Many families were exposed to online learning for the first time during the COVID-19 pandemic. But this type of learning model existed long before schools had to temporarily shut their doors, and provides a flexible option for students to complete their primary and secondary education.
“?I think a lot of folks, when the pandemic started, thought that schooling at home was nothing more than sitting down at your kitchen table, opening up your laptop and just being there,” says Kenneth Moles, executive director of Virginia Virtual Academy.
“It’s so much more than that. … It doesn’t require a student to be in front of a computer screen for eight hours a day, which many of the public schools across the country felt was necessary in order to do their due diligence. I would ask parents to just look back upon that experience and learn from it. Know what they are looking for and know what they don’t want out of this experience.”
For some families, the flexibility of online learning aligns more with their schedule compared to a brick-and-mortar school. Here are factors to consider when deciding what learning format best fits your child’s needs.
Structure of Online Education
The structure of online education varies per program and grade level, with options for asynchronous, synchronous or hybrid learning models. Synchronous means students attend live classes at scheduled times alongside other peers on a designated video platform like Zoom and Canvas; asynchronous learning allows students to watch prerecorded materials and work individually; and hybrid is a mix of both.
“Some parents and families are looking for independence, and they don’t want to be tied to a certain time of day,” says Rachel Jensen, high school principal at Idaho Home Learning Academy. “They don’t want to be tied to a schedule of any kind. … But other times, parents sometimes can feel less confident in their ability to support their student and really do want that engagement from a teacher live as well as some of the peer engagement and the benefits that can come along with that.”
[READ: Private School vs. Public School.]
Online Learning Myths
A common misconception about online learning, experts say, is that students aren’t able to build connections with their peers or teachers like they would at a brick-and-mortar school.
While there can be limitations, there are often many opportunities to interact, such as through discussion boards and class chats, and by keeping cameras turned on during a live class and attending virtual office hours for more individualized support.
“?I would say it’s a lot easier and more convenient to get one-on-one help than it ever was in brick-and-mortar,” says Lily Rieman, a high school student at Indiana Gateway Digital Academy. She attended brick-and-mortar schools prior to 2024.
Some online schools offer extracurricular activities or weekly or monthly in-person events and field trips, such as to museums, science centers, nature reserves and college campuses.
“They have things all over the state for all kinds of students to go to, and when you go there, you see your fellow classmates, friends and teachers, and have fun throughout the day,” says Alexia Hoffman, a rising high school student at Michigan Great Lakes Virtual Academy.
Another myth is that online learning equates to easier curriculum or a lower-quality education, experts say. However, teachers in online programs must meet the same state certifications as their brick-and-mortar counterparts.
As an online teacher, “?I’ve been called a YouTuber,” says Jenni Clark, a kindergarten teacher at California Virtual Academies. But no matter the modality, “you’re still getting a similar education. ?Families really get from virtual learning what they put into it.”
Additionally, although both online education and homeschooling involve learning from the comfort of home, they aren’t the same, experts note.
“Accredited online schools provide certified teachers, standards-aligned curriculum, live instruction, academic accountability, student support services and structured progress monitoring,” Niyoka McCoy, chief learning officer at K12, a company that provides online education, wrote in an email. “Students are enrolled in a real school community; the classroom simply happens to be virtual.”
[LEARN MORE: High School Graduation Rates By State]
Cost of K-12 Online Education
There are public or for-profit online education options. Just like at a brick-and-mortar school, a public online school is free to attend.
However, there still may be nontuition costs, such as for Wi-Fi, technology — if your family chooses to use a personal laptop rather than school-issued computer — class projects or specialty classes, experts say.
Is Online K-12 Learning the Right Fit?
The flexible nature of online learning benefits students with busy schedules — like competitive athletes — and those with family responsibilities or chronic or mental illnesses.
?”They’re able to have the flexibility of doing school from the hospital or a hotel, or attending their classes but not doing any of their independent study lessons until nighttime or whatever their crazy schedule might be,” Clark says.
Students have more room in their day-to-day schedule to further pursue passion areas and extracurriculars. Rieman, who hopes to be a veterinarian, now has time to raise pigeons.
“I’ve hand-raised a couple of baby pigeons from a really young age,” she says. “I raised one while I was at a brick-and-mortar school, and it was very difficult with the schedule because my mom would have to feed a baby pigeon halfway through the day. … Once I was in the online school, I had to raise another one due to some health complications; he got injured. I was feeding this pigeon while following along with my geometry teacher. The pigeon probably wouldn’t have made it if I was at a brick-and-mortar school.”
Online learning can also provide more opportunities for students in rural communities, who may not have access to advanced or college-level courses or additional educational support.
“I live in a ranching community that’s 70 miles from the nearest town,” Jensen says. “My children had to move away to go to high school because our community is so remote that there’s no school for them. They would live in town 70 miles away with another family — kind of like what a foreign exchange student would do — during the week and they would come home on the weekends. In my community, we have what’s called a rurally necessary school and when students get up into the middle school grades, online education is a critical part of delivering the depth to what a brick-and-mortar school would need.”
However, it’s not for everyone. Online learners need to have self-discipline and the ability to work independently, experts say.
“?I don’t struggle with it personally very much, but if you get behind, it’s easy to forget because it’s online and it’s not physical papers,” Rieman says. “It can be harder to keep track of stuff. So if you forget or maybe you have a bad week, it would be easy to fall behind if you’re not motivated enough or disciplined enough to go back, get it done and stay on schedule.”
[READ: Understanding Charter Schools vs. Public Schools.]
From the parents’ perspective, online learning may require more involvement and active participation — especially when students are younger — compared to a brick-and-mortar environment, some experts say.
“?Parents are no longer parents; they’re parents and learning coaches,” says Jessica Cabeen, principal of alternative programs at Austin Online Academy and Austin Area Learning Center in Minnesota. “It’s really important for parents to be an advocate for their child: weekly check-ins, having them show what they’re working on, what missing work is due, helping them craft those emails. Being that guide on the side is really important because there’s a gap from what they learn in a traditional school and how to communicate to what they need to be able to do in an online environment.”
Families may also deal with the occasional technology or Wi-Fi glitches.
Before committing to online learning, families should consider their “child’s learning style, motivation and independence, social needs, scheduling flexibility, access to specialized supports, extracurricular priorities, and the overall level of family support available at home,” McCoy says.
“Ultimately, this isn’t about declaring online or in-person learning universally ‘better,'” she says. “It’s about finding the environment where a student can thrive academically, socially and emotionally. The strongest educational outcomes happen when there’s alignment between the student’s needs and the learning model designed to support them. For many students, online learning is not a backup plan. It’s the environment where they finally feel seen, supported and successful.”
Finding Online K-12 Education
When starting the search, look at your states’ department of education website, and review accredited schools, experts say.
Once you’ve found a school of interest, attend an information session and ask questions, such as about accreditation, teacher credentials, the structure of a typical school day, opportunities for peer engagement and student support, McCoy says.
“Speak with school staff and ask to hear directly from current families and students,” she says. “Understanding what daily life actually looks like in the program can help families move beyond assumptions about online learning.”
More from U.S. News
How to Find a High School Internship
4 Ways to Bounce Back From a Weak Junior Year of High School
9 Tips for High School Freshmen
What to Know About K-12 Online Schools originally appeared on usnews.com