by Jim Farwell, Editor
 jim@open.k12.or.us
Sometimes schools can't offer students the courses they need to meet their high school graduation or college-entrance requirements. When this happens, CyberSchool can help them. One of America's first providers of online classes, CyberSchool offers more than 40 affordable, accredited courses in art, science, mathematics, language, and social science. Doug Knight, from Astoria, teaches two courses that typify the school's high- caliber of instruction. Like other CyberSchool courses, Doug's courses are well designed, utilize powerful Web-based presentation tools, and place strong technical and scholastic demands on students.
Doug Knight
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Students in Doug's course, People Like Us: Understanding the Holocaust, search the Web for facts and use an interactive CD-ROM to see and hear Holocaust survivors relate their experiences. Using this combination of Web research and first person accounts, students gain an analytical understanding of unfolding genocide, while empathizing with its victims at an individual level.
Doug's second course, Horror Literature, like his Holocaust course, appeals to students seeking alternatives to traditional curricula. This serious academic study of horror fiction scrutinizes a number of classic novels and films from a frequently under-valued literary genre.
Doug notes that CyberSchool courses offer positive benefits for both students and teachers:
- Traditional textbooks are rarely used, which means that students are challenged in new ways and with different materials.
- CyberSchool students often develop strong online collegial ties with their teachers and fellow students. Consequently, CyberSchool serves as a powerful introductory experience for college-bound students, where online interaction is becoming commonplace.
- Web-based instruction offers teachers greater artistic license and more presentation choices, allowing them to more fully customize their instruction.
- CyberSchool courses complement local curricula and rarely draw resources away from face-to-face classrooms.
Do you know motivated students who are unable to find all of the local course options they need? If so, please keep in mind that CyberSchool offers a wide range of choices, including summer courses, that can supplement your school's course offerings and help students find success. CyberSchool encourages interested students, parents, teachers, and administrators to visit their Web site, where every word of every lesson is available for their inspection, or to call CyberSchool toll free at 1-877-838-6038.
Does teaching an online course sound interesting to you? If so, please note that CyberSchool offers a variety of routes for certified teachers to do just that. Visit www.cyberschool.k12.or.us/~layton/cyfc2/ and find out how.
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