Research

Most of the research I've found on online classes is from a university perspective. I'm looking at creating the online class for the high school level because in rural Alaska we have few alternatives to the only school in the village. Although it is possible to travel 18 to 30 miles to the next school, it is not practical because of weather, no roads and travel must be done via boat, snow machine, or four wheeler. Furthermore, most villages have one high school and no alternative school so online education will provide the alternatives to students who have trouble in the regular school. Online classes will help students who regularly fail due to attendance issues; students who have had babies and cannot find a baby sitter; or students who have medical issues which prevent them from attending school. In addition, setting up online classes will meet some of the requirements of the No Child Left Behind act.
The other issue that arises is that many of these students may not have the self discipline to complete the classes within the time requirements. This may have to be factored in during the creation of the classes.