add that the pay is not the best for the work involved, the training can leave some feeling unprepared, while the teaching content must be customized:

Conclusion – Is Edmentum EdOptions Academy Good for Online Teachers?

Edmentum EdOptions Academy is better suited for teachers seeking full-time, daytime hours than more casual part-time work. It brings with it employee benefits, such as PTO, medical insurance and pension contributions, rarely found among online teaching jobs, but the workload can be demanding in comparison, while the pay is still less than a ‘brick and mortar’ position; you are sacrificing earning potential for the privilege of working remotely. Furthermore, the job does not seem very secure, with several teachers reporting terminations when student enrollments drop.

You can apply for Edmentum teaching jobs here.

A list of other online teaching companies can be found here.