[3] Instructional models for online schools vary, ranging from distance learning types which provide study materials for independent self-paced study, to live, interactive classes where students communicate with a teacher in a class group lesson.
[8] One use of technology that was found to be resourceful in the collaboration of students and teachers in virtual learning was the use of video conferencing.
[8] The utilization of web video conferencing allows students to communicate virtually with their teachers and simulate a classroom environment, with many using services such as Zoom and Cisco WebEx.
[10] Secondlife has qualities that resembles an in person curriculum such as class discussions, participation in lectures, and completing assignments.
With the resources of the Internet as a library, and the ease of making online study materials, there is usually a comparatively small requirement for textbooks.
Students with cognitive and/or physical disabilities often times face issues accessing online schools.
The most prevalent issue that this group of students face is lack of or inaccurate captioning on video and audio media.
Another group that has issues accessing online schooling resources is students with motor impairments.
UBC conducted a study in order to test the effectiveness of WebCT by implementing it in different ways in each of three sections of a computer science course.
By the end of the semester, it was found that the section of the course utilizing WebCT with in-person lectures had a significantly higher average performance, while the other two sections which used only one instructional method, were found to have average academic performances approximately equivalent to each other.
Following a consultation process that began in 2019, The DFE and Ofsted are currently working towards a pilot online education provider accreditation scheme using a variation of the Independent School Inspectorate Inspection framework.
[16] Furthermore, students who attend K-12 online consistently perform worse on state tests than their peers in brick and mortar environments, even when taking into account prior achievement.