Texas high schools turn to virtual teachers in the wake of staffing shortages

Four American Sign Language classes in two high schools in Ector County, Texas are being taught virtually. The classes are part of a trial run through Proximity Learning, an Austin-based online education provider, and will be evaluated in November, Your Basin reports.While such virtual classes should ideally have each student equipped with a laptop and headphones and allow for one-on-one learning, budget constraints have the Ector County kids viewing one big screen instead.District leaders warn that to implement teacher pay raises to entice educators to Ector County, programs that aren't state-mandated, such as marching band and athletics, will have to be cut in coming years. The district is more than 250 teachers short this school year.A dearth of certified teachers is a growing problem for school leaders well beyond Texas. With the advent of educational technology, though, virtual classrooms are now a way to bridge the gap, especially for rural districts that have trouble luring well qualified teachers to move there.