Parent Quick-Start Guide

In order to coordinate and honor the economic commitments from and to all parties involved, Edefy requires a minimum threshold of 8 enrolled students to secure a teacher under contract. As soon as a teacher secures 8 enrolled students, the Pod can activate for the school year. Pods may enroll additional students up to a maximum of 12. The Edefy app helps coordinate and automate the many logistical components involved in launching and maintaining successful Pods at a given location. To get the best results, please read and follow this quick-start guide:

1. Download the Edefy App at edefy.us. 
2. Create an account Create an account (only one parent needs to do this – you can add secondary parents to your profile later) 
3. Add children to your profile Press the Profile button to create your family profile and add any children you’re considering for Pod schooling.
   1. Preferred program While adding your child’s information, you will identify a preferred Program Type for each of your children. Though specific preferences are not guaranteed per Site, this information is helpful to your Host and potential teachers for determining the demand for program types at a given Site.
      1. Hybrid programs are generally 2-3 days with the teacher on Site, the other days at home
      2. Full Time equivalent programs will be either 4 or 5 days per week with the teacher on Site
4. Explore Sites Press the Explore button on the bottom menu. Here you can locate and view Sites on the map. You may have been invited by a Site Admin in which case the invitation to that Site will be waiting for you to accept. Browse available Host Site locations near you to see which location has the program type and teacher options you desire. A Site may not have any chosen teachers yet.
5. Join a Waitlist Join the Waitlist of the Site or Sites you are interested in. Hosts may choose to approve their Waitlists or allow joining automatically. Getting on the Waitlist gives you messaging access to that Site’s teachers, Administrators, and other families. You can also invite teacher candidates and other families to the Site. The more students interested, the more demand it creates for teachers and the more Pods that can be launched at the Site within the desired grade bands.
6. Teacher Selection Hosts will review teacher applications and choose which ones they would like to start forming Pods. Teacher choices are influenced by the community. If you know a teacher, tell them about Edefy, invite them to the Site, leave a positive review on their profile, and even message the Host directly to draw the Host’s attention to that candidate and improve the teacher’s chances of being selected. 
7. Enrollment After teachers are selected, you can enroll directly to the teacher you prefer at the Site. The teacher must accept your enrollment before your child is added to their Pod. A teacher or Site Admin might also invite you to a teacher/Pod. You can accept this invitation and complete the enrollment steps to secure your child’s placement in the Pod. If you are one of the first 8 students to join a Pod, you will receive a discount on your enrollment fee. Your child is pre-enrolled in the Pod until the Pod reaches the minimum number of students needed for enrollment. 
8. Pod Launch The main Pod objective is to get 8 pre-enrolled students per teacher to secure the teacher contract and activate the Pod for the school year. Once a Pod is launched with 8 pre-enrolled students, additional students may enroll directly up to a maximum of 12 students per Pod.
9. Pod changes Over time, more students and teachers may join the Site, shifting the variables for optimal Pod arrangements. Edefy makes it easy for all parties to see these improving options and for students to change Pod assignments per Site IF the family, the affected teachers, and the Host Admin are in agreement and approve the changes.

