My junior year of high school I made the decision to attend Insight School of Kansas, an online public school, instead of Shawnee Mission South. The setup was much different. The classes alternated every day; for example, I attended accounting for an hour on Mondays and Wednesdays only and had a different class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The was no school on Friday’s and all work was due by Sunday at midnight each week. When I was unable to attend the live class I was able to watch a recording of the class period and turn in an “exit ticket”, usually a question over the material covered in class, for full attendance credit.

 There were many benefits of taking courses online. It was completely free, only four days of school each week, the course work was easier and there was more time to complete it. The flexible schedule of classes also made it possible for me to work full time. There were also opportunities to get involved. I ran for student council and was the junior class representative.

Online school was also a bit more difficult than brick and mortar schooling because it required more focus and dedication. Without having to actually attend a physical place it became very easy to put school as a second priority and I often spent Sundays doing all of the week’s work.

I would recommend online school to anyone who needs to work full time or has some sort of priority that is bigger than sitting in a classroom all day, but still has the drive and focus to actually complete the course work and stay committed. For myself, I personally need the structure of a brick and mortar classroom and I’m happy to be back at SM South.