1 Must Have When Choosing An Online Class For Middle School Or High School: How Participation Points Help in Managing the Challenges of E-Learning

Participation in Online Classes

New online school classes and platforms pop up every day. Choosing a curriculum presents quite a challenge! When it comes to selecting individual courses or even an all-in-one provider, I have identified 1 must have to succeed and truly learn in online school: Participation points for participation in online classes.

Reality

Yesterday I checked my freshman son’s grade in Spanish. Surprised to see it had dropped a few percentage points, I logged in and looked closer. I noticed the last two live online sessions, he received 0/10 for participation. A quick text to him resulted in a typical teenage response….”uh, um, I was having some computer issues, um…”. In other words, he is midway through first semester and was more interested in scrolling through Instagram or Snapchat than participating in Spanish.

Honestly, can we blame kids for getting distracted? We currently face more potential distractions than anytime in history. Sure, I could take his phone away during classes (he isn’t supposed to be using it), but he could always figure out ways to watch stuff on his laptop or iPad. As queen of multitasking, I am not always setting the best example.

Fast forward to why I believe it’s so important to have participation points in an online class, or at least an instructor who involves all students. If our objective is to provide our children with the best potential education, we need to find curriculum that is engaging and encourages discussion.

Two Examples of Engaging Courses

E-learning courses that require participation via microphone and / or chat box:

Spanish is a perfect example of this. My son has two live 90 minute sessions per week and within each session, there is constant interaction. The instructor asks questions and students are required to respond via chat and those responses are actually part of their grade (not whether they are right or wrong, but whether they are actively participating). When called on, they are also speaking live into the microphone so their accents and accuracy can be assessed. I love this! It keeps the student and the instructor accountable.

Courses that encourage participation in online classes and allow video:

Most courses on www.outschool.com have a video component so that the student can be seen by the instructor and other students if they wish to be. I have found most of the teachers on this platform make sure to call on students or at least encourage participation in the chat. It is something I look for when choosing an e-learning course. Additional platforms that I’ve discovered either require or highly encourage participation are highlighted within the Online School survey results.

For science, my kids really enjoy the live labs and being able to see (and have their teacher see them). In a variety of online courses via www.opententacademy, students participate either via chat or via microphone and are actively engaged throughout each 90 minute session. In Ancient History last year through www.opententacademy, students even shared their art projects and presentations to their peers online.

I realize some kids are extremely shy- my daughter is quiet and being forced to participate pushes her from her comfort zone. I’ve found most teachers are skilled at keeping the chat content on topic and it’s fun for the kids to interact with their classmates.

For the kids out there who do their work and stay on task 100% of the time with no need for the reminder with participation points- AMAZING. For all the other online students out there who are like mine, include a look at how students participate and if it’s included in their assessment when selecting an online class.

How do you make sure you kids stay on track during online courses? Make sure to join our Private Facebook Group to discuss everything related to Online School!