Public schooling vs. Online schooling 

By: Caleb Shaulis  

Since covid hit back in 2020, many students have either returned to in person schooling or preferred to stay in an online schooling program. Both school options have their benefits and downsides to the environment that surrounds the student, but what do students prefer cyber or in-person and why? 

Students with disabilities may find cyber school is better due to it being online and being able to reach out to a school specialist rather than depending on an in-person school to provide these teachers on site. Other students might struggle with social interactions and may not be as social as a student who goes to a building with other students on a daily basis. When interviewed Rylee Clark from L.E.I.T said “I prefer in-person since it’s easier to make new friends and not an isolated area”. Cyber school may also not have events or even when they do some students would not want to go to a school event area simply because they do not feel comfortable leaving home. Sometimes if they do plan to hold events, it might be voted upon by the students if the event happens or not and without enough votes or approval from students, the school might shut down the event entirely. Cyber school offers a more flexible scheduling system compared to a brick-and-mortar school due to it being online allowing students to optimize their learning experience, due to them being able to set a schedule a time that works best for them. 

In-person schooling allows for a more focused environment in comparison to being at home and getting distracted. When Zachary Shearer was asked how he felt about cyber school he said “Cyber school sucks and it’s boring”. Students who attend a cyber school can be easily distracted by their surroundings if not set up correctly, like a student could be playing on a console, watching tv, playing with toys, or sleep through their classes as most times are not required to have their camera or mics on. Students also may find it easier to get help on a subject or get a better learning experience if they do not understand something as they can ask a question and have an in-person explanation. These explanations can be more in depth, or be provided an alternate method, so that the student understands the material better. 

A plus side to cyber school tends to be a safer option due to it being online where students do not face physical harassment or increased exposure to viruses, but it does not mean cyber offers the best safety options as computers can malfunction. School servers could be hacked, or personal information could be stolen if it were hacked. Students could also be harassed via messages or emails, but it can be handled more easily than in-person confrontation. One benefit of cyber is that all sessions are recorded and can viewed again if a student misses a day or needs to go over material again to better understand the topic at hand. In public school, the student would have to ask the teacher or classmate what they missed on that day and make the work up with two days of work in one. 

Cyber and public schools both offer their own sets of pros and cons. Cyber can go over a day’s material over and over again if needed due to recordings or have students work at their own pace, where as public school can give social interactions more easily or help students learn by changing how the lesson was taught or teach a different method to the problem at hand. It’s up to you what schooling fits best with you and how you learn. 

Siting: Observer.case.edu   Ineducationonline.org    Uopeople.edu