The idea is not new: Offer courses remotely, build in variety and the students will come. This article discusses how public schools are investing in offering online courses, catering to students' specific learning needs and to remote locations. Several surveys conducted in recent years show that school districts nationwide are embracing this learn-at-home-or-anywhere idea. In 2005, the U.S. Department of Education published a survey of courses taught in elementary/secondary schools. It found that more than one-third of the nation's responding public school districts were using distance technology to offer instruction and that approximately 500,000 students were taking an online course. According to the national survey, the No. 1 reason for offering online courses is versatility. Online programs can offer dozens of courses to high volumes of students, and they don't have to provide extra physical classroom space. They also address the need for a highly qualified teacher in specialized subjects in remote communities. But superintendents say they also are attracted by the chance to recoup state funds. When they take in students from elsewhere, most programs get paid for serving them. This potentially negates district losses of state dollars to charter schools, where an increasing number of students are heading.