This is what distance learning should look like in the fall

Aug 12, 20200

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In this Dec. 3, 2019, photo, Alexandra Zeitz (right), 16, of Aurora, Colorado, attends Colorado Preparatory Academy, an online school. Her mother, Emerald Zeitz (left), acts as Alexandra's learning coach in partnership with the academy's teachers.

(CNN) - When Kim Reeder started teaching in Parker, Colorado, 14 years ago, she found that managing the classroom environment took way more time and energy than actually teaching kids, and she couldn't reach as many of them as she wanted.

"I knew there were kids being left behind or not being pushed hard enough, because due to time constraints and class sizes, I had to teach the middle," she said.

Then Reeder discovered virtual school. As a middle school social studies teacher at Colorado Connections Academy for the past 13 years, she found "there's really no classroom management." Online teaching at the academy, a public K through 12 school, gives her time, freedom and energy to "give every student what they need."

Many schools around the world abruptly transitioned to distance learning in March, when Covid-19 forced brick-and-mortar schools to shutter. But much of what students experienced didn't represent real online school, in which teachers are trained to teach remotely and online.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/10/health/online-distance-learning-schools-wellness/index.html