In North Carolina, Virtual Classes Help Schools Offer More (NC)
April 18, 2011
Some schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg District are offering up to 150 of their most motivated and self-directed Juniors and Seniors an opportunity to take their classes online, reports the Charlotte Observer. Although many schools in the district already offer online course work to supplement the regular brick-and-mortar school day, the new experiment will take a classroom completely out of the equation.
The experiment, called the e-Learning Academy, will allow a group of highly motivated students who can make their outside commitments work well with academic progress without the struct ure of an actual classroom.
“I think it depends on the person. Some people like to be at home, sleep in,” said Katie Griffin, an Independence senior who takes psychology online at her school’s computer lab. “That’s not me. I like to be with my friends.”
The online coursework is designed to go over six to eight hours per week, similar to the more traditional approach. According to Sims Reeves, the advisor for the 280 Independence and Olympic High School students who’re taking advantage of the online offerings, the key is logging in every night, just like going to work or going to class.
Online learning is also useful to the school for its flexibility. Administrators can tailor courses for high-achieving students looking to get a leg up at college, as well as those who require remedial help.
16-yea-old Paul Biocco was one of the only two Independence and Olympic High School students who wanted to take an Advanced Placement Computer Science class. The expense of setting up a course for him on site was prohibitive for the already cash-strapped school, so Paul took the course online, working on the coursework in the school’s computer lab, along with a dozen other Independent school students pursuing their own coursework. One of these was 18-year-old Charlie Thach, who’s taking Spanish 3 and several college-level science course including biology and earth science.
This year, 6,453 students are taking courses online , in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, choosing from over 46,000 available virtual classes.