By: Stephanie Banchero and Stephanie Simon
“My Teacher is an App” is an interesting article published in the Wall Street Journal. This article discusses the pros and cons of a new concept of education - virtual classrooms.
The traditional schools, classrooms, and the way students are learning are changing in some areas. “States and districts nationwide are launching online public schools. Other states and districts are bringing students into brick-and-mortar schools for instruction that is largely computer-based and self-directed.” The article goes on to mention schools in states such as Florida, Virginia, Georgia, and Idaho that require students in high school to take online classes. In fact, “thirty states now let students take all of their classes online.” This appears to be a growing trend around our country. “An estimated 250,000 students are enrolled in full-time virtual schools.” In addition, “more than two million pupils take at least one class online.” In some areas, the state and local districts oversee the online schools. In other areas, companies are hired to run the online schools. Two such companies are K12 Inc. of Herndon, Virginia and Connections Academy in Baltimore, Maryland. This change in education in some areas is a result of various factors, including: budget problems, dropout rates, dissatisfaction of schools in general, and the inability of the nation’s schools to compete with other countries. “Advocates say that online schooling can save states money, offer curricula customized to each student and give parents more choice in education.” Critics “have found that students enrolled full-time in virtual schools score significantly lower on standardized tests, and make less academic progress from year to year. They worry that kids in online classes don’t learn how to get along with others or participate in group discussions.” As a result, many experts recommend “hybrid schools which blend online study with face-to-face interaction with teachers.” In some areas, for example, “students complete most lessons online but come into class for teacher support and hands-on challenges.”
Not only does the virtual classroom change how students learn, it also changes the way teachers conduct their teaching. Email, text messaging, phone calls, and online lectures are all examples of how teachers have had to change the way they teach and communicate in virtual classrooms. In addition, “an online teacher can supervise more than 250 students, since he or she doesn’t have to write lesson plans and most grading is done by computer.” So, the personal relationship that teachers traditionally establish with their students is limited.
For some states and local districts, budget issues are forcing schools to move from a traditional classroom to one that provides online classes. Potential savings for large state districts are amazing. In Georgia, for example, savings from educating students online is about 60%. “Florida saves $1,500 a year on every student enrolled online full time.” However, online schools can cause financial strains for individual school districts since the law requires districts to send those students who attend online schools their share of local and state tax dollars to their “cyberschool.” For example, Spring Cove District in Pennsylvania had to send $340,000 to the cyberschool that 43 of their students transferred to this year. Other companies are making financial gains as a result of online schools. K12 and Connections Academy are two companies that have seen revenue growth during the past four years since their full-time enrollment has increased.
With all that said, “academic struggles have followed the rapid growth” of online schools. Using a double bar graph to illustrate data from a 2010 Colorado study of standardized test scores, it was discovered that students in third through tenth grades enrolled in a full-time cyberschool “consistently lag behind those of non-online students, even after controlling for economic status and other variables.” Still, parents and students agree that there are benefits to online schools. They like the flexibility and media options available to students.
After reading this article, I believe that there is a strong possibility that more and more school districts will begin to offer online schools or classes in the future. However, I believe that there are issues that still need to be addressed to make online schools successful in this competitive educational world. One of the benefits of a traditional classroom is the interpersonal skills that are learned through interactions with fellow classmates. These are skills that will be vital to students as they enter the work force one day. Another issue that concerns me is the fact that many students from low socioeconomic households do not have a computer at home or Internet service. Moreover, many of these students do not have access to computers, or the Internet. Some students simply do not have a way to get to a public library to gain access to a computer to complete their assignments. Most students rely on the public school bus program to transport them to and from their traditional school.
I do realize that the educational institution is changing. There is a push toward taking advantage of the media available to help students be able to keep up with other nations. However, I think that schools can be just as successful by simply allowing students access to computers and virtual learning projects that are conducted in the traditional classrooms. I think the collaboration techniques with their peers and guidance of teachers are important attributes of the classroom experience.
No comments:
Post a Comment