In Africa, some kids will walk miles for the chance to go to school; how lucky are we that it is a short bus ride away? Some schools offer distance learning through a computer and online classes as a replacement for attending school with other students. Although some may say that learning from home is more beneficial, students do not benefit from learning at home due to the increased distractions, lack of school resources, and missing out on face-to-face interaction.

First of all, kids that attend school online have more distractions that inhibit their learning. Whether it is pets or parents, many kids face difficulties at home that they would not need to worry about in a school classroom. In a classroom, the only thing a student has to focus on is the teacher and what they are learning. Being at home presents many difficulties on focusing due to outside distractions. If parents are arguing while a student is trying to learn math, they will not have the opportunity to learn it as well as they could in a classroom where they are not distracted. Or maybe the students dog is doing something really cute. Instead of listening to the lecture, the student would be more focused on their dog than the teacher. This lack of focus and increased distractions leads to students not reaching their full learning potential; therefore, they do not do as well as other students that actually attend school. Although the student may feel more comfortable learning at home, this comfort does not make up for all of the things that could possibly distract them. Even though they may get to lay on a couch whilst learning, that comfort may make them tired and unable to fully focus on the lesson that is being taught. In this case, an uncomfortable chair and a desk may be a better option than a bed or couch.

Another reason that it is beneficial for students to attend school is they miss out on all of the resources a building has to offer. Actually attending school means students will have access to facilities such as libraries, counselors office, or even reliable talks with teachers. The ability to walk into a library at school and get a book you need for a research paper free of charge is important to giving students more accessibility involving their learning. These important resources are what makes a school a school, and by doing classes online, students miss out on these free resources that can overall help their grades and quality of work. Even though some families are financially well-off enough to support whatever their child needs, students still miss out on having people to talk to that have nothing to do with their family. Being able to go to a counselor or teacher you trust with something that is bothering you is one of the best things a student can get out of school. It gives students the opportunity to have an outside perspective on things that are troubling them, and most of the time these outside perspectives are the most trustworthy resources since they are unbiased.

The last thing students miss out on when they do their classes online is the lack of face-to-face social interaction. This is one of the most important skills students learn in schools, how to talk to people. They do not just gain talking more to their friends, but also the skill of talking to teachers and strangers. Learning how to talk to people is an important skill in the workforce and in life. Meeting new people and learning about their background also gives students ideas about something new they may want to learn. I met one of my closest friends in a school library and learned that she spoke fluent Korean. A year later, wanting to communicate to her parents would be the driving force of my desire to learn Korean. Whether it is a language or a culture, meeting new people exposes you to being better with your studies and also with your desires. Students will only be exposed to this by leaving their house and talking to other students and teachers. Even though some parents worry that by sending their kids to school they may end up being bullied or picked on, learning to deal with judgment is an important skill. If students are not exposed to it early on, how will they deal with it when they are adults. By interacting with other people besides their family and friends, students are able to develop many life long skills.

Looking back on high school, adults remember the good times, chatting with friends or teachers, getting a good grade on a test everyone else failed, or maybe even saying goodbye to that one teacher they shared a real connection with. These memories are only gained from going to school, not by sitting at home and watching through a computer screen. That is why high school is such an important time in a student's life, it helps develop who they are and what their morals will be. It also helps them be better and more cultured adults, helping them to lead a better life.