Alabama ACCESS Program

The ACCESS (Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide) program was created to help teachers and students through the use of technology. The ACCESS website states that their mission is “to provide an infrastructure that delivers quality learning opportunities for all citizens”. The goal of ACCESS is “to provide additional educational offerings for all Alabama public high school students”. Some of the objectives of ACCESS are to provide additional computers to schools, to provide access to advanced courses, provide access to additional courses, to provide access to dual enrollment courses and remediation courses.

Some programs that ACCESS offers are internet-based courses, interactive video courses and blended courses. The internet based courses are completely online and are taken during the regular school hours. The video based courses are interactive, both audio and visual, linking the student to the teacher. The blended courses contain both internet based instruction and interactive video. There are many benefits, but there are also challenges faced with ACCESS. Some benefits of internet based and video course are allowing students to take classes not offered at their school, students are able to interact with students from other schools, providing schools with additional teachers and allow students to access notes and class work online. Some challenges that teachers may face is learning to use new technologies, teachers must be well organized and prepared in advanced for class and technology problems.