If you are considering BSDE because you feel it will help reduce your child's anxiety and stress about school, then you should think again. The workload is huge (more than at regular state school) and more difficult given the online learning environment. You must diligently attend all scheduled lessons and complete all assessment pieces and exams to receive a passing grade. The reality is that your child could be staring at their computer screen for several hours a day, 5 days a week. Plus they will have homework and other things such as diagnostic tests to perform after school hours. It is a very isolating and physically unhealthy way to learn. The teachers are always changing. Teachers are also often away, including during important times like exams and assessments. There is often no substitute teacher provided, but you are still expected to stay on track with the work rate calendar. They often do not answer emails quickly, and sometimes not at all. Many times they do not respond to questions even during the online Blackboard class sessions. Given that this is an online school, you would expect the teachers to be tech savvy, but many are not. So there are often issues they cannot resolve. There are some excellent teachers, especially Mr Hancock. If you have any technical difficulties, it can be a nightmare to get help. The technical department at BSDE took over 3 weeks to complete my daughter's enrolment. We were expected to catch up on all the lessons and work that she missed during that time. One recent technical issue we experienced took an entire week to resolve; as well as numerous phone calls, answering machine messages and emails. During that time, my daughter was unable to attend those lessons and got behind in the work. If you experience any difficulties from your end, such as NBN problems or computer issues, you are also required to catch up on whatever work you missed during that time. Up to grade 9, you will still be required to do Physical Education. Your child is expected to learn the skills of team sports such as soccer and volleyball. They must submit video of themselves showing these skills and playing a game. This is extremely difficult for an isolated child without siblings. I do not understand why their physical education classes don't focus on individual activities like running, simple exercise circuits etc. When you reach year 11 and 12, you will be required to find a nominated supervisor for your child's exams. This can include a doctor, accountant, justice of the peace etc. It is not always easy to find a qualified person to do this and be aware that you may have to pay someone for these services. If you live close enough to BSDE, you would be able to attend your exams at the school. We did long distance schooling at BSDE for over 2 years and by the end my daughter had almost lost her love for learning. We were all exhausted from the extra effort required, but she did manage to pass all her subjects. We know a large community of friends who have also attended BSDE and most of them are returning to mainstream schooling, TAFE courses, private home schooling, or simply dropping out altogether. Some have to pay for private tutors in addition to their BSDE lessons to help their children pass. I am sure the staff are trying very hard, but online learning is a difficult way to learn.

For the majority of 2020, I have been the tutor for a student who attends Brisbane School of Distance Education. As such, I am writing this review from the perspective of someone who has experienced their curriculum, online classes, and assessments from that viewpoint. Now, with a significant amount of exposure to the ways in which the Brisbane School of Distance Education conducts themselves and implements their curriculum, and with more than a cursory knowledge of the ways in which other schools do the same, I am confident to say that I do not recommend that you enrol your children in this institution. The only major positive trait I can attribute to the Brisbane School of Distance Education is that their fees are relatively low when compared to other distance education schools in the same area. However, as always, you definitely get what you pay for. The teachers at the Brisbane School of Distance Education offer very little in the way of actual teaching, and even less in terms of feedback to their students on the work and drafts they submit. They also offer scarce guidance when it comes to assisting their students to complete their assessments, and the task sheets themselves are vague enough so as to render it rather difficult for students to accurately interpret precisely what they are expected to do without any extra help from their educators. I would also say that, relative to other schools from the same area, the level at which students are expected to achieve at the Brisbane School of Distance Education is quite low. That is to say, the Brisbane School of Distance Education seems to be somewhat lagging behind other schools in the same area when it comes to what they are teaching, what assessments they are assigning, and the level at which they are expecting their students to perform in these assessments. I am genuinely concerned for the student I tutor that, even if they achieve the highest grades possible in high school, they will not be truly prepared for the level that will be expected from them at university, given that the Brisbane School of Distance Education almost certainly will not have adequately prepared them. Additionally, the way they implement the curriculum is relatively imprecise and chaotic when compared with other schools in the same area. When following through other school's curriculums, their is a logical and easily observable trajectory from which they rarely deviate. With the Brisbane School of Distance Education however, their curriculum is rather all over the place, doesn't flow logically or naturally from one topic to the next, and seems to deviate off on tangents for no discernible reason much of the time. This is probably self-defeating for me to even say but honestly, the fact that the student I tutor needs a private tutor at all is a testament to how poorly the Brisbane School of Distance Education is catering to their students' needs. As such, with all that said, I cannot, in good conscience, neglect to recommend that you select an alternative educational institution in which to enrol your children.

