What’s Real And What’s Not? The Truth About Online High School

Colorado has become a hot bed for online education with more students than ever, both in K-12 and higher education, jumping onto a virtual campus for their learning.  Fortunately, today’s online high schools are delivering a learning experience equal to―if not better than―what students find in traditional schools. Thanks to technology, research on teaching and learning, and the commitment of educators to help students succeed students are finding cyberschools to be their path to graduation.

Despite the overwhelming growth in the number of online schools and students in Colorado, there are still misconceptions or “myths” about online programs left over from the early days of online learning, according to Provost Academy (www.co.provostacademy.com), a free online high school in Colorado.  Some of those myths include:

Myth: Students are socially isolated, spending hours alone at their desks. Today’s virtual classes are highly engaging with class assignments based on students interacting with each other and the teacher on an ongoing basis. In fact, there may be more opportunity for students and teachers to connect with each other than in a traditional classroom setting, where many students are hesitant to speak up “in public.”

Myth: Online courses are low quality. With the introduction of multimedia learning technologies, experienced online teachers and advanced online learning methodology, online high schools have made huge strides in their ability to both understand how online students learn and how to create rich, dynamic, multimedia courses to support that learning. In fact, the U.S. Department of Education published a report in 2009 showing that online learners performed slightly better on key tests than students in traditional face-to-face classrooms.

Myth: No one holds students accountable for their progress. There may be days when some online students wish this was the case, but no such luck! Today’s online schools have many ways to help students stay on track with their studies and assignments, and teachers see that as an important part of their job. From daily quizzes, to periodic assessments, to meetings between advisors, parent and students, it is expected that everyone involved in that student’s education helps contribute to his or her success. In fact, an online teacher can actually see how long a student has studied a particular subject and gain an understanding of the students comprehension by virtue of the time spent on the subject.

Myth: Online education is a fad. Nationwide the number of high school students taking classes online continues to expand. A recent study by the Sloan Consortium on K-12 online learning shows that two-thirds of school districts with students enrolled in online or blended courses anticipate their online enrollments will grow. With online education and distance learning growing at the college and university levels as well, it makes sense that online learning will play an ever-increasing (and valuable) role for K-12 schools, and especially at the high-school level. The goal will be to continue to build on the successes schools and students currently have with online learning and bring even more opportunity and choice to families seeking the best education for their children.

Online high school can be a great choice for many Colorado students and their families who are looking for an alternative to the traditional school setting, whether because of learning style, life or family circumstances. For many families, overcoming the misconceptions of online education can lead families and their students to a learning alternative that is customized to every learner giving them the freedom to learn at their own pace at the time of their choosing.

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