Is Distance Learning Feasible For K-12 Schools?
What's All the Hype?
The "Digital Revolution" is causing a stir! Not just in the workplace, but also in our schools. Educators are challenged to provide unique educational opportunities that offer distance learning within a limited, and sometimes straining budget. As a result, many schools are beginning to establish distance education programs.
Distance learning takes place when a teacher and student are separated by physical location and technology is used to bridge the gap.
Distance learning, while still in its infancy, has been receiving a lot of press at both the university and adult education level. In some instances, distance education programs can reduce the overall cost of traditional education over a five-year period by as much as forty percent.
Yes, distance education cuts cost; but is it effective? Does it provide students with quality educational opportunities? In the future, will most teachers teach from a distance?
Why Teach From A Distance?
The same two key factors that make the Internet invaluable for corporations do the same for education. These variables are time and geography. Storefronts can now be open 24 hours a day and sell anything at any time. The same is true of distance learning. We can now teach anyone, at anytime, anywhere.
Also, with the increasing trend towards home schooling, distance learning may create solutions for home-schooled students.
Distance learning can help with staffing shortages. A great number of schools are in the process of forming distance learning partnerships with other schools and outside agencies. These types of Arrangements call for one teacher to be hired for position that is difficult to find qualified teachers for. These teachers work at a central location and have class loads sometimes twice that of a traditional position. These teachers work with students from dozens of school at once.
Imagine the possibilities of such a scenario. There would be less problems finding the candidates to staff courses that are difficult to find qualified staff to teach. Most upper level secondary administrators would agree that it is tough to run AP classes when you have less than 5 students that qualify for such advanced course. Distance learning centers can now service these students. It is also cost effective in the long run.
Is It Effective?
More people fear the existence of virtual K-12 schools now more than ever. It's not really a matter of whether an effective, scaleable model will ever come about. It's just a matter of when. So will this be the downfall of traditional K-12 education programs? The real question is: "Are virtual schools better than what we have now?" Our answer is: "No!"
The traditional classroom, while not perfect be any means, provides preparation for what was recently stated by CEOs of the top fortune 500 companies. When they were asked, "What is the single most important quality of an employee that you can not teach them?" By a landslide the two most prevalent answers were loyalty and interpersonal communication skills (Money Magazine, 2000). In addition, a great deal of the literature in the field of psychology has condemned the anonymity of the Internet and the affect that it has on childrens' social skills. This raises critical questions regarding the effectiveness of teaching and learning via the Internet and the long tern effects on interpersonal communication skills.
However, the Internet is here to stay and as with any method for delivering instruction, we encourage the use of distance learning in moderation. Distance education can provide students with certain opportunities that the traditional classroom could only dream; we do believe that it should be used as a supplement at the K-12 level. Traditional classroom settings offer a social aspect to learning that is benign in most distance learning situations.
As for the cognitive aspect, research comparing distance learning to traditional instruction clearly indicates that teaching at a distance can be as effective as traditional instruction, "When the method and technologies used are appropriate to the instructional tasks, peer interactions, and mechanism for assessment." (Moore & Thompson 1990; Verduin & Clark 1991
Managing The Technologies!
More people fear the existence of virtual K-12 schools now more than ever. It's not really a matter of whether an effective, scaleable model will ever come about. It's just a matter of when. So will this be the downfall of traditional K-12 education programs? The real question is: "Are virtual schools better than what we have now?" Our answer is: "No!"
The traditional classroom, while not perfect be any means, provides preparation for what was recently stated by CEOs of the top fortune 500 companies. When they were asked, "What is the single most important quality of an employee that you can not teach them?" By a landslide the two most prevalent answers were loyalty and interpersonal communication skills (Money Magazine, 2000). In addition, a great deal of the literature in the field of psychology has condemned the anonymity of the Internet and the affect that it has on childrens' social skills. This raises critical questions regarding the effectiveness of teaching and learning via the Internet and the long tern effects on interpersonal communication skills.
However, the Internet is here to stay and as with any method for delivering instruction, we encourage the use of distance learning in moderation. Distance education can provide students with certain opportunities that the traditional classroom could only dream; we do believe that it should be used as a supplement at the K-12 level. Traditional classroom settings offer a social aspect to learning that is benign in most distance learning situations.
As for the cognitive aspect, research comparing distance learning to traditional instruction clearly indicates that teaching at a distance can be as effective as traditional instruction, "When the method and technologies used are appropriate to the instructional tasks, peer interactions, and mechanism for assessment." (Moore & Thompson 1990; Verduin & Clark 1991)
The Bottom Line!
Distance Education programs have the potential to be extremely effective. Effective programs begin with careful planning and a focused understanding of student needs. Appropriate technology can only be selected once these elements are understood in detail. Quality programs take time to blossom; they rely on consistent and integrated efforts of administrators, faculty, students, and support staff.