How does online schooling work? A beginners guide for parents & learners

Homeschooling is currently the fastest-growing form of education in the US (Washington Post, 2024), with millions of families globally looking for meaningful alternatives to traditional schools. With frustrations around what, how, and why we learn in traditional classrooms, more and more parents are searching for educational experiences which offer personalization and flexibility: enter, online schooling.

If you’re a parent exploring online schooling for your child, then you’re in the right place. This article will explore everything you need to know about online schooling. From the all-important “What about university?” question, to more practical tips on choosing the right school for your child, we’ll be deep-diving into all things online education.

So, without further ado, let’s get into it.

What is online schooling? A simple definition for parents & learners

Online schooling gives learners the opportunity to receive a high-quality educational experience from anywhere in the world. As in traditional schools, there are many types of online schooling, and it is important that you focus on finding the right fit for your family.

From fully asynchronous models allowing total flexibility in pace and structure, to live interactive models bringing together learners globally, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Different online schools offer different curricula, learning methodology, accessibility, pricing and accreditation, so we recommend reflecting first on your priorities before beginning your search.

Are you looking to simply move your child’s traditional school online?

Are you looking for total flexibility and to play an involved role at home?

Or, maybe you’re looking for an innovative school grounded in project-based learning and real-world experiences?

Either way, there are plenty of options out there for you to identify the best fit for you.

Types of online schools: Which model is right for your family?

So, let’s take a look at what types of online schools exist. We’ll be breaking down different online school options by curriculum and learning modality.

Traditional vs Innovative Curriculum

Traditional online schools

Traditional online schools take the classical brick-and-mortar educational approach and move it to an online setting. These schools follow set curricula (for example, IGCSEs & A Levels, IB, CBSE, or US curriculum), and tend to have a rigid schedule and structure.

Think of these schools as the traditional schooling system taken online. This option is a good fit for families who are looking to replicate and follow a traditional exam-based curriculum at home.

Innovative online schools

But what about families who are frustrated with the traditional system? Families who are looking for an inspiring alternative? Families who want their child’s learning journey to be personalizable, meaningful, and future focused?

If this sounds like you, then an innovative online school might be a fit for your child. These schools, of which School of Humanity is one, focus on project-based learning, real-world experiences and global collaboration. They tend to follow their own unique interdisciplinary curriculum and assess learning through projects instead of exams.

Synchronous vs Asynchronous

Asynchronous

Fully asynchronous online schools are completely self-paced, with no live interaction with other learners or educators. This typically requires families at home to be more hands-on and supportive in terms of time management, giving feedback on homework and coordinating social activities outside of school.

This can be a good fit for families whose priority is complete flexibility in their child’s learning journey, and who want to be involved in some level with their child’s education themselves.

Synchronous

Synchronous online schools incorporate live teaching for learners around the world. Depending on the curriculum, the teaching style and weekly structure may vary.

For example, traditional online schools often mirror a traditional school day, with lessons, assemblies, and exams. They tend to host live classes, assemblies and exams, all taking place in an online setting.

Alternatively, innovative schools like School of Humanity utilize synchronous workshops to bring learners together for collaborative learning, problem-solving and group projects.

Curious to learn more? Let’s take a deep dive into how we learn at School of Humanity.

Case Study: Learning at School of Humanity

School of Humanity is an innovative online school where we learn by doing and having a positive impact on the world. We are internationally accredited by the Western Association of Schools & Colleges.

Learning at our school is a combination of live interactive workshops led by educators and personalized self-paced learning journeys. We follow a learning pedagogy called “Challenge-Based Learning”, where learners learn by tackling challenges instead of traditional ,siloed subjects. For example, learners might learn Math by exploring space architecture in Designing Space Habitats, or explore Politics & Sociology through Maintaining Global Peace.

Instead of assessing learning through rote memorization or exams, our learners develop projects that align with their passions. All learners receive 1:1 career advisory and support, and embark on a personal journey to human flourishing and wellbeing.

We coordinate workshops by timezone, and currently have learners spanning 30+ countries and 6 continents.

How does online schooling work day to day?

So what does a typical day in the life look like for an online learner? How does online school actually work?

It is important to note that no two schools are the same, so different learners will have vastly different daily experiences in different educational models. However, we can offer a deeper dive into what learning looks like at an innovative online school, (our school!) School of Humanity.

At our school, learners learn through a balance of live interactive workshops (3-4 hours a day, four days a week), and self-paced learning journeys.

Live, Interactive Workshops

We replace traditional subjects with daily challenge workshops, where learners are tackling real-world challenges like Understanding Minds, Protecting our Oceans, and Activism Through the Arts.

On a weekly basis, learners also participate in:

• Flourishing Workshops: interactive sessions exploring self-development, wellbeing and personal growth.
• Quant Lab: workshops led by specialist Quant Facilitators diving into mathematical reasoning and problem solving.
• Pathway Advisory: a weekly session for our high schoolers exploring life beyond high school, university admission, personal branding, and more.
• Action & Discovery Lab: weekly sessions for our middle schoolers focusing on foundational skills in English and Science.

We never lecture at our learners. Instead, workshops are highly interactive and consist of lots of activities, discussions, and games. You can check out an example of one of our challenge workshops for the Designing Space Habitats challenge here to see this in action.

Self-Paced Learning Journeys

Every learner at our school has a personalized self-paced learning journey. As part of the onboarding process, all learners meet with a curriculum specialist to plan their personalized curriculum based on their goals and passions.

