What to Look for in an Ontario Virtual School

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Despite the educational uncertainty in 2021, the majority of school boards in the Ottawa area will be maintaining the hybridized form of education we’ve seen so much of over the last year. This means that students will need to continue to rely on eLearning methodologies for the remainder of the school semester.

Of course, there can be a lack of quality in the online education space. In the public sphere, teachers are still struggling with portals and platforms, while in the private spere, some institutions are only just taking their first fledgling steps into the world virtual education, or failed to improve since 2020. 

Here are Some of the Challenges

The more a teacher struggles to understand the platforms along with their students, the less time they have to provide assistance and support. In fact, a recent poll conducted in Ontario demonstrated that two thirds of parents expressed concern that teachers were not trained enough to deliver eLearning curricula at a satisfactory level.

Luckily, many public high schools are improving, and for the most discerning of parents, there is always the option of private virtual high schools, where 10 years of perfecting eLearning curricula, presentation, and student support systems have essentially allowed some schools to perfect the art. As many students are learning from home, we asked the experts at the Ontario Virtual School, a top virtual education provider for over 10 years what the best tool eLearning can offer students, their reply was simple — student accountability.

Find a School that Keeps Students Accountable

Students are encouraged to be self-reliant in a virtual classroom, taking responsibility for their success, and the right school doesn’t simply enforce this vital soft skill, they foster it. If you’re a parent, look for a school that embraces this skill and strives to teach it.

Self-reliance and personal accountability make up the backbone of virtual education. Learning independently from a set of online lessons requires time management skills, a strong work ethic, and the ability to take initiative. While teachers and interactive lessons are core elements to any high school diploma, the fostering of student accountability guarantees student preparedness both for the education they are currently pursuing as well as any future educational pathways they might want to go after down the road.

In a progressively digital world, working independently from a remote workstation is fast becoming the new norm, both in the university space as well as the professional world, where working from home is fast becoming the standard. 

Online study teaches computer literacy through accessing portals and interactive lessons, fosters leadership and communication skills through group assignments that must be communicated and delegated remotely by students amongst themselves, and bolsters time management skills by asking students to set their own study schedules and keep to them, with teacher and guidance support only there as a safety net.

Whether your child is looking to earn their high school diploma as a pathway to postsecondary education, or they intend to enter the increasingly remote professional workforce, or even the skilled trades, the development of self-reliance and accountability are primary among the skills necessary for success. So, before you make your final choice as to which virtual school is best, be sure these skills will be fostered along the way.