
In the United States, the traditional school year is September to June. Summer school used to be seen mainly as a place for high school students to a repeat classes they failed.
在美国,传统学年是9月到6月。暑期学校过去主要被看作是高中学生的重班课程,但他们失败了。
But summer programs have expanded. Students often go to summer school so they can ease their class load during the school year. Or it might give them more freedom to choose the classes they want during the regular term.
但夏季项目已经扩大。学生们经常去暑期学校,这样他们在学年就可以减轻他们的上课负担。或者,它可能给他们更多的自由选择他们在常规学期中想要的课程。
Summer school students do the same amount of work as if they took the class during the school year. But they do it in a much shorter time -- just one to two months. They generally attend school for three to four hours every morning, five days a week.
暑期学校的学生做同样的工作,就像他们在学年里上课一样。但他们的时间要短得多——只有一到两个月。他们通常每天早晨上学3到4个小时,每周5天。
Another choice for many students is to take classes online. Students work by computer at home or wherever they have an Internet connection. They could even be traveling with their families.
对许多学生来说,另一个选择是在网上上课。学生们在家里或任何有互联网连接的地方工作。他们甚至可以和家人一起旅行。
However, some online classes require students to come to a classroom to take tests. Students may also have to take part in group discussions with the teacher online. And there may be a required number of hours to spend logged on each day. Yet there may also be freedom to do the work anytime, day or night.
然而,一些在线课程要求学生到教室去参加考试。学生们也可以在网上与老师进行小组讨论。而且每天都要花上几个小时来登录。然而,在任何时候,无论是白天还是晚上,都有自由做这项工作的自由。
Teachers say students who have failed a class may find working by computer easier than taking the class again in school. For example, they may feel more willing to ask questions of the teacher through e-mail.
老师们说,那些在课堂上失败的学生可能会发现,在学校里学习比在学校里上课更容易。例如,他们可能更愿意通过电子邮件问老师问题。
But teachers also say that students must be able to work independently to succeed at an online class. And a student must also be a good reader if all the material is presented in writing.
但老师们也表示,学生必须能够独立地在网络课堂上取得成功。如果所有的材料都以书面形式呈现,学生也必须是一个好读者。
Students take classes through their local school system or they can find a private, online school. Families must make sure that the school is legally recognized as an educational provider. If not, then their local school might not give credit for the work.
学生们通过当地的学校系统上课,或者他们可以找到一个私立的在线学校。家庭必须确保学校在法律上被视为教育提供者。如果没有,那么他们当地的学校可能不会为这项工作提供学分。
More than three hundred schools are members of Virtual High School, a non-profit organization based in Massachusetts. It includes twenty-five schools outside the United States. Virtual High School says it has more than two hundred classes and six thousand students.
300多所学校是位于马萨诸塞州的非盈利组织“虚拟高中”的成员。它包括美国以外的25所学校。虚拟高中说它有超过两百个班和六千名学生。