The Benefits of Online High School | OnlineSchools

Q&A: The Benefits of Online High School

September 27, 2011 | By Beverly Browning

Answer: There are some great benefits to online high schooling. Some of the benefits are:

  • Parent controlled environment and more parent involvement (optional).
  • Students can work at their own pace (as long as they meet deadlines).
  • Students can do school work all hours of the day (unless otherwise stated), allowing time for employment or other obligations.
  • Students may have the option of graduating early.

Online high school is a wonderful option for full-time students, as well as part-time in addition to traditional high school. Deciding if online high school is a "good fit" also depends on the student. The student must have regular access to the Internet and have self-discipline to complete their work.

Other students who may benefit are those who face internal and/or external issues that are affecting their schooling. While there are some great private, public and charter high schools throughout our country, teenagers are still vulnerable to personal, high school and educational "issues". These issues may be internal (medical, behavioral health or personal) or external (peers and educational).

Major medical issues or reoccurring medical problems that result in consistently missing school can have severe effects, including delaying graduation.

Behavioral health issues are growing rapidly for adults and teenagers. This includes depression, anxiety and other diagnoses. Many teens already have difficulty managing their emotions. When coupled with a behavioral health diagnosis, it can be overwhelming at this age.

Personal issues are related to the home/living environment (i.e. financial difficulty; family addiction; domestic violence; transient; etc.). Another personal issue may be low self-esteem (which can result in depression, but not always).

Peer issues include the influence to drink; do drugs; "ditch" school; "fit in" socially; and bullying. Social media outlets, such as: My Space; Twitter; and Facebook, can also play a role in peer socialization.

Educational issues can range from personality conflicts with teachers to falling behind in school work.

Any of the above factors, may be a good reason to look into online schooling. However, none of these have to be present for a student to be a "good fit" for online high school. If the student is self-disciplined and he or she has the desire to learn and graduate, then online high school may be a fantastic solution.

Dr. Beverley Browning

Dr. Beverly A. Browning has been consulting in the areas of grant writing, contract bid responses, and organizational development for nearly four decades. Her clients have included chambers of commerce, faith-based organizations, units of local and county municipal governments, state and federal government agencies, school districts and colleges, social and human service agencies, hospitals, fire departments, service associations, and Fortune 500 corporations. Dr. Browning has assisted clients and workshop participants throughout the United States in receiving awards of more than $250 million. Dr. Browning is the author of over 37 grants-related publications, including Grant Writing For Dummies™, Grant Writing for Educators, How to Become a Grant Writing Consultant, Faith-Based Grants: Aligning Your Church to Receive Abundance, and Perfect Phrases for Writing Grant Proposals. She holds degrees in Organizational Development, Public Administration, and Business Administration. Dr. Browning is a grant writing course developer and online facilitator for Ed2Go.com; former faculty member at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Organization Management and a current member of the American Association of Grant Professionals. She is CEO of Bev Browning & Associates (BBA, Inc.); Founder and Director of the Grant Writing Training, and most recently, the new Vice President for Grants Professional Services at eCivis Inc. (www.ecivis.com)