Logging onto her Florida Virtual School account, junior Yasmeen Elsawaf clicks on her Economics grade book in the upper left corner of the page to see how well she did on her Module Three quiz. Over the past two years, the number of registered Florida Virtual School (FLVS) students has increased drastically.

“I took economics online because I didn’t have enough room in my schedule to take it this year or senior year,” Elsawaf said. “The course I took wasn’t too exciting, but the work was pretty easy. I also liked that the work was set on my own schedule and time.”

Students are not the only ones turning to this alternative. Teachers are also taking part in the latest technological advance in education, including former English teacher Melissa Spinuzza.

“Florida Virtual School allows me to teach at home with my baby close by,” Spinuzza said. “Virtual school also offers a very flexible schedule.”

However, Spinuzza says there are cons to teaching American Lit- erature in front of your computer monitor.

“Teaching in a traditional high school allows you to see students face to face, unlike virtual school,” she said. “It also can be hard to track students down because you don’t see them everyday.”

Junior Marissa Vega also discovered problems dealing with FLVS. “I didn’t like taking the class in the summer and I didn’t like having to do some of the assignments that were really silly,” Vega said. “I have to take another class this coming summer too since I took economics, which is a semester course. I have to take government to receive a whole credit.”

The decision to enroll in an online class ultimately depends on the electives a student chooses to take, as is the case with Vega.

“I just took a class on FLVS because I wanted room in my schedule to take yearbook,” Vega said.