The Benefits of Online School

Going into the 2020 school year, many schools across the country made the choice to transition to virtual learning. Having experienced online learning, parents and students alike are now asking: “what exactly are the benefits of attending an online school?” We at Uplift Michigan have been educating students online for much longer than just this past year, so we wanted to share all of the advantages online school has to offer. 

 

Attend Class During Your Most Productive Hours of The Day

We all have different energy patterns, attention spans, and eating habits. Some of us are early risers who wake up feeling refreshed and ready to go, while others are night owls who do their best work in the evening. Some of us can focus for three hours straight and love powering through any work that needs to get done, while others need frequent breaks to learn and perform at their best. Some of us can eat a couple of big meals a day and feel great throughout, while others like eating small meals every few hours. 

 

Despite these differences, brick-and-mortar schools require all students to have somewhat similar schedules. It doesn’t matter if you are a late riser, you need to be at school at 7:30 AM. It doesn’t matter if you do well with frequent breaks, you are going to attend classes back to back all day long. And it doesn’t matter if you are a grazer who likes to eat every few hours, no eating in the halls or in the classroom. 

 

In this way, brick-and-mortar schools can force students into habits that really aren’t good for their overall education and health. Thankfully, online school works a little differently. 

 

With online schooling, most lessons are built-in to the learning system. Students can access these lessons at any time of the day or night. This allows students to wake up when they want, take as many breaks as they need, eat, use the bathroom, and take care of anything else, whenever they would like to.

This gives students the opportunity to create a daily and weekly schedule that is custom-tailored to their habits — one that truly allows them to perform at their very best.

 

 

 

Fit Extracurriculars Easily Into Your Schedule 

Your student likely has interests outside of school — sports, art, music, work, etc. — however, it isn’t always easy to make time for these pursuits alongside school. With online schooling, however, making time for hobbies, part-time jobs, and passion projects, is as easy as can be.
Because your student has the ability to complete lessons in the learning system whenever it works best in their day. They can build their schedule around whatever extracurriculars they have. The online school makes it incredibly easy to fit everything and anything your student may want to pursue into the day or week.

 

Review Lectures Whenever Needed 

Students attending an online school have access to every lesson they have gone through throughout the year on hand. If your student ever needs to revisit any course material, they simply need to pull up the appropriate lesson and rewatch it. This makes studying for tests and examinations, or just revisiting touch concepts incredibly easy. 

 

Take Classes Not Offered at Your Brick And Mortar 

Which brick-and-mortar school your child attends is generally determined by the school district you live in. This can be an issue for some parents and students because not all brick-and-mortar schools are created equally. Different schools have different performance rates and offer different course and scheduling options.

Online schools increase your student’s options. If an online school offers AP programs and electives that your student is interested in, they can attend the school without any inconveniences. Your family won’t need to move to a new school district or deal with any difficult travel arrangements as you would with your “school of choice.” 

 

Take Courses Wherever You Are 

With online school, your student can learn from anywhere — A coffee shop, a library, an RV, an airport — anywhere they have internet access is fair game. If your family travels frequently, doesn’t have a permanent residence, or if there is an illness in the family, you don’t need to worry about your student missing important class time. They can work their way through the course material from wherever they are.

 

Enjoy A Comfortable Learning Environment 

Schools aren’t typically associated with comfort. The lighting is often fluorescent and bright. The temperature is frequently too hot or too cold. The seats are hard and don’t provide great back support. Not to mention, other students can be disruptive or distracting, interfering with your student’s ability to learn.

The online school allows your student to work from their ideal learning environment, regardless of what that looks like.

 

Enhance Technical Skills 

While participating in an online school, your student will be using a laptop daily to learn and complete course materials. But while they are logging on to learn history, geography, biology, etc., they will also be learning how to efficiently and effectively operate their laptop. They will practice typing more regularly, interact with common software and programs, get comfortable with participating in video conferences, and more.

This consistent exposure will give them a step up on other students their age when it comes to computer skills. 

 

Avoid Bullying 

 

Bullying isn’t something any of us like to think about, but it happens and it can be incredibly traumatizing for children. School can become a place your child associates with fear, embarrassment, sadness, and potentially emotional or physical harm. We’ve seen numerous cases of schools doing absolutely nothing to protect students from harm and it is equal parts frustrating and sickening.

If your student has had to deal with bullying in the past, online school could be a great option for them. With no physical building to attend, students only have to engage with each other when they would like to. They are never going to be forced to occupy the same space as someone who means them harm. 

 

Is Online School Worth It? 

As you know by now, online schools offer a number of fantastic benefits including taking courses anytime, anywhere. If you think your student has the motivation and discipline to work outside of a physical environment, online education may be right for them. 

 

If you’d like to learn more about online schools or if you’re interested in enrolling your child in one, you can head over to our website right now.