Jackson Caves
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The ability to take online classes, to supplement my traditional classroom learning opened up a tremendous amount of opportunities, that I would not have been able to gain if I was only afforded the opportunity to learn in a traditional classroom setting.
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– Jackson Caves
I have benefited greatly from having the ability to take blended or online classes during my high school career. I attend a very school rural school in Oklahoma. My graduating class size is one of the largest ever at my school and we have only forty-eight graduating seniors. As with most small rural schools because of limited resources and class sizes, course offerings and teacher staffing are very limited. However, since my sophomore year, I have been fortunate with the ability to take eight college courses online at a reduce costs. This flexibility not only allowed me the ability to learn about subjects that cannot be offered at my small rural school, but I will also graduate high school with twenty-four hours of college credit. When I enter college in the fall, I will have almost completed my freshman year of college, debt free. I cannot stress enough how this will set me up for success in the future.
The ability to take classes over subjects that cannot be offered at my school, the flexibility of online learning, in additional to the ability to earn college credits, and the pace of learning where the major characteristics that influenced my decision to take online classes. I was given the ability to earn my graduation credits, while I was concurrently learning and earning in an online college setting.
The ability to take online classes, to supplement my traditional classroom learning opened up a tremendous amount of opportunities, that I would not have been able to gain if I was only afforded the opportunity to learn in a traditional classroom setting. First, I had a flexible schedule that allowed me to be more involved in school and community activities, whether it was clubs, organizations, athletics or volunteerism. Additionally, I was able to work on my online classes at times when our basketball time had long road trips or after I return home from other school functions or competitions. Second, this flexible schedule allowed me the ability to assist my parents with helping my younger brother, who is a high school freshman. He was diagnosed with a rare heart condition this year, and I was fortunate to be able to assist my parents (who both work multiple jobs) with getting him to multiple appointments on a monthly basis, all while helping him back and forth to school. This flexible schedule greatly reduced my brother’s and my own absenteeism, while assisting my parents by not having to take as much time off work.
As of result of the opportunities to blend traditional and online learning, I believe I am much more prepared to enter college next year and I will have a jump start by already earning twenty-four college credits, with a college GPA of 4.0, that will ease the burden on my schedule and my parents’ and my personal finances. If I am fortunate enough to be selected a recipient of a Future of Schools Scholarship, it will greatly assist me by furthering my academic and career goals.