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Online school helps students learn at home By Amber Fossen Ashland Daily Tidings Students don't have to be in class to learn. The Southern Oregon Online School is in full swing, offering students the opportunity to earn high school credits without leaving home. Founded three years ago, the online school is gaining interest as more and more students seek to meet education requirements via the Internet. "With Web-based technologies, there are other ways for education to happen. We try to take advantage of what the online world is all about," said Marty Karlin, Southern Oregon education service district administrator. SOOS is a consortium of local high schools working together to provide online courses developed by local certified teachers. Students can earn a number of credits toward high school graduation which include; history, language arts, government, geometry, health science and more. The program is available to all students -including the home-schooled population, expelled students, severely ill, incarcerated or pregnant teens - even those currently in high school who want to earn additional credits, program officials said. According to Glenna Stiles, an Ashland High School teacher in addition to an SOOS geometry teacher, the program helps students reach their own goals. "We have a handful of early graduates who need to take two English classes first semester. It's nice to give them some credit options," Stiles said. Stiles said the program has been popular at AHS with approximately 40 kids participating each semester. However, students who opt to take an online course should be prepared for the additional responsibility. "The students are used to having teachers in their face all the time but that disappears with online school. Ninety percent of this is initiative," Stiles said. Tina Mondale, SOOS assistant administrator agreed. "We're trying to get them involved in going out and doing things that have real world application. This requires students to be good time managers. They have a certain amount of material that they have to cover," Mondale said. Mondale said that while classes are through the Internet, one of the program's goals is to help students become more involved in the community around them by applying lessons to real life. "We want them to go out and research the community. Attend a victim rights class or go to a city council meeting," Mondale said. "It's not just read this online text book and answer these questions. I think it's good experience for them." About 150 students from throughout Klamath, Jackson and Josephine counties participated last semester and organizers anticipate even more interest with slashes to public education. "From a monetary perspective, we think schools will find it advantageous to use. Right now it's less expensive and it provides opportunities that schools don't have," Karlin said. Registration for second semester runs until Feb. 25. Students can select from 17 different online classes, which will go toward their high school credits. Students may register through their local high school or district administration office. For further information, log onto www.soesd.k12.or.us/it/soos or call Mondale at 858-6723. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -