By Taylor Seal
Managing Editor

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f you are a student who is self motivated, independent, and technologically savvy; online classes are perfect for you. The world of the online class is radically different from that of the standard classroom. Independence is key to learning the information and making good grades.

“It (being successful in an online course) depends on the student,” Online Facilitator Gloria Meeds said. “It would be more beneficial for students who want to take higher level classes that are not offered at the high school to take them online.”

“The primary impact (of online classes) is options,” Principal Arty Tillett said. “It gives us the opportunity to offer greater course selections to students that traditionally would be difficult for us to gain enough interest in.”

FFHS uses North Carolina Virtual Public Schools (NCVPS) primarily for online courses. NCVPS is composed of both Moodle and Blackboard programs, two different learning management system, the program that is used depends on the class the student is taking.

“There have been cheating problems with the online system,” Lee said. “The online teacher notifies Ms. Meads and the FFHS cheating policy is applied. Cheating is handled the same way in an online class as it would be in a regular class.”

Some students in online courses have difficulties with the communication between themselves and their teachers.

“Sometimes it is difficult to really connect with your fellow classmates in an online class,” senior Ryan Ellis said. “You just have to try and use the instant messenger and email to make a connection with them in order to make the class more enjoyable.”

But it is a two way street. Some online teachers also feel pressure when trying to communicate with their students, especially the teachers who also teach in a classroom.

“Communication is the biggest difficulty. I also teach in a face-to-face classroom during the day, so when most students are working, I can’t be working with them,” online Latin teacher Erin Guzman said. “I try to be available as often as possible to chat using Blackboard Instant Messaging, but since that is usually in the evenings the time doesn’t work for everyone. Students can call or text me anytime, but it’s still not the same as having a human in front of your face who can answer your questions the second you ask them.”

This lack of personal connection can make it hard for online teachers to form bonds with their students and for the students to form relationships with each other.

“I think it is harder (to teach an online class) because it is harder to establish the relationships due to physical distance, and relationships between teacher and students or among the students themselves contribute a lot to the overall success and enjoyment of learning in a course,” Guzman said.

Having an online classroom facilitator helps students at FFHS to tackle any technological problems and to stay on task.

“Ms. Meads has helped me with technological problems and has helped me communicate with my online teachers,” junior Annah Bachman said.

According to Guzman, online classes provide more flexibility in times and opportunities to take a wide variety of classes.

“I’m able to take classes through our online program that our school does not have the ability to offer and receive college credit for those,” senior Sarah Vercauteren said. “I think that is the most significant advantage of an online course.”

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