^ So I guess I need to give you all a short little bio in order for you all to understand what I even mean. So when I was younger I was picked on, and because of it my parents and grandparents thought it would be a good idea to homeschool me. Worst decision ever. I know homeschooling works for a lot of people, but for a thirteen year old with no motivation it was the worst route I could have taken. I got terribly behind, and to make matters worse I was forced to move away. My family realized that homeschooling was not the right form of education for me and enrolled me in a public high school. I was doing great! I was getting all A's and B's and I suddenly felt confident in myself because I could see my own potential and what I could do. I was making friends for the first time in my life, and I was slowly getting my motivation back. All of that seemed to completely shatter- No, burst into flames when I learned that my entire 9th grade year ( the high school year that I homeschooled) had no credits to transfer over. I was in 10th grade but I had zero high school credits. This. Is. A. Nightmare. That year I took two semesters of Credit Recovery as well as summer school over the break. I just graduated my 11th year ( I took a semester of credit recovery), and in just a little over a month I will be returning to school as a senior. Everything that happened with my credits seemed to have discouraged me. It has killed my confidence, and I suddenly feel like a huge failure. There is no possibility of me graduating on time, especially since I only have a year and I won't be able to do summer school my senior year ( seeing as I would be graduating just two weeks before summer school even starts.) My school counselor told me that I should go to a special school for high schoolers who have failed a class, been expelled, skipped too many times, etc. When I asked her about the overall scene there ( the kids I would be forced to interact with on a day to day basis, the teachers, etc) she seemed very hesitant. It would seem that the kids there aren't going to be the best crowd ( if you know what I mean)... and that frightens me. ( I'm the complete opposite of most of the kids that will be attending). My mother is a single mom and she works very hard. Because of this she doesn't exactly have the time to meet with my counselor or talk with them over the phone. I can't blame her. She doesn't have the time, and I hate how stressed out she is. The thing is... she can't support me the way I need to be supported. I'm so sick of letting my education drop. My education seems to be in the backseat... and I hate that more than anything. My dream has always been to go to college. I want to get the education that my mother wasn't able to have. My grandparents decided to take matters into their own hands and they are looking things up about the GED. In two months I will be 18, and they feel as though High School has only brought me heartache and discouragement. They feel as though it would be awesome if I could get my GED and go ahead and enroll myself in a tech school. I could learn to drive, get a job, and be ahead- but the thing is... People with a GED really have a bad rep. I'm terrified of people getting the wrong idea about me and how determined I am to succeed. They have three more options ( two of them include me moving hours and hours away from my mother so that I will be back in my hometown with my grandparents). 1. Get my GED and enroll myself at a tech school so that I can get my GPA up before enrolling into a university. 2. Finish out my public schooling there ( in my hometown and away from my mother) and stay the extra year and a half in high school that it will take to get all of my credits. ( This will make me almost twenty by the time I graduate high school.) 3. Stay with my mother here and go to the "special" school in order to graduate ( however graduating on time is not guaranteed). 4. Move in with my grandparents and homeschool again while enrolling myself in a few classes at the tech school.

Please give me your honest opinions! I've never been selfish before, and the thought of leaving my mother alone and away from all of her family KILLS me. I need to do what is right for me and my future though. I'm sick of sitting back and watching my life get away from me. If you have taken the GED please tell me what it is like and if potential bosses have taken you seriously. Thank you all for reading this super long explanation. Any feedback is very appreciated.