Online High School
Jay Lee
Introduction
With the advent of the internet and affordable PCs in every classroom and household, educators have been looking to use the internet as a new avenue to expand educational opportunity. Online education is still relatively new but it is a growing trend. Many of the higher learning institutions have begun to welcome the internet and students are taking this opportunity to learn without freedom of time and space. Internet allows people to overcome geographical barriers and allows greater access to the information. People of various cultures and experiences are able to collaborate and work together without regard to race, gender or social status. Online programs that offer high school diplomas allow greater freedom and choices for people who are looking for alternative ways of getting their high school diploma.
Why People Dropout?
According to the figures compiled by the Center for Education Statistics (NCES), “from 1990 through 2001, between 347,000 and 544,000 students in grades 10 through 12 left school each year without successfully completing a high school program.” On average 86.5 % of the students completed high school in 2001 (Dropout Rates in the Unites States: 2001) (See Table A). We, educators, know that we have serious problems with people dropping out of high school and our political leaders trying to come up with ways in which we can help students complete high school requirements. President Bush’s No Child Left Behind initiatives did little to lower dropout rates for the African-American and Hispanic communities.
There are numerous issues and reasons behind high school student dropout rates. We have numerous special education students who have learning disabilities and don’t get the necessary help they need to finish high school. We have teenagers who get pregnant and drop out. “Students living in low-income families were six times more likely than their peers in high-income families to drop out of high school” (Dropout Rates in the Unites States: 2001) (See Figure 1). Statistically, highs school dropouts earn less than the high school graduates, so it is important that we, educators, assure, high school graduation fro the majority of students to guarantee them more viable economic futures. Therefore, an alternative way of earning a high school diploma that is convenient and allows people to juggle a career and a family is an important service. I am proposing online high school as one important alternative.
Why Online High School?
Online high schools are becoming more and more common throughout the United States. Online education is a great option for many, whether students need to study from home to catch up on credits, tend to health concerns, or balance school with work. Online high schools can be a great choice for teens and others who need alternative ways to receive high school diploma. Distance learning through the internet is evolving as one of the preferred method of working toward the high school diploma.
Online education has tremendous opportunity to grow. Many of our traditional high schools will be offering online courses in next two decades (Nixon, 2005). Internet access is integrating parts of our lives and it has become an important learning tool. So, it is only natural that people use the internet to work on their college degree as well as high school diploma. Kids are growing up with technology and it is an important part of their everyday life.
Because online education is many ways different from the traditional educational system, it requires people to possess certain traits. Online students must be willing participant in the learning process. Most online education is optional to students and they are signing up on their own initiative. People who are returning to school to gain high school diplomas are motivated and committed to finishing the job. Most likely, many are working and may desire alternative ways to getting GED or high school diplomas. Online high school breaks the traditional limit put on education regarding time and space by allowing the learning process to continue anywhere in the world.
Advantages of Online High School
In online high schools, students can work at their own pace and are able to arrange classes around their life, work and commitments. Online high school has limited distractions and allows the student to focus on curriculum. Students can pick and choose subjects that interest them. Students can get their diploma at their own pace allowing traditional students to graduate before their peers. Students can develop personal identity away from pressures of the traditional high school culture (Littlefield, 2005).
Disadvantages of Online High School
There are some disadvantages to online high school also. Students miss out on traditional high school activities such as sporting events, senior prom, school dances, etc. Some students may have hard time understanding subject matter due to lack of face to face instruction with a teacher. Some may not have the motivation or the maturity to focus on completing class assignment. Online high school lacks personal touches thus some students may feel isolated and have difficult time dealing with others. Also students must be careful in their selection of programs. Private online high school program may not be accredited and may not be accepted by universities and businesses. In addition, students may find it financially difficult to acquire required technical equipments and pay for tuition and curriculum cost (Littlefield, 2005).
Who can benefit From Online High School?
Overall, distance education is one option for many who cannot go to school due to physical ailment. In my class, I have a girl who is receiving chemo-therapy and is bound to a wheelchair. She misses part or all of her classes many days and I can see that she is having a hard time focusing in class when she is there. Students with physical ailments can benefit from online education and still be able to graduate on time with their friends.
