Journal 2: Technology Self-Assessment: School 2.0 Reflection

The article that I chose, "Virtual Schooling" by Niki Davis and Dales Niederhauser, was one of the resources listed under NETS-T 5: Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership. I regularly evaluate and reflect on current research and apply promising practices for using existing and emerging tools and resources in support of student learning. In the article, the authors begin by explaining what "Virtual Schooling" actually is. My understanding of VS is that it's an educational experience that includes all of the components associated with learning (most if not all of the curriculum is completed in an online environment). Essentially an actual or "physical" classroom is made obsolete. The incorporation of VS is a rising experience in the U.S. and it is especially so, at the high school level. 

Within the VS, there are three key roles that work together as an educational team: 1. Teacher 2. Designer and 3. VS site facilitator. Each of these roles require strong organizational and communication skills and are responsible for, “providing students with comprehensive informational activities, a wide variety of communication tools, activities that are planned in order to meet VS, timely feedback in regard to assessment, and opportunity for peer collaboration.” The individuals currently involved in this revolutionary movement are responsible for creating and establishing the roles themselves as well as making this experience one that is accessible, effective, and heavily utilized by students of the present and future. Students participating in VS are able to obtain an education inside virtual walls (“on site” sessions are also a component) through things like: email, videoconferencing, and various learning management systems like Blackboard or Moodle. There is much emphasis placed on technical, technology, and pedagogy support.

I think that the concept of VS is in alignment with the direction that education is headed toward. For reasons like the U.S.’s current economic crisis, budget cuts and teacher lay offs, and technological advances in society, Virtual Schooling seems to offer a quasi-solution to elevating education in America. VS individually personalizes schooling and helps schools respond to the No Child Left Behind Act. It also provides ways for students to get ahead or simply get any sort of an education when conditions are poor i.e. place bound or displaced students like those who lived in Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina. It also allows students to enroll in courses they need but were unable to sign up for at their physical schools. The article states, “Eighty percent of participating school districts in a recent study cited “the course was otherwise unavailable” as the number one reason why students enrolled in VS. I believe that we will see this concept grow and expand in education today. The only reservation that I have would be the lack of socialization and a deeper understanding of material due to multi-tasking as well as increased levels of attention deficit in students and an instant gratification mentality. One solution to this may be an incorporation of “physical” class time or meetings that coexist with the cyber classroom. Using only one medium in education, is not a good thing---balance, equality, and diversity in mediums is necessary as well in order for education in America to progress.