FAQ’s

1. What is Pod-Schooling? Should I register as Homeschooled?
   • Pod Schooling is a form of private education where families register their children as homeschooled, group them together, then hire a teacher directly to guide the students’ learning. Pod schooling is increasingly recognized as able to deliver better student outcomes than schools costing multiples more. Please follow your state guidelines for registering as Homeschooled. Pod teachers can help with this.  Helpful resource: https://hslda.org/legal
2. Does it cost anything to Join the Waitlist at a Site? 
   • No, joining a Waitlist is free. The Waitlist allows the demand from families to be matched with a supply of teachers and rooms at each Site.
3. How much does Pod-Schooling Cost? 
   • The calculated subscription cost is displayed on each Host Site page once the Host Admin has determined the type of program they are able and willing to Host at their Site. Edefy calculates the monthly subscription per Site based on a variety of variables, including the program type, teacher pay, room fees, the geographic cost of living, etc.  Assuming a full-time equivalent program of 4 or 5 days per week, Pod schooling will generally cost something similar to the lowest cost private school in your area. Hybrid programs cost correspondingly less, according to the number of days meeting with the teacher on Site.
4. How are payments made?
   • Enrollment requires a credit card on file which will be charged automatically each month. The displayed annual fixed cost of the selected program and Site will be divided by the number of months remaining in the standard 12 month payment plan running from July through June. Note: Late enrollment will mean the fixed annual payment is divided by a lower number of months – the total cost remains the same but the monthly payment will increase accordingly.
5. Are discounts or scholarships available? What are Rewards? 
   • Pod Schooling is a bit different. Since families share the cost of the Pod, discounts provided to one family would increase the cost to the other families. However, the listed subscription cost can be reduced by accumulating Rewards over time. All families who are enrolled in a Pod at a Site have the opportunity to earn Rewards that accumulate based on the success of the Site throughout the year. Rewards accumulate per Site any time a Student is added to a Pod beyond the minimum threshold of 8. This means when everyone invites their friends and participates in filling the Pods, they can substantially reduce their monthly payments throughout the year.
6. What if I don’t see a Site with the program type I’m looking for? 
   • You should still add your children to your profile and invite friends to join the Edefy App. Families on Edefy will be notified when new Sites and programs launch nearby. Also, the more families looking for Pods in an area, the more teachers and Hosts will want to meet the demand. 
7. What if I enroll my child to a teacher but we don’t get the minimum 8 students required to launch our Pod? 
   • You will be released from your contract and refunded your enrollment deposit less a $15 processing fee.
8. What if I enroll my child with one teacher, but later it becomes apparent that a different teacher’s Pod is a better fit? 
   • Families may request a Pod change between activated Pods at the same Site. Teachers or the Host Admin may also initiate these changes. It is normal for Pods to undergo changes in their composition over time as more families join a Site and the Pods are optimized for the grade ranges of students, best fit for teachers, etc. But don’t worry, any Pod changes have to be accepted by the teacher AND the family, and depending on settings, the Host Admin too. Once the required approvals are received, the change will take effect.
9. What if I have to withdraw my child from my Pod after enrollment? 
   • Withdrawal requires three (3) months notice during which the 3 additional subscription payments are required whether the child remains in the Pod or not. This provides the other members of the Pod time to find a replacement so that the withdrawal does not affect the economics for everyone else in your Pod and at your Site.
10. Are absences penalized? 
    • While monthly subscription payments are due whether the child attends or not, each teacher is motivated to support each child in their Pod whether the child is in class or not. This creates flexibility for families who travel or have health conditions that necessitate periodic absences throughout the year. If parents communicate upcoming absences, the teacher can help equip the child with take-home materials to help keep the child up to speed while away.
11. What grade levels does Edefy serve? 
    • Currently Edefy accommodates student profiles from grades K through 6th.
12. How many students can be in a Pod? 
    • Generally Pods will require a minimum of 8 students to secure a teacher under contract and activate for the year. Additional students can be added at any time up to a maximum of 12 students. Once multiple Pods are activated at a Site, Edefy allows for some additional flexibility. To honor all economic agreements between families, teachers and the Host, Pods require a minimum average of 8 students per teacher at a given Site. This means if some Pods activate with higher numbers of students, other Pods may be activated with less. The true minimum is 6 students. The number needed to activate and stay active is posted on each Pod and may shift over time as Site variables change.
13. What curriculum do Edefy Pods use?
    • A Host may predetermine the curriculum used at their Site, or Verathon may work with Hosts to preload a suggested curriculum stack. Alternatively, once Pods are formed and launched in the spring, the desires of the teachers and families can be surveyed during the summer and an ultimate decision made prior to the start of the school year in the fall. Families with strong preferences are also encouraged to message their teachers directly.
      Whatever curriculum is decided on, teachers will generally begin to supplement individual student needs once the school year begins. There are plenty of quality curriculums to choose from and education research is clear that curriculum choice is less important than having a quality, dedicated teacher invested personally in each child’s learning.
14. What standardized testing is used?
    • Students should be registered as homeschooled according to local state regulations and teachers will ensure students are registered for required standardized testing. Edefy’s academic leadership partner VerathonED also encourages all teachers on Edefy to perform various assessments on each student throughout the year as one of many forms of data and feedback provided to parents.
15. What is the vetting process for teachers?
    • Teachers are responsible for submitting their resumes, gathering external references and internal user reviews on their Teacher Profile which results in a “Profile Rating” and is available for families and Hosts to review prior to selection and enrollment. Teachers may also attach a background check to their profile. If Hosts or families wish to vet teachers further, they are welcome to message the teacher through the Edefy App.
16. How should parents address concerns or complaints with teachers?
    • Concerns should first be communicated directly with the teacher, in writing via the messaging tool in the Edefy App. They should be additionally captured through the transparent monthly feedback surveys circulated to families through the Edefy platform. If a complaint needs to be escalated, it should be directed to the Host Site Admin. Teachers who receive broadly negative reviews from a majority of their families will be flagged for replacement as the Pod teacher (subject to replacement candidates being available). Individual families who find themselves at irreconcilable odds with a teacher may wish to provide their 3 month notice as part of the withdrawal process.