People who dropped out of high school for various reasons can gain valuable tools to complete high school degree or its equivalent. They can work the classes around their career or family commitments. Online high school is flexible and that may be its greatest asset. Most of the people who are returning are either juggling career or/and family life. The online high school offers not only flexible time but it also has allowed people to take the class from anywhere in the world as long as they have access to the computer with internet connection. With new technology developing everyday, it wonÂ’t be much long before a PC becomes obsolete and we will be able to connect to the internet through the portable devices such as a cell phone or PDA.
At risk students who are falling behind can work at home and catch up on their missing credits, either preparing for high school exit exam or graduate on time with fellow students in traditional classroom setting. Online high school is option to going to night school or being sent to alternative high school. Online high school will allow at risk students to make up credits and continue their highs school career without too much interruptions.
Students in rural areas that lack some of the advanced courses can take online classes regardless of geography. Rural schools may not offer certain classes because of budget restraints and online high school is a way for students to get the classes they want even though it is not being offered at their traditional school. Students can take classes that fit their personal interests as well as meet the academic needs. Students can design a curriculum based on their needs and interests.
Newly arrived immigrant students are limited by language barrier as well as culture shock that tragically allows them to dropout because they lose interest in school they do not feel part of. Some get involved with wrong crowds and are expelled. Many have simply fallen through the cracks. Language barrier can be overcome through the use of the online high school. Korean students that IÂ’ve dealt with have good writing and reading skills that makes them ideal online students. What they lack is their ability to listen and speak English correctly. They grew up with technology in their home country and use of the internet is very familiar ground for them. Online high school is less intimidating and allows students to express themselves without fear of being ridiculed for their lack of language skills.
Conclusion
High school dropouts are more likely to be unemployed and the rate is higher among African-American and Hispanics compared to the Whites (High School Dropout). Online high school is easy, convenient and user friendly to people who have multiple commitments but still wish to finish high school requirements. There are endless opportunities for the online high school to grow. Internet offers flexibility in time and place and can expand academic options for many high school students as well as for adults. Online education is mostly self paced and offers learning at their own convenience. Adults can use the internet to get their high school diploma or prepare for GED. Online high school will expand and with it must come new regulations to make sure the people who are taking these courses are getting their moneyÂ’s worth. Internet has and will continue to have impact on the way we learn and educate ourselves.
People who are taking online classes have a chance to develop working relationship with others. Online community within the online high school is unique. Most students will be working at their own pace and all the interactions between the students and the teacher will take place through the internet. Some might be able to work with others for the common goal of receiving high school diplomas. Online high school allows people of wide range of interests to collaborate academically as well as become each otherÂ’s support system.
Table A. Percentage of 15- through 24-year-olds who dropped out of grades 10–12 in the past year (event dropout rate), percentage of 16- through 24-year-olds who were dropouts (status dropout rate), and percentage of 18- through 24-year-olds who completed high school (status completion rate), by race/ethnicity: October 2001
Dropout and completion measures Total 1 White, non-Hispanic Black, non-Hispanic Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander
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Event dropout out 5.0 4.1 6.3 8.8 2.3
Status dropout rate 10.7 7.3 10.9 27.0 3.6
Status completion rate 2 86.5 91.0 85.6 65.7 96.1
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, October 2001.
Figure 1. Event dropout rates of 15- through 24-year-olds who dropped out of grades 10–12, by family income:1 October 1972 through October 2001
1Low income is defined as the bottom 20 percent of all family incomes for the year; middle income is between 20 and 80 percent of all family incomes; and high income is the top 20 percent of all family incomes. See appendix C of this report for a more detailed definition of family income.
NOTE: Data on family income are missing for 1974. Estimates for years 1987 through 2001 reflect new editing procedures instituted by the U.S. Census Bureau for cases with missing data on school enrollment items. Numbers for years 1992 through 2001 reflect new wording of the educational attainment item in the CPS. Numbers for years 1994 through 2001 reflect changes in the CPS due to newly instituted computer-assisted interviewing and the change in population controls used in the 1990 Census-based estimates, with adjustment for undercounting in the 1990 Census. See appendix C for discussions of changes to the CPS implemented in 1987, 1992, and 1994.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, October 1972–2001.
References
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Littlefield, J. (n.d.). Pros and cons of earning your high school diploma online. Retrieved Oct. 29, 2005, from Distance Learning Web site: http://distancelearn.about.com/od/virtualhighschools/a/hsprosandcons.htm.
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