"Real teachers, real students, no walls"
Motto of CyberSchool in Eugene, Oregon

Colleges across America and around the world have known for years that more students can be reached, more classes can be taught and more money can be made by using the media than by using the classroom. For-credit college courses have been available for a variety of subjects from mathematics to cooking and everything in between. Signs are everywhere that the newest lucrative market for online teaching and learning curriculum is K-12. u

McGraw-Hill Education, a K-12 educational publisher, announced in August 2001 the launch of McGraw-Hill Digital Learning, a division devoted solely to digital learning programs for the K-12 market. The new division will develop learning programs aimed "to improve teaching and learning, focusing on remedial and gifted students who have unique learning styles and are often underserved."

Class.com, a provider of online courses for high school students, and Blackboard, Inc., an e-learning platform for the postsecondary market, announced a partnership in August 2001. Under the terms of the agreement, Class.com will use the Blackboard platform to deliver its online courses.

State education agencies, as well as local school districts, are undertaking a variety of initiatives to provide distance learning opportunities for K-12 students.

But, is distance learning for everybody? Can master classroom teachers make the transition to cyberspace master teaching? Can local school districts afford to offer online curriculum?

For answers to these and other compelling questions, proceed to Lesson 1 by following the link on the navigation sidebar on the left side of the window.

 

 

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