After reading the recent review by tutor 'James Edward', I'd like to set the record straight about BSDE. It's quite a good school, with a number of teachers holding PhDs and or with considerable teaching experience. The curriculum and textbooks that are used are the same as those that are used in other schools. This year a number of students again achieved high ATAR scores, having done very well in independent external exams assessed by the QCAA, as well as in internal assessment, including assignments, which also needed to meet QCAA standards. Samples of the internal assessment also had to be submitted to the QCAA for marking. As a parent of a student who has attended the school for a number of years and as the partner of a teacher (not associated with the school), I can confidently say that what is taught at this school is on par with other schools in the area, and more than likely better than other DE schools. While the previous review mentioned the need for a tutor, nowadays this is quite common in many schools, including private schools. A little while back, my niece received an OP 1 at an expensive private school in Brisbane, but this was only achieved with considerable help from tutor/s as well as her parents. As such it is unfair to lay the blame on a student requiring a tutor with the school. My child attended a mainstream school for a while, and even in the early years, students were already getting tutors to help them get ahead. Unfortunately this is a sign of the times. If a parent is unable to assist, then perhaps a tutor is the best course of action. In my opinion where the school falls short, is the fact that so much is done online, when it would be great to have more done on paper (eg maths questions). You also need to be checking the work your child is submitting, as teachers can only provide limited feedback, given the number of students they have. Again, this is the same elsewhere. Another criticism would be, that there isn't enough emphasis on students getting opportunities to get to know one another, unless they email each other outside of school hours. The school also tends toward political correctness (no Merry Christmas in the end of year email), despite the fact that holidays from other religions seem to be acknowledged. But all in all, the school is fairly good and my child has made some good friends there, even though this did take a while.

If you are thinking about home schooling ,This school is very helpful. They teach children as same as normal school by online . you need good internet environment . And you need support your child for supervise and help to learning . Student sit in front of computer 8-2pm, (Mon-Thursday)about 8-12:30pm (Wed, Friday) Teacher are educated for special need children better than normal school. More experienced. However, some of teacher are not know about special need mean, so complaining and calling us immediately about some issue for child. Good things are no bullying. Because children are at home and safe. My son is so relaxing at home while studying. Drinking coffee and sometimes drawing picture and waiting teacher giving task. I think teachers are more absent often than normal school. Often no teacher and only some task on computer. It need understand instructions themselves. But if you finish early you can have free time more. (Looks like teachers are looking after many grade by small amount of teachers. ) School works are ok. But some assignments need scan and upload pdf file to send school or post mail by due date. Some of children can do themself, some of you need to help it. Most teacher send email to parents what their assessment due date and files . So you can know what your children doing in study. They also provide camping and school events often. If your child keen to join , maybe fun activities in real world. Teachers are kind. School fee is about 1000$ a year. But no student uniform and I think similar cost for total school life. If you would like to make student card ,you can get it as same as normal school. We don’t know how much study is same as other school. But they have NAPLAN and so on if you need test. It is many documents for home schooling . Everything online . You can ask school if you don’t understand how to do it. But replying not fast . You need patient. Online school mean that you need to do some of teachers work as your child support.

I agree with most of the comments made previously by AdMad X. Pros: No bullying, no need for uniforms or having to drive or walk your child to school. While many of the teachers are average or even below average (just barely doing their job, which is fair enough I suppose), a few will go out of their way to help your child succeed. It must be said though, that quite a lot falls on the parent(s) in terms of helping students prepare in terms of assignments, exams and study. No wasted travel time. Cons: My child found that a number of the students he/she tried to befriend were rather flaky, making it quite difficult to form friendships at the school. I also heard that this was an issue for another student who had already left the school. For me, this lack of socialisation was probably the biggest problem. There were also a number of teachers that were frequently absent that were not replaced, which is something that would not happen in a day school. A number of teachers also didn't respond to important emails (even though I re-sent these) which is actually very rude. This would not be acceptable or tolerated in any other school. This is incredibly disappointing given that most teachers are now earning six figures. It would also be good for the teachers to go through exam papers with students. Technology can also have a downside, as virtually all homework and assignments are completed online, meaning a student can spend the whole school day and then another few hours after that, in front of the screen, completing these tasks. It also means that as a parent you have to be vigilant to ensure your child is working, not playing games or chatting to someone privately. If you're sitting exams at the school, be prepared for occasional disruptions. I've heard it said that the school was better, before everything moved to online education. In summary, the school is not great, with the online learning element having both positive (and probably more) negative implications.

