Content therein provided by Geoff Brown, superintendent of Phoenix-based Northwest Christian School, one of the largest private Christian schools in Arizona and the only ACSI Exemplary Accredited school in the state.

It makes perfect sense and should serve as no surprise. Online education – as manifested in home schools, leading edge magnet schools, most private schools, and forward-thinking public and charter schools – is the fastest growing sector within the K-12 education market. 

The impact is so significant, economists are terming American’s burgeoning appetite for convenience and flexibility a “megatrend” and reporting that contemporary consumers have prioritized convenience over cost in most instances of product consumption.

So, should it surprise anyone that the same consumer who orders their daily coffee via an app, banks online, and both purchases and picks up groceries without darkening doors of the local market, is now looking for the same convenience and flexibility in the educational choices they make for their children?

It should not. But as our culture rides the wave of this megatrend, it should be recognized that your child’s academic potential and taking the steps to establish their love of learning is the most significant investment that you will make as a parent. 

Considering that online education is a relatively new enterprise without annals of historic data distilled to inform our selection of a specific online school from the growing field of such schools, what questions can a parent ask to help drive their decision? Perhaps unsurprisingly, the questions are remarkably similar to those that drive the selection of on-ground schooling options.  

Though online data is sparse relative to on-ground data: Does the online school you are considering demonstrate that it is following and transparently publishing its academic outcomes?  

For younger students especially, interaction with a teacher/facilitator is crucial in those instances wherein learning challenges inevitably arise: How convenient and frequent is that interaction? Does it require additional costs?

Socialization is not just a preference. It is a requirement of healthy childhood development. Does the online school present options for in-person engagement with peers? Is there a school culture that will bind your students to a personal investment in the learning process? Sports? Fine arts? Clubs?

As most parents learned during the last few years, even online education presents a social political perspective that will shape your child’s developing worldview: Does the worldview presented by your online school align with what you are espousing in your home? Is the curriculum organically developed by real people that are trained and certified educators?

In the age of artificial intelligence, unsurprisingly, some online schools use AI to shape their curriculum. In the final analysis, most believe that online learning will never supplant in-person engagement.

The research is demonstrating conclusively that it is a powerful complement. Like any powerful tool however, wielded incorrectly it can either help or hurt. For discerning parents, asking the right questions will, thankfully, lead to the right answers and ultimately, the right school.

This post is sponsored by NCS Online, a fully online K-11th grade Christian school providing an online education that is rigorous, affordable, and rooted in Biblical worldview. To learn more, visit NCSonline.org.