Michigan Online Learning and Section 21F

It is so interesting reading of how far along other state's, such as Tennessee, are in regards to adopting online courses and virtual learning. Prior to this course, I thought Michigan was behind all other states as a result of the economy and how the educational system is portrayed to the public, and even their own employees!
In regards to the last scenarios and the reasoning behind virtual learning; being able to learn about concepts and content not accessible to those 5 years ago, is a dramatic improvement in the educational world! Additionally, the virtual learning forces students to seek professionals out for their assistance, which you mentioned! The skills used in seeking professionals are top priorities for employers when looking for future workers.  Virtual learning allows students to leap in whatever direction they are interested in at an age where their mind is so creative with the ability to critically analyze subjects without misconceptions adults hold, yet the immense interest to fully learn about the concepts!  

Post reading reactions

I was also quite surprised with the amount of student success reported. I would have thought general Ed students would not be as motivated out of the classroom when they aren't motivated in the classroom. 

The amount of student interaction and participation, However, it does not surprise me as students are able to think about their comments prior to submission. Additionally, if a peer doesn't agree with a comment, their facial expressions do not show, thus the submitter doesn't perceive the response as rejection, but a difference of opinions.                                    

Virtual Schooling Post-Reading Thoughts

Some of the main ideas I read within the articles which took me by surprise include:
    -The fact that Michigan is such a strong influence in the virtual schooling community and that we have had the longest standing virtual learning Schools in the nation. I know I have personally worked with kids on Michigan virtual and it is a very difficult curriculum. Needless to say, I thought the east and west coast schools would have beat us to the online thoughts.
    -The immense amount of growth and popularity virtual learning has gained within the past 10 years.
    -The fact that MVHS teachers, in 2005, did not have to be a Michigan certified teacher boggles my mind, considering the current emphasis placed on obtaining a MI teaching certification.  However, the immense change in policy isn't far off of the change in online schooling mindset.
   -The variations of course work students can enroll in has come quite a distance! I was never aware of the Test Prep courses via MVHS, however the fact that students did utilize them is wonderful; Comparison of test results pre and post test prep course would be interesting to analyze.
  -The below diagram helped me in visualizing the many different components online learning has to offer and how the different variations of 'online learning' can truly make or break a student's success in a course!

Virtual Schooling PreReading Knowledge

The majority of my knowledge regarding K-12 online learning, virtual schooling, or cyber schooling comes directly from the content I have learned thus far during this course, in addition to the implementation of Virtual Credit Recovery programs and Distance Learning (instructor and 1/2 of the students are in building 1 and the other 1/2 of students are across the district in building 2 watching their teacher on their screen and being directed by their instructor throughout the class while a paraprofessional is overseeing them).

 
I believe there are two main formats/branches online learning/virtual schooling/cyber learning can be viewed as: synchronous and asynchronous. 

 
There are many different settings in which online learning can take place, depending on how your district views the need for physical presence of each student, how the state you are teaching in records the number of students being instructed, the availability of paraprofessionals to oversee a class of students, etc. 

Students taking online learning courses usually have a variety of options regarding where they complete their course work and can differ vastly from one student to another! Students can either be in the classroom with the para, at home sitting at a desk, at home sitting in their bad, in a library, or in front of their instructor. The main idea here is that they have an Internet connection and are able to access the learning management system and the courses content. 

 
The courses offered range from English to Math to Science to History to digital art to health. However, the only way I have seen physical education completed without the students physical presence in class was when they were required to have an adult sign off on the activities they needed to perform.  

As I mentioned at the beginning, my experience with online learning is only a result of my students with learning disabilities completing a course as a result of failing their F2F course, otherwise known as 'Credit Recovery'.