by Nick Valencia
(CNN) Most days, 16-year-old Jason Zobott walks into Huntley High School in suburban Chicago around 7:30 a.m. like any high schooler might. It’s what he does the rest of the day that’s not so typical.
Zobott is enrolled in Huntley High’s blended learning program, which merges Internet-based instruction with a more traditional classroom setting. One-third of the school’s 2,700 students are enrolled. In 2015, the school is working toward enrolling the majority of its students.
“Having to work online makes it really accessible to do the work that I have to get done,” said Zobott, a top-ranked junior who balances a heavy load of extracurricular activities with schoolwork. “I can learn on my own. I can work at the pace I want to work. And I learn the way I want to learn.”
Huntley High School students and educators often refer to the program simply as “blended.” It allows teachers to write the curriculum, with students giving feedback about the focus. Unlike many traditional online learning programs, students have the option of a flexible schedule during allotted blended learning days. Some days they meet with teachers, and some days they work online, according to Anne Pasco, who heads the school’s educational technology efforts.