Online Making Headlines

More and more rumblings about online teaching or online applications are being heard in education circles. Just this week the following healines made the news:

• Free Online Tool Help Teachers to Track Student Progress (T.H.E. Jornal) reports on a new tool to help teachers monitor student progress towards classroom and state goals. This free online grade book records comments and student grades compared to state standards. Washington and Oregon standards are completed, California, Alaska, and Idaho will be added next.
• Texas Students, Teachers to Share Materials on iTunes Channel (The Dallas Morning News) explains how students and parents in Texas now have free access to multimedia educational materials that are uploaded by teachers through the Texas iTunes U Channel. It allows teachers to share and comment on each other's videotaped lessons. (This is new to me!);
• Chicago Pilot Program to Extend School Day with Online Instruction (Chicago Tribune) reports on a proposal to extend schooling for 15 elementary schools by adding 90-minutes to the end of each day. The block would be used for math and reading using a combination of online instruction and nonteacher supervision. Union leaders are naturally upset.
• Early Elementary iPad Use Sign of Things to Come? (Converge Magazine) informs us that more than 20 city public schools are testing the new tablet computing device this year to run applications that help early elementary students answer abstract questions, refining their handwriting, take audio notes, and produce their own multimedia projects. The reference is not to fist and second year college students, but early elementary students!

These headlines are mentioned as our family embarked on an interesting experiment this year: total virtual school for our daughter. Instead of a 180 school days, she is enrolled year round. Instead of access to teachers for six hours a day, she has access to teachers 12 hours a day. Instead of a heavy carry bag full of books, everything (literally) is delivered online. Instead of having a close circle of friends (clique), she has met tons of new friends at the local home school group and home school sports clubs. Together with a councilor and teachers, we as parents dictate the pace and schedule. We reward or discipline. We have a choice of a regular pace or accelerated pace, regular curricula or accelerated content.

Come to learn that last year 24,000 students were enrolled full-time in virtual school in our state. These students were supported by over 1,000 full-time teachers. Online schooling (virtual school) are no longer an experiment. It is the fastest growing sector in the education market and soon to be mainstream. Question is, when do you embrace it?
Michael Cordier