Reality and school
A friend of mine had a family tragedy a little while back (I think it was the beginning of our sophomore year of college) and his sister died in a car accident and his dad was hurt very badly to the point where he needed someone to take care of him. His mom had a really hard time dealing with the death of her daughter and couldn't bring herself to take care of the husband yet at the level that he really needed. So Brian went home (like any kid would) to help his family any way that he was able to.
Fortunately the school was very sensitive to the situation and they offered to let him do some of his work through elearning so he wouldn't get so behind. All he had to do was get a video camera (which the school lent to him) and he was set to get started.
His major is communications and business so a lot of the classes included online training videos. He could watch examples on how to give speeches online (instead of being in class to hear a teacher do it) and then he could use that for when he taped his speeches and sent them in to the teacher (isn't it amazing how much technology can do for us)?
These online training courses are actually really effective. Brian said he learned a lot and when he came back to school last semester he was right on track and only needed to make up one or two credits so he didn't fall behind at all (he'll probably graduate sooner than most of the kids in his major that never left).
So online courses really can help you if you are in a situation like this one or one similar to it at least. A lot of people who are just returning to school and don't feel comfortable in the classroom with younger kids do this as well along with people who work full time and still want to start or further their education. Don't ever think that you have to just leave school and drop out because there are always options to finishing your education; you just need to reach out to find the right one for you and your unique situation. There is always an answer when it comes to education.