After our presentation on Wednesday, someone had mentioned that Charlotte-Mecklenburg county schools were offering online courses for high school students I decided to give it a look and here is what I found.
The major benefit I found with this e-Learning Academy was that it allowed students to take classes that maybe weren't offered at their school or that they could advance their knowledge to college courses. The e-Learning Academy is part of the North Carolina Virtual Public School and allows students to chose from about 46,000 classes in almost every school district in the state. With this availability, students would be able to take classes to get ahead, or catch up on classes that they might have missed. It also could allow them to get a head start for college courses as well as take classes that are more suited to what they are interested it.
http://www.elearningnc.gov/about_elearning/elearning_news_announcements/charlotte-mecklenburg_schools_ramps_up_new_e-learning_academy/
I like the idea of being able to customize your own curriculum to be able to catch up or take classes you are interested in, for example. That seems to be the benefit of local community colleges too, but I wonder how effective exactly these online schools really are. Are the instructors taking an aggressive approach to communicating with the students, or are they sitting back and letting the students learn on their own while they lecture online or feed them material?
ReplyDeleteI love the advancement in educational opportunities brought on by IT, and the availability to easily access education. On that note, I do often wonder about the people in our country who do not have readily available access to computers, technology, or the internet. Seeing that there has been huge leaps in online education, do you think that those with limited access are at a disadvantage? And what about teacher to student interaction and getting a hands-on education?
ReplyDeleteAnother article I found on topic may further our understanding of this method as well as show more benefits to those of you who are unsure. One particular article in the Charlotte Observer brings new light to this type of high school education.
ReplyDeleteWhile they do admit that this method is not best for every student-it is very useful for those who are greatly motivated and who have work schedules, learning styles or health needs that don't make going to school everyday simple.
They also make the point of the benefit of this type of learning to budget cuts. One case in particular, only two students in one local high school were interested in an Advanced Placement Computer course, it is much more practical to put students like these in a computer lab for their classes rather than putting one teacher on two students. Students who maybe don't have internet access at home are given a chance to perform their school work in a lab in the school itself.
To check out this article for yourself go to http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/04/14/2224198/welcome-to-virtual-high.htmlThe biggest challenge stated here is finding the right mix of technology, human contact, freedom and discipline.