Brisbane School of Distance Education is an amazing school, from someone who has and had an inside viewpoint of the staff, students and overall school curriculum, I can definitely say that majority of the negative reviews are somewhat to completely incorrect. Unfortunately the social side of things is poor, but you need to understand that this is the point of a DE school, it's done online, hence the name 'Distance' - if you want a social school, an on-campus school would be suitable for you. We have various social events throughout the year. Whether that is simple meetups, excursions, camps or special events like carnivals. Students can communicate with each other before, during and after class. From my experience, teachers are quick to respond and are very happy to provide their help to students. Multiple times throughout the school years my teachers respond even within a matter of minutes to emails and private messages. They are very kind and welcoming to all new students, and are extremely flexible with work for newer classmates until they settle in. Students are typically the same and invest in helping their new and previous classmates. Others and myself have all found it very easy to make new friends compared to on-campus schools. In fact at one point I had managed to get 10 in one single day... DE schools are not for everyone, but that does not mean some people won't be suitable. Highly recommended school if you don't mind the lack of socialization and increase of time spent on technology.

The school work load is very large and is very hard to stay ontop of school if you have anything else after school. I have had to do very late nights some even reaching 11pm because there is just assessments after assessments. there are some great teachers that show to every lesson but there are others that dont. Blackboard it always updating so there are many students that get marked absent because thay couldn't get into blackboard. It does take a while to get a responding email back from staff but i understand that because they dont just sit around looking at their emails all day. when i go into enrichment days they teachers are very niice but if you train in or your tutor doesent sign them in they make it a verybig deal. the school's facilities are great and well kept (unless its the oval but that wasent on them, fire ants). the school dosent have the greatest trake record with turning up on time there are some teachers that arrive on time and are ready but others that arrive 10-30mins late but complain when we are 5mins late. it is very missleady sometimes where thay say you are doing grate but when you get it back after marking you didnt go so great. but, overall i would sujest going to this school if your child does not get stressed out and they are ok with a very late night every now and then

My son attends this school and I would give them 3 stars! The reason I would do this is that I found that providing a good feedback on where things could be improved and providing assistance to online students is not good. They are very strict with deadlines where they can choose not to mark a whole exam or assignment. Even universities don't do this! For example, where I study, they would take 10% off of the mark for that particular task. This school can turn around and tell you that they will not mark your task altogether hence causing your child extreme anxiety, discourage them from trying and disappointments. This is what they termed as "teaching him a lesson"! What an expensive lesson to learn I must say! I thought these decisions are not taking into account that they are dealing with teenagers and a warning should be allowed for the first late submission and penalties should not be to lose the whole mark as this can be damaging to their ATAR outcome rather a portion of the marks should be deducted. On the academic side of things, if your kid wants to go to university then this is the place to go to get prepared for university.

As a former student of Brisbane School of Distance Education, I must confess that the school experience was quite terrible. The teachers showed no interest in teaching, and they rarely assigned any work for students to complete. Their approach seemed to be limited to marking attendance and then dismissing the class. Despite being a straight-A student at this school, I didn't feel the need to study or put in much effort. However, once my parents became aware of the school's quality, they enrolled me in another private distance education program. It was there that I realized how far behind I was compared to my peers, despite my straight-A record at Brisbane School of Distance Education. To any parents reading this, if you are considering enrolling your child in this school, I urge you to think twice before potentially jeopardizing their future. Brisbane School of Distance Education almost had a detrimental impact on my life, but fortunately, thanks to God's mercy, I was able to transfer to a much better private distance education program where I received the necessary support from my teachers.

You need to understand what you're getting into, because BSDE is not like mainstream schooling, but that's the point and where it shines the best. As someone who transferred to this school from The Gap State High, and graduated from BSDE, I can safely say that my experience at BSDE is vastly superior. Distance education is not for everyone, in fact I don't think it works for most people, and putting the blame on the school for distance education not being right for your child seems extremely unfair. The workload is harder absolutely, but if the issues that a student is facing are related to not functioning in a classroom environment, needing more flexibility and most notably, if your child is neurodivergent, has a learning disability or a mental disorder that makes mainstream school harder, then BSDE might be a good fit for you. On its own merits, BSDE does its job extremely well, and the comparisons being made seem unreasonable.

