The days of traditional classroom learning are being challenged by a growing force of online schools in US secondary school systems. Buoyed by the Florida and Michigan Virtual Schools, other states have created their own programs to provide an alternative to face-to-face classrooms for middle and high schools. Michigan was the first state to actually require an online learning experience in order to graduate from high school. It has been followed by New Mexico and Alabama while other states are considering it as well. What is the current state of online education for K-12 students and what are the advantages and disadvantages?

Growth in Online K-12 Education

The Evergreen Education Group reported in a 2009 study of the status of K-12 online education across the country that 45 states have online learning programs that are part or full time, or both.  Washington, D.C. and 24 US states have full time online schools available to everyone while other states have full time schools available to some. The report notes that state virtual schools have roughly 320,000 enrollments each year. Most of these schools are for middle and senior high school students but Florida is now enrolling elementary students in a test program as well. 

The number of online schools and attendees is growing. The Center for Digital Education’s survey of US states revealed that nine states experienced an enrollment growth rate of more than 50 percent in the 2007-08 school year. According to the North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL), K-12 online learning is growing at a rate of 30 percent annually. NACOL also reports that more than 40% of high school and middle school students have expressed interest in taking an online course.

Advantages of Online Programs

Online programs are used to offer curriculum to students that may not be available at local schools, such as foreign languages and advanced placement courses. The North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL) and the Partnership for 21st Century Skills reports that 40 percent of high schools in the US do not offer a full college preparatory curriculum. Rural districts have an especially difficult time getting qualified teachers for a variety of curriculum areas. Online learning may also be used to address overcrowded classrooms in some states.

In the same report NACOL/Partnership for 21st Century

Skills released about virtual schools, they note that 77 percent of businesses use online training so the online schools help prepare students for real world situations. The report claims that online schools promote the development of time management and personal responsibility, information and communications technology (ICT), problem solving, self directed learning and global awareness skills.

In an online learning situation, students are able to complete courses at their own pace and maintain a flexible schedule. Athletes pursuing professional careers, homeschooled students, students with longterm illnesses and those who have failed a class or failed to do well in the traditional setting all can take advantage of online learning courses.

Disadvantages of Online Programs

Of the all the states involved in online education, only six have a law ensuring that online courses cannot be denied to students where academically appropriate. As a result, some school districts provide computers for online classes to students without access to them while others do not. Additionally, students without adequate knowledge of technology cannot take advantage of online schools without help. Most virtual school programs are set up for the technologically savvy student, not for the one who needs to become so.

Students must be willing to stay on task with little supervision and contact instructors via telephone or email when they need extra help. While some studies show that students may feel comfortable asking questions in the more anonymous online classroom, other students prefer face-to-face interaction and attention from professors for learning. Some students are not disciplined enough to complete work without encouragement and reminders from a teacher on a regular basis.

Students in fulltime online programs don't experience the social elements of school such as prom, athletics, graduation or interest clubs. These interactive experiences help shape students into social beings who can function in group situations such as those they may find in the workplace or in their personal lives. Students that have not done well in traditional school situations may have the same kind of problem at home-isolation.

The Vanishing Traditional High School

The US Department of Education did an evaluation and analysis of online learning in 2009. It found that students who took all or part of their classes online performed better, on average, than those taking the same courses through traditional face-to-face instruction. However, instruction combining online and face-to-face elements had a larger advantage than did purely online instruction.

As the US Department of Education found, a blended school situation has superior results to a purely virtual one. One national pilot program in Okaloosa County, Florida combines the benefits of face to face learning with homeschooling situations.  This blended school provides learning opportunities for homeschooled children at a local school site that offers computer courses as well as many others and unique programs at local resource facilities like the zoo. Students benefit from both group face-to-face interaction and individual learning time at home. 

States like Michigan and Alabama that require an online class for graduation are helping their students become technologically savvy, while also providing the face-to-face interaction of traditional classes. Virtual learning is growing at a fast rate, but the benefits of traditional classes have not disappeared yet.