CARIBOU, Maine — Online schooling is a common practice for college students earning either their undergraduate or post-graduate degrees, however, the notion of completing all of one’s schooling online is quite foreign to most high school students.
One former Caribou High School student, Kelsie Washington, is on the verge of entering her junior year of high school. As an 11th grade student, Washington won’t be walking through the halls of the brick and mortar high school on Sweden St., but instead, she will be taking her entire class list online through Maine Connections Academy (MCA).
Maine Connections Academy is a tuition-free public virtual charter school that serves students in grades 7–12. As a tuition-free virtual school, MCA brings a fully accredited public education directly into the homes of students throughout Maine.
Online schooling is not particularly common among high school students in Maine — as the idea often comes with an array of criticisms — such as a lack of social interaction and a disconnect between the student and his or her instructor. However, according to Kelsie and her mother Christiane, Maine Connections Academy is not a school in which Kelsie will be missing out on anything.
“The school has been around since 2001,” said Christiane. “This is, however, the first year the school has been offered in Maine, so Maine Connections Academy is a new opportunity.”
Maine Connections Academy claims it is all about making connections — not just to academics, but to other students and families. On their website, they explain that other students are part of the experience at MCA, where the student’s family becomes part of a dynamic learning community where students interact with teachers and classmates in real-time, virtual classrooms, receive one-on-one support from caring teachers through telephone sessions and the after-hours tutoring program, interact with MCA students, as well as virtual school students across the country through many exciting clubs and activities and meet classmates face-to-face at school-sponsored field trips and parties.
“The one question that keeps coming up is about socialization,” said Chistiane. “I think the school (MCA) has done a really great job creating a more social atmosphere through things like field trips. They also encourage the students to get away from the computer once they’ve finished their six-hour day, and go join a local theatre group or go to gymnastics camp, or any other activities they want to be involved in.”
In addition to things like field trips and other social activities within the MCA community, many of their students able to busy themselves with activities in their local communities. The flexibility of MCA allows students to take advantage of more extracurricular activities — often activities that the schedule of a traditional school would not accommodate. Kelsie doesn’t play any sports through the high school, but she is very involved with dancing. Her traditional schooling was making it difficult for her to participate in many of her dance activities. She is involved with both Robinson’s School of Dance and the Bangor Ballet. As an avid dancer with an often rigorous travel schedule, MCA allows Kelsie to work around her school schedule and accommodate all her extracurricular activities.
“She’s dancing about 15 hours a week, so we do a lot of traveling up and down the state,” said Christiane. “With this if we’re needing to be down state she can hotwire in as we’re driving and still be able to conduct her classes,”
According to MCA’s website, their secure message boards, WebMail, and phone lines are buzzing throughout the entire school year as learning coaches share at-home learning tips and resources, plan field trips, or just stay “in the loop” with school activities. They explain that it is a vital part of the MCA community, for families to connect with teachers, school counselors, and other parents both virtually and in-person.
Christiane explained that her daughter would not be missing out on activities offered through Caribou High School either.
“Kelsie will also still be able to play school sports if she wanted to,” said Christiane. “I don’t want to call it home schooling, because it’s not. Home schooled students are still allowed to participate in school activities, and it’s no different with MCA.”
In addition to social activities within the MCA community, many students are busy with activities in their local communities. The flexibility of MCA allows students to take advantage of more extracurricular activities — often activities that the schedule of a traditional school wouldn’t accommodate.
Another common misconception with online schooling, especially for high school students, is the notion that parents are unable to stay as involved as those who enroll their children in a brick and mortar school. Christiane assured that this was not the case with MCA.
“It’s like a PTA online that we can all participate in. It’s not called the PTA, it’s actually called “the orange group,” but it allows the parents organization of MCA to work together to support the students and enables us to get involved with many of the different online activities provided,” said Christiane.
Christiane explained that MCA isn’t necessarily just for students with busy schedules, but the online school environment can be conducive to students for a number of different reasons.
“Some students have learning disabilities or simply find a normal classroom environment to be too busy and hectic to learn,” said Christiane. “MCA offers a different form of learning that may allow these type of students to stay more focused.”
If Kelsie happens to miss a live class session, she has the opportunity to go back and watch it later, as all of the classroom interactions are recorded. Teachers conduct the classes using a webcam, and despite the apparent lack of face-to-face interaction, the socialization aspect of schooling is still there. It’s simply in the virtual world instead.
We must remain focused on students and their unique needs. This is not about replacing traditional schools. This is about providing options for families — families like mine and many others whose students will benefit from a different school environment and learning approach,” said State Rep. and Maine Connections Academy board chair, Amy Volk. “Youth is too precious, and education is too valuable. We owe it to all of our students to provide innovative schooling options.”
As Kelsie undertakes this new endeavor, she explained that she is excited to start this new chapter in her life. She will be taking honors biology, AP English, Algebra 2, and technology courses using a computer and monitor supplied courtesy of the Connections Academy.
“I’m excited,” she said. “I think it will be a great experience for me. I believe the structure of an online school environment will help, in the way that it teaches students to be more responsible. Each student has to sit down at the computer and get their work done one way or another, so it prepares the student for the future.”
Kelsie confirmed that, as of right now, she is planning to complete both her junior and senior years enrolled in MCA. Kelsie explained that graduating from MCA is just like earning a degree from any other public high school.
“They have a formal graduation,” she added. “As of right now, we’re not really sure where it will be held, either in Augusta or somewhere further north, depending on where the majority of the students are located.”
Nationwide, families are finding success with online school. In the 2012-13 school year, an estimated 310,000 students in 30 states received their educations from fully online schools, according to “Keeping Pace with K-12 Online & Blended Learning,” a recently released national report. The U.S. Department of Education also released a reported stating that students enrolled in Career Technical Education programs like Maine Connections have a high school graduation rate of more than 90 percent, compared to the average national freshman graduation rate of 75 percent.
