I share this information to make a point: The world has changed dramatically in recent years, technology has made it smaller, and our children need to be prepared for the realities and challenges of the 21st century.
It is this fact that makes me a strong supporter of online public charter schools for the children of South Carolina. It is also the reason I accepted the position of chairman of the board for the state’s newest online high school, Provost Academy South Carolina.
All of us involved in Provost Academy South Carolina are pleased that the school is supported and backed by EdisonLearning, the nation’s largest partner to public school districts and communities. Its expertise is helping students nationwide succeed in a new world, and the value it adds to S.C. students and their educational experience will be endless.
The rapid growth of online schools in South Carolina says a great deal about what parents want for their children — an education that is best suited to their child’s individual learning style; an education that tracks their child’s performance daily; an education that is offered in a safe and comfortable environment; and most of all, an education that prepares their child for the very competitive world that awaits after graduation.
The story that appeared in The State on Feb. 20 titled “Should virtual schools get real money?” raises serious concerns for parents all over South Carolina. Parents are fully aware that learning can no longer be confined to traditional school buildings, and that too many students are being taught in classes very much like the ones their grandparents attended, not benefiting fully from new research, technology and advances in education.
Online learning offers a richer learning experience than what students find in traditional classrooms. With streaming video, podcasts, virtual classroom lessons, a greater variety of coursework and on-demand tutoring, online learning accelerates the learning curve for every student.
As your Feb. 20 story pointed out, 2,500 students currently attend online schools in South Carolina. Yet, even with demand increasing, the state Department of Education believes that funding for online students should remain at $3,000 per student, as compared to approximately $10,000 per student in traditional school. School officials say online schools are “less expensive to run” than traditional schools.
The fact is that online schools deliver a high-quality education, while committing fewer dollars to administrative costs. They should not be penalized by substandard and inequitable funding. They should be embraced as a powerful tool to improve educational standards and graduation rates, while preparing our kids for life.
Further, public online schools are fiscally and academically accountable to the federal government, the state, the taxpayers and the students’ families. They are as accountable as every public school and in many cases more so.
With a statewide graduation rate seemingly and hopelessly stuck around 50 percent, it is time for the state of South Carolina and its citizens to demand more choices, more accountability and a higher level of expectation for the education of our children.
We simply cannot continue to accept mediocrity or, even worse, failure. Our focus needs to be on education provided to the children of South Carolina, not on the way the education is delivered. This is why a growing number of parents are looking to the new and innovative online schools available for their children. It’s an investment in our future that we can no longer ignore.
Mr. Brown is president of Colite International, a sign manufacturer based in Columbia with 150 employees worldwide.
