For the second scenario, it happened in my current school. This student's schedule was clashing, as he wanted to take AP classes. He was removed from the traditional Algebra 2 class and transferred to the online Algebra 2 class. This is great, as long as the student was able to keep up with the work load. I don't think that pulling out a student from traditional class to any online class is wrong. In fact, I have heard that the Michigan Law says that parents have every right to choose the teacher for their child.
In the third scenario, I would get in contact with the parents and share all the resources I have to bring the student up to speed with my current students. The student will have to work additional hours.
I really don't understand the fourth scenario. We have students taking online courses in school, with para-professionals as facilitators. The para-professionals have to keep the students motivated, as most students procrastinate.
The online classes are actually a boon to the students mentioned in the last scenario.
Our school district is well-known for offering online learning. To ease that process, our students receive a laptop from the school with an account with College Board and Khan Academy. It is a requirement that a student has to graduate with 2 AP credits. These AP courses are completely online. There are very few students who fail to achieve this standard, these students are then transferred to regular classes. Most students in our school are successful in gaining the AP credit.
If you look at my post I feel the same way. Why force a student to take a teacher that the parents don't like. Not to say that the teacher is bad but as educators we know what a pain parents can be. Don't torture the teacher.
ReplyDeleteYou are fortunate to be in a forward thinking district that offers online classes. Students are prepared for the challenge of online learning. Unfortunately, some of the decision makers are not.
Monica, I think if students are given privilege to change class from traditional to online, just because they don't like the teacher or the teaching style; the teachers also should have a privilege to remove a student from her/his class to an online class. There could be many reasons, the consistent negative behavior of the student, or a gifted student is very ahead of the entire class. This could be a win-win situation.
DeleteIt sounds like your school is very far ahead of the curve in embracing computers and online learning! I think it's wonderful that your school has hired paraprofessionals as facilitators, but I wonder if this in the budget for other schools. If administrators can't find the money, or are trying to cut corners, I could definitely see them pressing teachers into service. This is why it's so important for all members of a school community to be on board with online learning, from students to teachers to administrators to district decision makers. If we try to start this change from the ground up, we'll run into some serious roadblocks.
ReplyDeleteYes sure Dayna, my school has paraprofessionals running the online classes, but it is not an ideal situation. Some facilitators do an excellent job of motivating the students, but some do a terrible job and the students who are not responsible enough are not successful.
DeleteAny idea if the paraprofessionals are trained for this specific type of facilitation? It seems like this would be beneficial.
ReplyDeleteDayna,
ReplyDeleteI am not entirely sure. This is a great question. Paraprofessionals may be trained on "How to.." of the class. My major concern is the classroom management. I have seen and witnessed, these classrooms to be like a picnic area. Students are eating, drinking, walking around, chatting, not on task and so on. I wonder, if the integrity of the online classes are intact.