John McCain is thus far the sole candidate who has discussed online education.

 

As the presidential campaign nears a fever pitch, candidates have been expanding, revising, and flip-flopping their positions at an ever increasing pace. In fact, one would be hard-pressed to find a subject upon which either candidate has not opined. Yet, the campaign discussion surrounding online education is barely a whisper—surprising neglect for a topic that directly affects millions of Americans. Hit the jump for our assessment of both candidates’ positions.

 

In his July 16 address to the NAACP, John McCain raised the issue of online learning as part of his plan to ameliorate public education. The context of his comments was secondary education, but his vague reference to “online courses for students” would seem to indicate an interest in online higher education as well. He stated:

“I propose to direct 500 million dollars in current federal funds to build new virtual schools, and to support the development of online courses for students. Through competitive grants, we will allocate another 250 million dollars to support state programs expanding online education opportunities, including the creation of new public virtual charter schools.“

This initiative is consistent with previous Republican positions on education—using public monies to fund private-sector charter schools that serve as alternatives to traditional public schools. While this strategy has its critics, it seems the charter school model is well-suited for online schools. The reason online charter schools make sense is that they can achieve much greater cost-effectiveness per student than traditional charter schools, as attendance is not limited by geographic proximity. Once massive numbers of students in a state are enrolled in a program—even for one course—economies of scale render the resulting process extremely price-effective.

 

Barack Obama, on the other hand, has been mum on the issue (at least, as far as our research indicates—let us know in the comments section if we missed anything). His 15-page document “Barack Obama’s Plan for Lifelong Success Through Education” (link) goes through his talking points on education policy, but fails to mention the internet or online learning once. This important omission is troublesome, as Obama’s campaign has gone to great lengths to (rightly) expose the rampant problems in public secondary education. Thus, until Obama divulges (or develops) his views on online education, voters will be left guessing as to where he stands on this critical issue.

 

The students who are currently underserved by public education stand to benefit enormously from an expansion of online learning programs at the secondary and post-secondary level. Students that have in the past dropped out of school so they can support themselves and their families would be able to receive their degree by looking to online alternatives. Others who fall behind for medical reasons would be able to continue their education by taking courses online until they can return to the classroom. While online learning is by no means a panacea for all the woes of secondary education, it does offer many solutions for some of its most important problems, so we expect more on the issue from both candidates as we approach the general election.

Tags: Online Education