Even with the size of FHSD’s class catalog, some students can’t find the one class they want to take within it. Sometimes it’s an AP class that the school doesn’t have a teacher for and other times it’s a language or niche class that doesn’t have enough interest across the school for a teacher to dedicate an entire class period to.
“I took AP US History online because I really like history and I wanted to take all of the AP history courses, but US History isn’t offered as an in person course here,” alumna Rishitha Vedanaparthi said.
With the wide variety of online classes available, FHSD utilizes multiple websites and programs for students’ virtual learning.
“Our preferred vendor is LAUNCH which is hosted by the Springfield school district,” Anna Natoli, Administrative Assistant for the FHSD Director of Curriculum said. “After LAUNCH, we’ll use Edmentum, also known as EdOptions. Then, depending on if LAUNCH or Edmentum doesn’t have it, we’ll send students to different programs based on what kinds of courses they’re looking to take. We’ll send them to Michigan Virtual for AP courses or we’ll utilize Florida Virtual for any other courses. For language courses, we like to use Mizzou Academy and any elementary students will use a platform called Edgenuity.”
Of the nearly 17,000 students enrolled across the entire school district, around 320 of them utilize the online class opportunities provided to them. Some students choose to just take one or two classes out of their day while others are completely virtual.
“Virtual learning is a dynamic program,” Natoli said. “Every day you learn something new about it and there’s always so many changes.”
While online classes are by no means a new concept, demand for them has substantially increased since the COVID-19 pandemic days of fully virtual classes.
“Being online for eighth grade let me know about taking virtual classes, because I didn’t know that those were options before that,” Vedanaparthi said.
The most common online classes for high school students to take are gym, health, fine or practical art credits, personal finance, languages and AP courses. Each kind of class has its own rigor level and some are more suited to be taken online than others. In the end, it’s up to the individual student to figure out what works best for their learning style and schedule when it comes to choosing online classes.
“I learn better in person because I feel like I’m being held accountable for my own learning, but online, it’s easier to find resources everywhere,” Vedanaparthi said. “If in person learning is not an option, online is a good way to get the materials that you need to learn about the subject.”
Students or parents wanting to learn more about online classes should contact their grade level counselor or reach out to [email protected].
