Online learning is taking the classroom from the physical space to the virtual space.

Students who
homeschool have been showing us all along how valuable the internet really is and how it can be used to
pursue an education. As teachers we should always be prepared to teach using an online platform,
whether we decide to teach for an online educational organization, the next global pandemic hits that
forces families to shelter-in-place, or we just want to satisfy a technology standard that our school
district has put in place.

When I first began this program, I was resistant to incorporating technology and digital learning into my
lesson plans. However, I have learned there are a lot of benefits. One, digital activities can be created
and administered from the comfort of my home, and my students can participate in the activities I
create from the comfort of their home. Two, it offers some privacy and allows students to learn at their
own pace. If they don’t understand a lesson or get distracted, they can simply rewind the video or redo
an activity. Three, digital tools allow the students to collaborate, create audio and video responses, tell
their own stories, and it’s all done online. Four, digital learning offers immediate feedback and
responses. When a student completes an assessment, the student, teacher, and parent have access to
the scores, grades, and often times a list of the standards missed.

There are also challenges to digital learning, like access to wi-fi, a computer, or cellular phone. However,
they can be overcome with the help of state and federal grants that have become available to assist
families. A major concern among parents is online safety. As more school districts turn to online
learning, it is imperative that teachers follow federal laws and policies as well as the district's Acceptable
Use Policy (AUP) to protect the privacy and maintain the safety of the students.  The federal laws are
the Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA), the Children's Online Privacy & Protection Act (COPPA), the
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which have specific guidance on student identifiers,
student ages, and parental permissions.

When learning how to plan digital lessons and engaging activities, I have discovered that the time and
effort spent in planning is similar to planning non-digital lessons. The only additional caveat is adding
time to my lesson in order to teach the students how to access and use the digital tools. To ensure
directions and expectations are clear, I will support my students and parents using the tutorials offered
by the makers of the tools as well as communication tools like Zoom or Teams. I have found them to be
extremely helpful. In addition to online newsletters, there are digital tools that will allow me to stay in
contact with the parents like PearDeck, Wakelet, and Padlet.

Working through all of these activities, my view of online learning has changed. I have learned that I can
make learning more fun and accessible to my students, and that in turn will increase overall engagement
and learning. Most importantly, by incorporating various online tools into my classroom, like Desmos
and GeoGebra, I will be preparing my students to be successful in their future careers that will
undoubtedly involve learning how to harness the power of new technologies using old algorithms.