The Continuing Failure of Online Education

15+ years on .... can anyone argue that the many billions of dollars spent on online learning have really made any significant difference especially in the field of K-12 education?

What have we really achieved other than maybe providing work for thousands of graphic artists, software engineers, content writers and website developers? Certainly there are a group of individuals and CEO's that have gained greater profiles through wanting to make a difference .... but at the same time there are a group of individuals that have committed significant parts of their lives to the task, yet have been left disillusioned and burnt out.

12 years ago a small team of us at Zane Education set out to make a difference ... BECAUSE WE CARED! But the reality is, the only people we've really made a difference to have been maybe those kids being homeschooled .... and some students with Special Educational Needs.

So I sat down a year ago to ask myself why we felt like we had failed? One of the first questions I asked myself was "What is it our kids really need to help improve their lives?" Within a month I found myself designing and writing a completely new curriculum plan that was built upon a foundation of providing everything that would provide every child with a happy, self-motivated, successful life where each could meaningfully contribute to society.

Mental and Physical Health Awareness (and how both are Interdependent), Happiness, Self Approval, Motivation, The Meaning of Success, Self-Awareness, Discovering Your Natural Skills & Talents and Career Options that you are naturally suited for, How To Learn Most Effectively, Lifeskills Learning, Personal Development & Creativity, Special Needs Learning, Basic Financial Literacy, Understanding Personality Types and Preferred Learning Styles, Career Guidance, Planning Your Future, Entrepreneurship and Learning From Your Mistakes. Should this all not be considered as 'Essential Learning". And what about sections for Teachers to help them understand and work with Special Needs students and How Parents Can Best and Meaningfully Support Their Children with their Studies and Preparation for Adult Life.

Upon completion, I wanted some feedback from not only Teachers in schools but also ex-teachers working within Departments of Education that I knew across 4 States in the U.S., and asked for their comments and feedback. Their reply was all similar. The content is great, however the funds are not available because none of this falls within the State's K-12 Curriculum. In other words, because this is not History, Social Studies or Math, we are not provided with funding for this ... despite most of this being essential learning for all kids.

This begs the question "Is knowing their History, Math or Social Studies all that is essential if we expect future generations of students to grow into balanced, educated, self-motivated and self-aware individuals"?