Online+Education

Public schools should be required to offer online K-12 Education.

__INTRO__

Online resources have expanded the opportunities for school districts to reach the individual needs of a diverse group of students. Todays learners are not motivated to learn throught the same old methods that have been used before the internet was created. Using online classes allows students to accomplish goals that could not be attained in a traditional classroom setting. Students could learn at their own pace with the help of a facilitator, learn in a long distance setting if classes are not available in their district, allow a means to teach homebound students who can not physically come to school, and give additional support to homeschooled students. E-learning can offer a very wide variety of learning options. The possibilities are almost endless using anything from live teacher lectures to students using online webquests to search for information to display in a well constructed essay or project. An example would be students using information from podcasts and creating any project virtually (documents, digital storytelling, PowerPoint presentations etc.). Blogging can help the teacher understand where the student is at with the assignments and also for peer review of their classmate’s work. Students that work better in a non-social environment may feel more comfortable chatting/blogging with other students in that course. Those students that like group work and interaction can still have those fundamental attributes applied in their own way to the lesson by differentiating the assignments.

__PRO's__ ·  Allows location not to be a problem · Makes classes more accessible to students without those choices at their schools · Migrant workers continue the tasks regardless where life takes them · Sick and injured students can work on assignments at home  · Homeschooled students have more possibilities · Students need not change schools just to have better opportunities
 * gives students an edge in our increasingly technological society
 * prepares students for online college courses- which are becoming more and more accessible and popular
 * course materials are available at all times
 * less restrictive in terms of class hours
 * students are required to become more organized and responsible for their own work and time
 * allows for credit recovery possibilties- students need not fall behind schedule for graduation
 * The online enviroment makes teachers more approachable. For some students its easier to ask a questions electronically then in a traditional setting.
 * Gives the students an opportunity to go over class materials anytime, anywhere 24 hours a day, any day of the week.( convenience)
 * Soft Spoken students feel able to engage in online discussions.

__STATS__
 * Beginning in April 2006, Michigan makes online learning a requirement for high school graduation
 * Over 75% of colleges and universities in the U.S. offer online degree programs, with online degrees as respected as "on the ground" degrees.

__WEBSITE LINKS/MEDIA__ __[]__ - K12 inc. provides online courses to K-12 students. K12 provides full-time programs through public and private schools, an online private school that can be accessed worldwide, and individual courses.

[]- a video tour of the K12 program explain their approach to learning and the benefits of online learning.

[]- The International Association for K-12 Online Learning website provides the latest news, resources, and upcoming events in the world of K-12 online education.

[|http://www.worldwidelearn.com] - The worlds premier online directory of educaiton. Compelling arguments for attending a cyber classroom.

__VIDEO__

A video by K12 inc. that provides an overview of the benefits of online learning media type="youtube" key="4jU1WujyADk" height="344" width="425"

A day in the life of a student taking online classes in order to be able to better focus on competitive ice skating media type="youtube" key="-o8JRVxoqCk" height="344" width="425"

__CONCLUSION__ The public schools offering online education will allow students to keep up, maintain, and exceed the requirements needed for higher educational future opportunities. The prospect for migrant students not only to stay on task, but have the ability to mix work with school at their own pace is not a stretch for our century. We should be able to meet all students’ needs to best of our abilities. Sick or injured students should be able to keep up with the mainstream class work as well. Regardless of their situation, students should have the opportunity to expand their horizons to subjects that are not offered in there local school. Does limiting the amount of classes a student can take online help the student? We are lifelong students and if younger generations want to take classes online for whatever realistic and logical reason, we should support that growth to continue their education.