Latest trends in online learning
Yet another article about online learning, this time in the Christian Science Monitor. There isn’t too much radically new, but it does reflect this continues to be an increasing trend. The Florida Virtual High School is growing at the phenomenal pace of 40-60% per year, and now Michigan is poised to be the first state to require that every student take at least one online course before graduating from high school.
There’s still some muddy thinking floating around out there, though. One expert is quoted as thinking that virtual classes “…could help ease the nationwide shortage of math and science teachers.” All of the online classes referred to in the story use real teachers, so I don’t see how that affects the overall shortage problem. Unless, of course, the online teacher supports more students than a face-to-face teacher - which they don’t in any (good) program I’ve seen.
I’ll be really happy when we have stamped out the notion that online learning somehow costs less than classroom learning.