SPRINGDALE — Alyssa Alberson did one last move on the balance beam, jumped down and ran to her coach for a talk. She then pulled clothes over her leotard and headed upstairs to a classroom at Hopes & Dreams Gymnastics gym.
Alyssa, 10, is one of seven gymnasts at the gym in Springdale home-schooled because of training, said Thomas Alberson, her father. Five students in the group are enrolled in Arkansas Virtual Academy, said John Davis, Alyssa's coach and gym co-owner.
At A Glance
Benefits Of Online Education
• Lesson plans are individualized.
• Students can access class materials at anytime and from anywhere.
• Students can study one subject each day or multiple subjects each day.
• Students can use vacation days when they need them instead of when the school says they have to take them.
Source: Staff Report
Fast Facts
Online Education
• Arkansas Virtual Academy is the only full time online school in Arkansas for students in kindergarten through eighth grade.
• There are about 310,000 students in kindergarten through twelfth grade in full time online school in the U.S.
• Thirty states and the District of Columbia have at least one full time online school for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade.
• The majority of full time online schools for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade are charter schools.
Source: Staff Report
Alyssa trains 35 and a half hours every week and is working to become an Olympic athlete, Alberson said. Without online school, none of this would be possible.
"Most every Olympic level gymnast is home-schooled at some point," he said.
The academy is the only full-time, online charter school in the state, said Deborah Coffman, chief of staff at the Arkansas Department of Education. The academy started during the 2002-03 school year, and the Arkansas Department of Education approved it as a public charter school in 2007, said Scott Sides, head of the school.
Thirty states and the District of Columbia have at least one full-time, online school program, said Allison Powell, vice president of new learning models and state and district services for the International Association for K-12 Online Learning. The majority are charter schools. Some are private schools or part of public school districts.
Alyssa's family moved to Northwest Arkansas in March 2011, Alberson said. They applied to the academy because they were enrolled in Nevada Virtual Academy in Las Vegas. Alyssa enrolled in Nevada academy at age 7 because of the demands of her gymnastics training.
As a public charter school, the Arkansas Virtual Academy doesn't charge tuition, Sides said. However, students are sometimes put on a waiting list when they apply to get in.
Alyssa was put on the list, so her parents home-schooled her with material from K12 Inc., the company that supplies the academy with material and curriculum, Alberson said. The K12 Inc. material cost Alyssa's parents about $1,300. Alyssa became an academy student the next year.
Whether an online school is the correct fit for a child depends on the situation, Coffman said.
"If that's the appropriate setting, that's wonderful," she said.
Alyssa said she likes online school because it gives her more time for gymnastics.
"Would you like to go back to public school?" Alberson asked Alyssa while she was studying.
"No," she said with a look of disdain.
Online school works well for students such as Alyssa because lesson plans can be personalized to work around her schedule, Sides said. On most weekdays, Alyssa does school work in the morning before practice, some on her break and then more after practice, Alberson said.
She completes about six hours of school work every day, three of which are on a computer, Alberson said. The rest of her studies are done by reading books, writing and completing science projects.
One of the benefits of online learning is it allows a student to do school work anywhere, anytime, Powell said.
"It's always there and available," she said. "You always have access to the school."
Alyssa said her lesson plan is laid out with a different subject for each day of the week, because it allows her to focus better than if she were to switch back and forth between subjects.
"Your brain doesn't get clogged," she said.
The individualization of the curriculum allows Alyssa and her parents to also use trips to and from competitions as an opportunity for study, Alberson said. Alyssa has gone to Dallas three times this year for competitions. On one of the trips they went to an aquarium, and they plan to go to the site of President John F. Kennedy's assassination on the next trip.
"If you can read about the Sistine Chapel or go see it, go see it," Alberson said.
Online education can also help students who are bullied or have other social problems, Sides said. He said he didn't know how many students in the academy are there because of bullying, but said there are several.
While bullying isn't why Alyssa started online school, she said she was bullied while in public school in Nevada. Alyssa said students stepped on her heels when she was walking.
Online education can also help students in medical circumstances, Sides said. The academy once had a student for a few months, because he was in the hospital for open heart surgery.
Another reason for online education is that some parents want to be more involved in their child's education, Sides said.
Alberson said he's constantly involved in his daughter's education, because he comes to the gym almost everyday to help her with school work during her break. Other parents also go to the gym to help their children study. On days when a parent can't be there, another parent will team up with multiple children.
Alberson said he and Alyssa get frustrated with each other sometimes, like most parents and children, but they have learned to work through it by taking breaks.
Powell said she has heard from many people that students who are educated online don't have enough social opportunities. Officials with some programs have found ways for students to socialize with other children.
Sides said officials and teachers at the academy do their best to group students by localities so they can meet with each other. Alberson said Alyssa doesn't have this problem, because she gets to study, train and travel with her teammates.
There are about 1,300 students in kindergarten through eighth grade enrolled in the academy, Sides said. Students are from all over Arkansas.
School officials are planning to expand the academy to include high school grades in the coming years, Sides said. They hope to incorporate freshmen and sophomores during the 2014-15 school year, juniors during 2015-16 and seniors during 2016-17.
"They want to make sure the growth is managed carefully and managed well," he said.
Alberson said the expansion would help Alyssa, because she could stay in the academy until she graduates from high school instead of looking for an alternative.
NW News on 03/10/2014