VL has been adopted in higher education for years and has also found its place in more recent years in elementary and secondary schools. The first statewide virtual public school, the Florida Virtual School (FLVS), was founded in 1997 and had later added K–8 curriculums. During the 2012–2013 school year, FLVS was being applied in 47 Florida districts. The program offers classes to part- and full-time students. The full-time program offers an elementary, middle, and high school curriculum. 2013 marked the year of the first graduating class of FLVS, which included 250 high school seniors (History of Florida Virtual School, 2015).
Terminology
Researchers working in this field are using many different terms to reference this method, for example: “Internet-based education or learning”, “e-Learning”, “technology-based learning” and many others. In this paper the term “virtual learning” (VL) is being used as a collective term. Assuming “virtual” also means “different”, the term “virtual learning” would be understood (and is understood in this paper) as a learning process that differs from the traditional learning approach.
What is Virtual …show more content…
Even small schools can offer additional electives and advanced placement classes, without any minimum enrollment, however, teachers and the administration must be proficient with the technology in order for it to be beneficial.
Disadvantages
The Role of the Classroom. There are no social skills necessary for VL. Also no individual help for students according to their leaning styles is offered. VL doesn’t see he students as humans but rather as IP-numbers. It is all standardized and even more time is spent on the solitary and benign action of sitting in front of a screen, which doesn’t improve any lacks in social skills.
The Role of the Educator. The important role of an educator as a guide is missing. He is seen as an instructor an online avatar, not as a real life person. No emotional and emphatic connections are made between students and teacher.
Accessibility. Even though it is hard to imagine, but still today there is still a high number of kids who don’t have regular access to a computer or the Internet. Moreover, do especially those who need a good education receive it?
The History of Virtual