New Online High School Health Class Presents Opportunities, Challenges

10/5/2012

Health is a required class for high school students in the Westerville City School District. They have to take it and pass it before they can graduate. Until this school year, students would sign up whenever they could fit it into their schedule, sometime between their freshman and senior year.

Last spring, teacher Chris Poynter created an online version of the Health course, using a learning management system called Schoology. It was piloted at the Academic Enrichment Center in April. By August, the school district decided to try offering Health class as its first online-only requirement. Three teachers who were recalled, Mary Kloepfer (Westerville North), David Smith (Westerville South), and Scott Walberry (Westerville Central), were invited to come back and teach online. Teaching an online class, they learned, is quite different than teaching in the classroom. This delivery method requires a paradigm shift in the way teachers build relationships with students.

The three keep a regular teaching schedule at the high schools, and each works with about 150 students. The teachers are there five days a week and are always available in person during the school day to answer questions and assist with course navigation. Everyone who signs up is required to have an initial face-to-face meeting with their teacher, but then students can work at home when it is convenient or on school computers during Study Hall or lunch. Schoology is available on any computer that can access the Internet. The class is set up so it cannot be completed all at once; new modules are opened every two weeks. Reading, watching videos, and participating in online group discussions is a mandatory requirement, as is passing exams and completing a final project. Interactive assignments are completed and graded online throughout the course; parents receive an access code so they can monitor their child’s progress.

Stephanie Donofe, K-12 Instructional Technology Coordinator for Westerville City Schools, has high praise for the teachers who have stepped up and are really making it happen. “It has been a big transition for everyone. It’s hard to believe how much more work intensive this is than in a standard classroom.” She said, “Students aren't used to this environment and neither are teachers. But kids are going elsewhere to take online classes, so why not offer them here?”

Admittedly, there have been growing pains. While Smith and Kloepfer favor giving students the ability to take an extra class, they miss active teaching and feel some pupils are frustrated and overwhelmed with the transition, and might benefit from formal Schoology training. Walberry agrees, saying most of the negative feedback he has received has been related to log-in issues and trouble figuring out how to download materials, submit assignments and other technical problems. He adds, “I think the more familiar they get with Schoology, however, the fewer issues they will have in the future. This is a good opportunity for students to learn how to do online activities that they will likely need to do when they go to college.”

On the plus side, Walberry reports better student participation than in the traditional classroom setting. “Everyone must express their thoughts through discussion forums, and I believe it’s much less intimidating for some to do it on the computer versus in front of a roomful of peers, especially considering some of the topics we cover in Health.”

Despite a few bumps in the road, Donofe believes “the end result will be worth it.” She is a firm proponent of Westerville Without Walls (WoW), and is excited about exploring other online and blended opportunities for students and teachers in the future. But she cautions, “Technology is a tool, not an end into itself. We will always need good teachers to facilitate learning. Software will never replace teachers.”