EVER WONDER WHAT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STUDYING AND LEARNING IS?

While they both are absolutely important and vital to building a solid educational foundation, knowing the core differences between the two will help you understand just how important online learning can be to you. Studying is important from the perspective of getting good grades so you earn your high school diploma. Learning, on the other hand, is about knowing more of the course curriculum that you are required to. A good education should be more than just passing standardized tests and getting good grades. With a global economy changing even more rapidly with each passing day, it is absolutely imperative that our children focus more on holistic learning rather than just to secure desired grades.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL AND ONLINE SCHOOLING

Conventional schooling lays a lot of emphasis on studying the prescribed course curriculum. While this may have served us well in the past, the time has come for us to focus on more holistic ways of teaching our children. Online schools, in many ways, have shown us the way forward. Studying course material with the singular objective of getting good grades can have several detrimental effects on the cognitive abilities of students. Moreover, the entire process they go through may also result in damage to their overall creative side and their potential for innovative thinking. Today, just making sure your child works hard and gets his or her high school diploma isn’t going to cut it. There is a reason for the massive layoffs we are experiencing around the world and it has a lot to do with reducing costs and increasing efficiency.

DEVELOP RIGHT SET OF SKILLS WITH ONLINE LEARNING

For starters, only focusing on getting good grades tends to cause students to pay attention only to aspects that would affect their grades. Anything else tends to be conveniently disregarded since the assumption is that it would have no bearing on their test scores. That is one of the primary reasons why our children are slowly losing their ability to think creatively and are now becoming more ‘mechanical’ as opposed to innovative. In the real world, what they can achieve practically is more important than their theoretical knowledge or academic accomplishments. Helping them develop the right set of skill sets is the need of the hour, especially when you consider the adverse impact globalization is having on us. That is where online learning seems to offer us a ray of hope.

ONLINE CLASSES ALLOW TO LEARN AT YOUR OWN PACE

Online K-12 courses are primarily designed to help children learn in a more holistic manner rather than employing set patterns. In a classroom setting, teachers are required to establish a singular pace for teaching students their course material. This adversely impacts those with special needs, students who may take longer to grasp certain concepts as well as those who may possess stronger grasping capabilities. Being in a position to learn online offers these students the tools to overcome obstacles posed by traditional learning environments. Modern online environments allow students to vary the pace of learning according to their own individual capabilities. This provides them with the flexibility they need to learn their course material well. In addition to that, it also spares them the pressure of having to cope with students whose learning abilities are superior to theirs.

MORE PRACTICAL APPROACH WITH ONLINE LEARNING

For stronger students, having access to an independent platform can provide significant benefits. Their stronger aptitude provides them with the freedom to cover more ground in a shorter span of time, thereby allowing them to take on more coursework, individual courses for credits and explore other aspects of their study material. This in turn, fosters more confidence in them on account of the additional knowledge and information they are exposed to. Thorough knowledge of a subject can prove to be extremely advantageous in the real world, a world they will be exposed to after they have successfully earned their high school diplomas. Practical knowledge certainly counts for much more than theory in today’s world. With new technologies being innovated constantly, it has become even more necessary for our children to move away from a theoretical approach and embrace one that is more pragmatic.

ONLINE SCHOOL LEARNING IS MORE ENGAGING AND STRESS-FREE

Online schools in the United States and around the world are now offering solutions that will help our children achieve exactly that. Instead of getting bored of their studies on account of conventional approaches, they can now have a lot more fun learning. This is another important aspect to consider especially when ‘boredom’ seems to be one of the major factors contributing to the increasing rate of high school dropouts in the country. Access to a certain degree of flexibility when learning or studying your course material can certainly go a long way in engaging students and help them stay in school and graduate. After all, a high school diploma is their first stepping stone toward a successful future. Students also have access to Advanced Placement courses via such online platforms that can help them get a jumpstart on college. Online Summer School programs help students make up for lost credit as well as improve their credit scores if they wish to.

FOREST TRAIL ACADEMY- AN ACCREDITED ONLINE HOMESCHOOL

Forest Trail Academy is one such online school in the United States that aims to deliver holistic education to our children in an endeavor to help them build bright futures for themselves. Our faculty has always believed in fostering in our students the will to pursue lifelong learning since learning is a process that can never end. Forest Trail Academy has been accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges & Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS CASI) and the Middle States Association – Commission on Elementary and Secondary Schools (MSA CESS). Our course curriculum has also been aligned and articulated to the Common Core State Standards and the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards.

For those of you contemplating to take up online K-12 courses either as a standalone option or along with your regular course curriculum, Forest Trail Academy is the perfect place for you to begin your journey. But the real question before you can begin that journey is – How important is Online Learning to YOU?