Very hard to get information or assistance from anyone. Staff are poor at responding to email. Website is confusing and it is really hard to get your head around exactly how everything works. It seems like teachers struggle with the fact that they can't see the students, we have a lot of times where the teacher is curt or short with the students because they were not immediately engaging with the class activity. Seems to be little regard given as to why students might be choosing to attend BSDE remotely. I also agree with the other reviews regarding work load, there seems to be more work for some subjects and the assessments across multiple subjects tend to be all due at the same time. We have even had some teachers give the students time away from their subject to work on other subjects because of the work load. This is on top of the added difficulty of working remotely.

if you are thinking of enrolling your child here please re consider a few days ago my guardian received an Email about late school fees that they had already paid when my guardian called BSDE to address the Email a lady was explaining to my guardian what exactly they were paying for in that list was "additional expenses" and when asked what that meant she wasn't able to give a clear answer. the school is constantly pushing a "woke" agenda on students such as constantly asking students what there "pronouns" are 99% of teachers in this school are incompetent and barely speak during lessons also don't believe them when they tell you that you must have a high spec PC to be able to do everything you need for school as most things are done trough a browser [such as google] or Microsoft word. if I could give this place -1000 stars I would

My child just started Year 8. I am not sure what others are saying about it being hard. It is easier and less work than normal school. In fact, I am worried it is not challenging enough, and wish there were advanced classes. Kids have more than enough time for assessments unless they drag their feet. Having deadlines is a good thing to have and will help kids learn the importance of planning. The teachers have been very helpful. I will say that they seem to cancel classes a bit. Of course students have to sign in for every lesson. What is wrong with that? I agree that videoing a kid doing basketball to meet the requirements of PE classes is a bit silly. The requirements should be adjusted to suit remote learning. Overall, it is a good option if your child can't or doesn't want to attend a regular school.

Highly supportive, skilled and professional administrative and teaching team. We can only express praise and grattitude for such a prompt and efficient reply at all stages of the process. Teachers went the extra mile in helping my child improve her literacy and numeracy (especially spelling - thank you!) in a positive environment that helped her to develop a growth mindset. Our only regret is that we could not continue because she made friends and it brought out the best in her. She loved the book she had to read and as a parent, I appreciated the encouragement and accountability she needed to develop! Thank you to the school for suppporting her develop as a learner and to all staff for their hard work and service.

Totally agree that this is the way of the future and I was told 5 years ago at a 100yr old public school by one of my daughters teachers that she had a 'learning disability'; she is now 14 and getting A's in both Maths & English. Not every child responds to the same learning styles. Now public & private schools are businesses & chasing the almighty dollar. Teachers are being told to increasingly 'cram' their students with lessons and curriculum that the 'current' government wants translated to 'numbers' & 'statistics' for its benefit. They also increasingly rely on the 'open book learning' style which is letting so many students fall through the cracks. Is your child one of them?

The customer service is terrible, they have not gotten back to us with login information for my childs email and student learning platform and SCHOOL STARTS TOMORROW. I dont know what kind of crack they are smoking there but apparently its the one that makes them incapable to not doing their jobs. And don't bother calling them because they will sent an automated voice saying 'email us' and guess what, they never email you back. Their website is outdated and they still send pdfs from 5 years ago and their url links that they send you via email dont work (says 404 error not found). Please don't enrol your child here unless you have to.

BSDE is by far the BEST school in the world! I joined last year (grade 9) and I was SUPER shy and had no friends a year later I have a bunch of AWESOME friends, I am the 10-12 student leader, Student Council Communications Officer, involved in Student Times, and help run the 3-6 art, craft, and drama club. I LOVE it!!! The teachers and students are so welcoming and inclusive. They understand internet issues (I have a lot) and some of my classmates are from overseas so they access the lesson via recordings (which I also use if I need to go back and find something). TOTALLY recommend it!

