Baltimore County schools use virtual learning as punishment. Experts say that hurts students.

Until the middle of January, Ryan took the bus to school. The junior at Lansdowne High School walked into the blue, silver and brick building, where he saw his friends, took Advanced Placement classes and sometimes stayed late to participate in the Army Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. But after the 16-year-old made threats and was suspended, he spent the majority of his spring semester at home, staring at his laptop, which he used to log in to Baltimore County Public Schools’ Virtual Learning Program.