Advantages/Disadvantages of Online High Schools

Online high schools are not without challenges. Elizabeth Birr Moje, a professor of education at the University of Michigan who has studied online learning, says “there are some huge advantages” to online high schools, including an individualized pace and better access to multimedia content.

But she points out disadvantages as well…”The disadvantage is that you may not learn to work with other people quite as well.” Some students do report feelings of isolation and state they lack connections with others students in the online environment.
Schools are trying multiple approaches to overcome social challenges. The Florida Virtual School has a model U.N., an online Latin club and a Science Olympiad team that practices online and meets in person before big tournaments. Michigan Virtual University, which has an online K-12 school, offers summer math and science camps. Locally, the online high school, Keystone National High School has photography clubs, year book clubs and other social activities to their keep their online high school students engaged socially.

But not all is lost. In terms of going to high school online, some education researchers believe online students will be better prepared to interact in an increasingly digital world. “What they learn while in the online high school will make them more adaptable thinkers,” says Rand Spiro, a professor in education psychology at Michigan State University.

Online learning, he says, takes students deeper into academic subjects more quickly. This information according to September 2009 article in the Wall Street Journal titled “Currents — Education: Online High Schools Test Students’ Social Skills” by Paul Glader.

In another article, Online Learning: The Pros and Cons of K-12 Computer Courses, the fact that some online learning courses are used (or threatened to be used as replacing teachers with technology) is seen as a clear disadvantage.

…a recent controversial state bill proposed by Idaho schools Superintendent Tom Luna demonstrated what online learning opponents fear: that technology might be used to supplant, rather than supplement, traditional classroom instruction.

According to the National Education Association, SB 1184 would have required four mandatory online classes for Idaho students — tied to an increase in class sizes and paid for by eliminating teaching jobs. While the bill didn’t pass in the State Legislature, Luna said he intends to continue to pursue the measure.

As with any tool, we need to be careful of the use of online learning, in fact, Arne Duncan–the U.S. Secretary of Education, recently wrote in a blog post titled Finding Our True Center that:

The heart of the classroom is found in the unique relationships between students and teachers. In the same way that a family turns a house into a home, a physical and emotional transformation takes place when teachers and students work together in community to reach common goals. We see it in the trust, the expectations, the experiences and the knowledge of every person in the class.

Meanwhile, the systematic and deliberate dismantling of the American education system continues.
“In Milwaukee, 354 teachers are going to be laid off. In Chicago, a thousand.” Teacher Layoffs: What They Mean For You And Your Kids and just days after Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) signed the state’s budget with massive cuts to education funding, Wisconsin’s teachers are on the chopping block.

Additionally, in higher educational areas, budget cuts are resulting in pricing tuition out of range of most people. We know that many California college students are bracing for state budget cuts and that The four state-related universities – Temple, Penn State, Pittsburgh, and Lincoln – suffered 19 percent reductions in support, and the 14 state schools were cut 18 percent. Both numbers are better than the 50 percent reduction that Corbett proposed to help close a $4 billion deficit. Yet both are historic reductions that have left students, parents, and administrators reeling. The devastation on American will be felt for decades. Source: Pa. college students gird for higher tuition

So it looks like regardless of the disadvantages of online high schools, they are going to be a huge part of the future of American kids.