Online courses aren’t the problem, but they aren’t the solution either…
Online learning -- two words that can provoke quite a strong reaction in some folks. Be it parents, teachers, or students themselves, it seems everyone has an opinion about online learning, perhaps even despite not having much recent experience with it.
With talk of online learning, or E-learning, in Ontario so prevalent in the news these days, we wanted to take a few moments to share our perspective on the subject in the hopes of shedding some light on this often misunderstood topic!
We’ll start by cutting right to the chase: online learning is a tool.
It’s not a magic bullet, nor is it an obstacle to learning. It’s a tool among many that we educators and schools keep in our student success toolkits.
What’s with all the fear about online learning?
Parents and teachers are united by one driving motivation: the desire to see the young people in their care succeed.
And when a change is proposed that is misunderstood -- in Ontario’s case, introducing more online learning into the high school curriculum -- it can cause discomfort and concern.
Why discomfort and concern? Because parents and teachers innately understand that self-directed online learning is not going to be the ideal solution for every student. We completely agree!
Online learning is a tool Brainstorm Academy instructors have used for years with students, but we only promote it for students that meet the demands of an online platform. For other students, we offer individualized one-on-one in class learning. In short, we cover students at both ends of the spectrum, and everywhere in between.
As educators, we are not here to push a specific method or approach. We’re here to support students in their learning, whatever that looks like for them.
Who uses online learning?
Students choose to take online courses through Brainstorm Academy for a number of reasons:
They’re seeking credits their school doesn’t offer
They’re looking to improve grades, or catch up on missed courses
They’re looking for a more flexible learning option to accommodate their busy extra-curricular schedule
They experience anxiety, or otherwise struggle with the noise and activity in their classrooms and are looking to learn in a comfortable environment
They find themselves often outpacing the class
While no two students are the same, through our years of offering online courses, we have identified a number of simple strategies that can help support online learning success:
Treating the course as seriously as an in-class course.
Creating a schedule with deadlines for work submissions
Regularly checking in with the instructor by email
Giving yourself an effective space and regularly scheduled time to work on the content
Brainstorm Academy offers tutoring, credit courses and online learning grounded in real life context and the interests of our students. To learn more about our approach, click here.