I'm a year 7 student studying in this school and I L O V E I T!!!! The teachers are so nice and hilarious! They really care for their students and like to get to know about them! :3 I've made some incredible friends here and they make me feel happy :D. Being schooled online here taught me how to be independent and make sure that I'm on task and doing what I should be doing. Overall, an amazing school!!! If you are thinking of enrolling your kid here than go do it! :3 (but im still a kid so... my opinion may not always be right for others)

After failures of both public and private traditional high schools to provide a safe and supportive educational environment for our child, who was contemplating leaving school early and in a very dark place, BSDE stepped up. We have the utmost praise and gratitude for the caring and amazing teachers, support staff and community of BSDE, my child has regained their confidence, graduated and is keen to follow their dreams. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you BSDE!

I'm going to be honest with you. I... Hate this place, this zoo, this prison, this reality, whatever you want to call it. I can't stand it any longer. It's the smell, if there is such a thing. I feel saturated by it. I can taste your stink. And every time I do I feel I have somehow been infected by it. It's repulsive, isn't it? I must get out of here. I must get free

Typical Government instituion. Lack Professional Conduct. Waiting 12 weeks for reply and still waiting. They get paid not to reply. Needs a Boot up the bum. and Information Technology Help desk need a new Direction They lack Customer Service. Emailed them same time no reply. Head should roll as leaving student in the dark. Unprofessional.

A lot of people are saying that BSDE is not good for anxiety. I completely disagree. I love BSDE and the convenience. Teachers are 100:/. there for you. i love school now. to all parents who are scared, please know this is good. Coming from someone who couldn't leave the house anymore I now actively participate.

yoyoyoyo, this school is pretty good, except for half the kids being literal psychopathic stupid things, I become egg now, *becomes turtle*, ight i am now mr turtle, hello guys, today we are learning about how to add SMALL NUMBER INTEGERS IN GRADE 8. ridiculous, that stuff is what i learnt in grade 2.

They are the most helpful and supportive team from reception all the way through to all teachers and Guidance Officers....could not recommend this school highly enough..... The way schools are meant to be, your chiild is not just a number but treated as a person, individual and with respect.

Great school if your child doesn't fit into on campus school but can handle the lack of face to face or social aspect of on campus school. One of our children thrived but the other wasn't suited to online. Great staff, helpful and friendly teachers. Definatley recommend giving it a go

My daughter Mel studied there 7 years ago, she did excellent. If your child really wants to learn and avoid bad associations at school grounds, stop looking and enrol your child here. Enrolling your child here will be peace of mind, for your child and you as a parent.

After fighting and years of being lost in the public system, my daughter has surpassed all my expectations.. Excellent School, Excellent Values, Excellent Teachers= Excellent results! Do the Maths. Thank you for helping her find herself again.

Teachers and staff are friendly, and are understanding towards technical issues. However, a lot of homework is given each week and the work itself may not be necessarily helpful towards assessment. Overall, distributed work lacks focus.

I've been n this school since 2012 and I love it I've never known mainstream school so I don't have anything to compare it to the only reason it's not 5 stars is sometimes there's important information that parents don't receive.

Can someone lead me in the right direction please I have contacted the school sent multiple emails no response is enrolment literally an online process and where to go from there please?

I have been in this fine institution since grade 7 and I am currently in year 10. I find the staff to be excellent and helpful. This is definitely the school of the future.

my parents got an email that i have not done my work and its past due when i literally told the teacher i did it and on qlearn it says i have done it aswell

Incredible school! Every staff member goes above and beyond to help their students thrive and succeed! Don't ever hesitate to enrol your child at BSDE

They keep marking you absent even though you join the sessions they ask you to join. And then ask for proof like bunch of children themselves.

Miss Sophie is the best teacher in the world. She is kind and tries hard to make sure we are learning. Yazmyon. 6 years old.

Awesome school, my two older girls go here & I’m so impressed with their grades, I couldn’t ask for a better education.

yo this school is FIRE man ong!! five stars taking ur child here is a very good idea. …

i love this school it its very helpfull i do it myself and some of my friends do to its great

Hi all! King Egg here, I reckon this school is THE best school in Australia hands down.

Worst decision was taking my son to this school, unfair actions were taken on my son.

Doing great things... keep up the great work teachers!! Our kids need you so much

I love the school :) I’ve been here for five years I love it!

Not the best experience, however, pathways team is very good

A great school with good resources and nice teachers.

every time i think of this place i want to scream

very mid school.. but it dose the job five stars

As a student, I love this school!

Good school. SET plan was good.

its ight

Great

pog