PA Distance Learning Blog

What is CEW and how do we bring it to life in a cyber school setting?

Today our staff is spending an entire day devoted to professional development, and there’s a common thread throughout this year’s “Ed Camp.”

Being a school in today’s ever-changing world means we have to adapt. We believe it is education’s responsibility to adapt as the world changes, so we can best prepare students to thrive.

There’s one thing, however, that must remain consistent within our education: empathy.

Today, PA Distance students had the opportunity to hear from a Magda Brown, a Holocaust Survivor.

Education is about bettering the future: from a 6th-grader whose learning transforms how she sees herself to a graduate who starts as a first-generation college student. Improving individual futures, however, is only one part of education’s power.

We cannot forget another part of education’s power, especially as we are faced with the mass shooting at one of Pittsburgh’s synagogues this weekend.

All week students across the nation and at PA Distance are celebrating Red Ribbon Week to increase drug prevention and awareness.

 

 

At PA Distance, we use Red Ribbon Week as an opportunity to collaborate as a school-wide team and unify as a drug-free community.  Our entire staff spends the week teaching our students about the negative effects of drug and alcohol use, making better choices, and how to plan for a drug-free future.

PA Distance Learning teachers will present at the Drexel University School of Education Virtual Conference for K-12 Online Learning on October 5, 2018.

As the popularity of online schooling grows, so do to the many myths surrounding this type of education. Without further ado here are some common misconceptions associated with cyber schools:

Written by PA Distance student Isabella B.

When I went to my local public school, it was fine and I had good grades; then my school went on strike from October until the end of November. 

After the strike, it was December, then break, then PSSA prep and PSSA testing, but we were not learning.  The teachers would talk about the strike during school hours and not teach, and would even strike during school hours outside the building.  But the students were not allowed to talk about the strike.

Jamie Desrochers, Director of Special Education at PA Distance Learning, and Kelly Crooks, 7-12 Principal at PA Distance Learning, are presenting at the 2018 PA Community on Transition Conference.

Written by PA Distance student, Madison B.

When some students think of school, they think of waking up early, and enduring over seven hours of assignments and lectures that may end up feeling useless after all the distractions. But what if school didn't have to be like that?  

When I started cyber school, I never thought that it would be quite like it is.  Here are some things I didn't expect from cyber school:

Written by PA Distance Learning student Tinia B. 

Cyber School: a type of school I never thought I’d join. PA Distance Learning is a welcoming community with a great amount of energy and happiness, even if you are just looking at the screen and typing, and not at the field trips.