Iowa high school online classes offer differing levels of immersion

CEDAR RAPIDS - Most of the computers in the library at Tate High School in Iowa City were occupied at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, long after the traditional school hours.

The students, many of them dropouts, using the computers are enrolled in different online classes as part of the Iowa City school district's Phoenix Program.

Credit-by-credit, they're working toward a high school diploma at their own pace.

The program is one of several formal online programs in the state that give students learning options that go beyond school walls.

Iowa City uses a system created by APEX Learning to give students a second chance at course credit. It helps re-engage some students who might not otherwise pursue a diploma, as well as give those struggling a chance to pick up where they had trouble, instead of retaking a course from the start.

The classes consist of a digital multimedia text supplemented by quizzes and tests administered by proctors, such as Tate teacher Mark Jensen.

“For the motivated student who has basic computer skills, they can go online and complete them and do it within their own schedule,” he said.

The school just started offering the program this year to about 50 students, and Jensen said five already are nearing a diploma.

Other classes

Earning a diploma is not the only reason an Iowa student might seek classes on the Internet.

Iowa Learning Online, a State Department of Education initiative, has served as a clearinghouse for online courses since 2004. Some of its students also are engaged in credit recovery, but not all, said Tony Wiley, an Atlantic-based Iowa Learning Online social studies teacher.

“Some are there because we're opening up schedule time for them,” he said. “It lets them take a class online so they can schedule an elective in that period. It's a broad spectrum.”

The biggest change for Wiley was adjusting to the time demands of students whose learning needs aren't constrained by the school day.

“I have to get up earlier in the morning and stay up later at night. It's in the student's best interest I respond as soon as possible, so I try to do so within 12 to 24 hours,” he said.

There also are opportunities for rural students to take courses in areas suffering from teacher shortages.

Science teacher Shannon C'de Baca, of Omaha, had more than 30 years' experience teaching about 150 students a day in the Council Bluffs district when she made the jump to online in 2004. Now, she teaches chemistry to about 50 students all over the state.

Her course uses a style of curriculum known as “blended,” since it involves a mixture of online instruction and direct face-to-face teaching, whether in person or over video chat programs such as Skype and the Iowa Communications Network. A certified teacher on the student side also is available to serve as a coach.

Juggling act

This means teachers rely on many of the same skills they have always used, even though they are working heavily with technology, said C'de Baca.

“Know your kids, build a relationship and be rich and deep in the content to guide the kids through the misconceptions you might face,” she said.

Jensen's Iowa City students all work on different courses during the Phoenix Program sessions, meaning he and the other Tate teachers need to be flexible and ready to change gears at a moment's notice.

“I'll go from point-slope formula to British literature to covalent bonds and chemistry,” he said. “You have to have a basic knowledge in a lot of areas to speak intelligently to all those kids.”

The teachers all agree that students wanting to succeed with online learning need to be highly motivated in order to stick with the material. They also stated they don't think online learning could ever replace more traditional methods.

“I don't think anything can completely substitute direct instruction or experiential learning,” Jensen said.

Student perspective

Molly Schmitz, 16, a junior enrolled in a blended chemistry class at Oelwein High School, describes her class as about 40 percent working with a teacher and 60 percent online learning, which some students struggle with. But not her.

“I think the key is to keep up with the assignments and ask your teacher for help if you need it,” she wrote in an email.

Raichel Stewart, 18, prefers Iowa City's online offerings to traditional classes.

“You can go at your own pace, which is good because some kids struggle with different things,” she said. “In the first week and a half, I got through a year's worth of math.”