The Problems and Possibilities of Virtual Schools

Virtual schools are an alternative to the “bricks-andmortar” schools that have been synonymous with school education for hundreds of years. Traditionally, students have attended a school building for their education where they have been in the physical presence of a teacher. There are, of course, exceptions to this understanding of education, in which students have been involved in a form of distance education or distance learning by correspondence, or have used technologies such as radio and television. These developments have been particularly useful for students living in isolated communities, or those unable to attend a conventional school. Virtual schools are also a form of distance education or virtual instruction. Typically, they use online computers, and students are able to complete their schoolwork when it is convenient for them, without having to meet with their teacher and other students in a school building.