Introduction to Pod Schooling

Pod Schooling is a personalized form of private education where families register their children as home-schooled, group them together, then hire a teacher directly to instruct and guide the learning.

The Pod School model can be understood as a kind of “Professional Homeschool” in that it combines the per-student personalization and family-like atmosphere of homeschool cooperatives with the professional instruction, guidance, and assessment abilities of a trained and qualified teacher. Pod Schooling is often recognized for its ability to deliver a premium experience and better education outcomes than typical private schools at an equivalent or lower cost to families.

Historically, this model of education has been predominantly limited to affluent families with the extraordinary time and financial resources to organize, fund, launch and manage them from year to year.

Edefy is making Pod Schooling available to communities everywhere by organizing and automating the complex logistics involved. 

Edefy limits Pods to 12 students per teacher, because the foundation of Pod Schooling’s effectiveness is the frequency of individual interaction between the teacher and a student. Children are then freed from a predetermined learning progression designed for the collective average and are instead able to learn according to their unique gifts and abilities. While schools everywhere like to say their instruction is “personalized”, as the number of students per teacher inevitably moves beyond 12 and approaches even 16-18 students, let alone the typical 20-30 students or more, teachers are forced to switch from individual student attention back to a standard mass instruction approach.

Pod Schooling’s personalization advantage is reinforced by the teacher being employed by and accountable to the parents directly. Each individual student represents a paying “client” for the teacher. This means the teacher is primarily incentivized to drive the best outcome possible for each of their students. Contrast this to the typical school model, where teachers are employed by the administration of the school and are primarily incentivized to keep the administration happy by following centralized mandates and programming.

While every Pod that forms is unique, the broader benefits to Pod Schooling include:

• Direct Accountability – Teachers who serve families directly are strongly incentivized to deliver quality student outcomes that match parent expectations. The higher trust and fully transparent relationships that form naturally increase teacher-parent communication, feedback, and collaboration around each child’s learning journey.
• Greater Personalization – Low teacher to student ratios (12 student max) enable highly personalized instruction and individualized learning pathways, freeing students from arbitrary one-size-fits-all pacing. Children progress according to individual abilities and needs, allowing a single Pod to effectively serve a range of ages/grades.
• Better Community Relationships – The small group learning environment promotes fast friendships among student peers and participating families, largely reducing the negative peer interactions children frequently experience in typical schooling models. 

The most commonly reported effects on students who switch to this model of education include:

• Improved mental and emotional health, social confidence and friendships

• Superior academic outcomes

• Greater joy for learning

• Deepened character formation

Try Pod Schooling on Edefy and get your child the attentive care they deserve.

About / Contact

What is Edefy? 

We built Edefy to bring personalized, private education to the world through Pod Schooling.

The Edefy mobile application allows families to match their children directly with preferred, values-aligned teachers at nearby Host Sites. Through Edefy, communities everywhere are free to organize and rapidly launch their own education solutions that can and often do outperform traditional public and private school models.

Historically, Pod Schools have been limited to families with the extra time, capital, and social networks necessary to establish, subsidize and operate them. Edefy was created to simplify and automate the process, making this powerful form of education available to communities everywhere.

Furthermore, Edefy can unlock significant economic value for families. Edefy allows families to pool their resources in order to hire the type of exceptional teachers who could work at private schools costing many times more than an Edefy Pod School.

Download Edefy to your mobile device from the App Store or Google Play. Search – edefy

Feel free to email questions to support at [email protected] or text us at ‪(503) 308-1449

What is VerathonED?

VerathonED is a non-profit 501c3 that champions Pod Schooling and advises and supports communities in the formation and ongoing management of their Pods and Pod School. Having previously managed Pods directly, VerathonED has been chosen by Edefy to provide optional council, experienced leadership, and Administrative support to the Hosts and Teachers leading the Pod Schooling revolution on the Edefy platform. 

VerathonED’s support is purely optional, and communities are welcome to establish their Pod-Schools however they prefer. But for any Hosts or Teachers looking for help, VerathonED will help provide default recommendations and guidance for curriculum options, programming scope and sequence, various supplemental resources, assessment testing, state-by-state regulatory considerations, and other best practices from the world of Pod Schooling.

VerathonED will begin curating and creating information and resources at verathoned.com which will also be made available through the Edefy App.

Feel free to email questions to [email protected]