Imagine you are waking up on your first day of school, only to turn around and grab your computer to begin your lesson for the week. For some, this is a reality, in areas where schools are becoming more open to the idea of "distance learning," or off campus learning. However, going to school and gaining first hand experience with all different types of people is the easiest way for young people to be exposed to diversity, and to engage in interactive educational activities. School provides many opportunities for young people that an online program simply cannot do. Even video conferences, are limited in providing a real school adaptation. In my opinion, students are being held back more than progressing from online courses. Distance classes take away the human interaction of school, and hold students back from personal growth; thus, it should only be an option for special cases.

From the moment you are placed in school, you are constantly adapting to new environments, classes, and people. School is one of the easiest ways for a young person to find friends or people that they can trust and rely on. Some students need these social interactions to help show them that not everyone is similar, opening their eyes to diverse ideas, cultures, and ways of life. Having all of your courses online is isolating and can lead students down a path of lonliness, since they will be missing out on all of the human-interaction that going to a regular school provides. Students need a support system for them to count on, which may be found at school, if they do not feel safe and loved at home. In most cases, middle and high schools provide in depth science lab activities, math modeling activties, interactive games, field trips, and group projects. These activities bring students together in a way that only a personal experience can. Having to work together in small groups helps students understand one another and also helps them look at concepts through different perspectives. Virtual activties never leave as strong of an impact on the student as hands-on actvities do, or give them experience with other students. Overall, online schooling only decreases a persons social skills and promotes isolation.

As I said before, students have lost that student to student relationsip when learning all alone, but also they lose the student to teacher relationship. There are teachers that have such a lasting impact on students and they may not even realize it, they may be looked at as a mentor, an inspiration, or even a friend in certain situations. Having a module instructor is not neccesarily having a human connection; we can all watch videos of a teacher online and feel no personal connection to the person behind the screen. Tecahers are able to provoke in depth thinking and analysis from students, from personal experience and seeing how their students learn best. Some students may learn visually, through song, or maybe through repititon, this simple fact goes to show another reason online courses are not beneficial to all students. Everyone has a unique way of learning, an online course or a video conference may not be able to provide the same accomodations for a student that a one on one student-teacher relationship would. Students should be exposed to all learning types to see which ways are easiest for them, instead of being forced to overwork trying to figure a problem out without aid.

Although, in some cases, I do believe there should be an online alternative to the average school. Students that have had an injury and may be unable to attend school for medical reasons, should be given the opportunity to study and learn outside of the school building. There may be cases where a student with special needs is not ready to be placed into a super social setting, and I do agree that they should be given the option of an online schooling program to best fit them and their needs. The argument could be made that online, isolated courses would prevent bullying and provide students with a more comfortable learning environment. I refute this point, by stating that to learn and grow we must be placed outside of our comfort zones and forced to experience new things that we typically could not at home. We cannot grow in a stagnant environment. Looking at a computer screen every day, is not the best way to stimulate young minds, they must be provided with experiences that they can learn from first handedly.

In conclusion, I am not in favor of students taking courses online as a substitute for going to school. The school building is like a network of support for each and every student who eneters. Teachers try their hardest to accomodate to every student and provide them with the extra help they need, or help them gain independence and confidence. An online program is in no way going to care about the mental health of the students or give them an extra uplift when they are struggling. In other words, distance learning should only be provided for students with special accomadations, otherwise you are taking away the opportunity for interaction and student self growth. When considering offering classes from home, we need to remember that we are building the future generation. Do we really want to raise a group of young individuals that can only function in isolated environments because they have not been exposed to human interaction?