At the high school level, learners choose from project-based Skill Units, which dive deep into specific areas of our curriculum. Learners progress through these at their own pace, and receive feedback from educators. Examples include Designing with Nature, Data for Sustainable Development Goals, and Philosophies of Happiness.

All learners also build their own Flourishing Journey, applying topics from our Flourishing curriculum to their own personal growth journey.

Our Curriculum: The Human Literacies Framework

But, how do we know if learners are progressing?

We follow our own unique curriculum, The Human Literacies Framework. It is based on research from OECD, WEF and extensively benchmarked against the American Common Core Standards, UAE, European and Australian Qualifications Frameworks to ensure rigor.

Learners are assessed across 8 main Literacy Areas: Thought, Flourishing, Discovery, Creativity, Action, Society, Quantitative & Technology.

Learners meet credit areas in our curriculum through project-based, formative assessments (through their challenges, skill units & flourishing journey). The result? A more holistic, personalized journey focused on skill development and mastery as opposed to memorization.

Benefits of online schooling for learners

So, why might families be exploring online schooling? There are lots of benefits to learning online:

• Flexibility: One of the biggest benefits of online schooling is flexibility. Learning online means families can maintain a consistency, high-quality education from anywhere in the world! In fact, we see many digital nomad families coming to us for this very reason. Similarly, for learners who are athletes, musicians, artists, and entrepreneurs, this flexibility enables them to fit school around their passions.
• Personalization: Online schooling can offer greater levels of personalization. At our school, all learners have a personalized curriculum and receive 1:1 feedback from educators on their projects. Our curriculum is designed to give learners choice and freedom to follow their passions and develop projects that align with their interests.
• Global community: With online schools, the world is truly your classroom. This is a fantastic benefit to online schooling, with diverse school communities spanning multiple countries, continents, cultures, and backgrounds. Some schools, like School of Humanity, also offer financial aid programs to ensure diversity in socio-economic background.

What challenges should you be aware of?

While online schooling can offer lots of meaningful advantages, it is not the right fit for all families. Families who choose online schooling can expect to play a more active role in shaping the social life and extracurriculars for their children.

However, that’s not to say that online school is not social. Innovative online schools like ours opt for interactive live workshops instead of lecture-based content. At our school, learners are working together on group projects, games, and extracurriculars with plenty of time to bond. In fact, one of the things our families love most about our school is the global community of learners, with some of our learners even visiting each other in different parts of the world!

To support families with in-person socialization, we also partner with homeschooling communities globally through our Learning Hubs (in UK, UAE & USA). Learners in select regions can access in-person social activities, excursions, and even internships in their local cities through our community partners. We highly recommend all families who are exploring online school to connect with other homeschooling families and communities in their local area to enrich their child’s social circle.

Lastly, we also coordinate an annual gathering every year for families to come together offline and connect in person. We rotate continents each year to make it as accessible as possible for families.

How to choose the right online school for your family

As we’ve explored in this article, there are many different types of online schools, each serving families with different educational priorities. When choosing the right online school for you, we recommend reflecting on the following questions:

• What curriculum do I want my child to follow?
• What style of learning works best for my child?
• How many hours a week do I want my child to be learning?
• What accreditation and graduation outcomes do I want for my child?

Most online schools offer open days or opportunities to chat with their Admissions representatives to learn more. This can also be a great way to ensure the school’s values and priorities align with your own.

FAQs about online schooling

Before we wrap up, let’s delve into some frequently asked questions about online schooling:

• How much does online school cost? The pricing of online schools varies depending on the school and learning style. Fully asynchronous schools (with no educator communication) tend to be cheaper than models that combine live workshops and self-paced learning. That being said, many online schools (including School of Humanity) offer financial aid programs, making them accessible to all.
• Is online school accredited? Many online schools are accredited – you can usually check out their accreditation on their website. School of Humanity is internationally accredited by the Western Association of Schools & Colleges (WASC).
• Can online students go to university? While it varies depending on region and university, universities are generally accepting of online schools. Some may require learners to take external qualifications such as the APs, A-Levels or IB. At our school, some of our learners choose to prepare for the APs & SATs to meet this requirement. For more depth on this topic, see Raya’s article on diploma recognition for online schools.
• Can parents be involved? Different schools will offer different degrees of parental involvement. For fully asynchronous schools, parents will likely be more hands-on than in schools that offer live teaching. At our school, there is no obligation for parental facilitation – instead, we look for collaboration with families to ensure learners are supported at home with things like socialization and a comfortable working environment. At the middle school level, we also offer session plans as an option for parents who want to facilitate some workshops offline.

Final thoughts: Is online schooling right for you?

So let’s recap – is online schooling the right fit for your family?

In this article, we’ve taken a look at three main models of online education: traditional school online, fully asynchronous, and progressive online models. Each offers different strengths and represents varied educational values. Many families who opt for online education do so because of the increased flexibility, personalization, and global outlook these schools provide.

It is important to emphasize that there is no one-size-fits-all model for education, so it is essential that you reflect on your family’s educational values before you make a decision.

We highly recommend connecting with schools which you feel align with your values, and connecting with their Admissions Team to learn more.

Explore online learning at School of Humanity

Are you exploring School of Humanity as an option for your child’s educational journey?

We’d love to hear from you! If you’d like to chat with our Admissions Team to learn more, please reach out to admissions@sofhumanity.com to book a time to chat.

We’re excited to learn more about you and your family’s educational goals. 👋