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2016ForthepastsixteenyearsEvergreenEducationGrouphasbeenwidelyrecognizedastheleadingK–12educationonlinelearningresearchandadvisorycompany.
Evergreendeliversdigitallearning-relatedinsighttostateandfederalgovernments,schoolsanddistricts,companiesandfoundationsinvolvedinK–12education.
KeepingPacewithK–12OnlineLearning2016marksthethirteenthconsecutiveyearEvergreenhaspublisheditsannualresearchoftheK–12educationonlinelearningmarket.
Evergreenperformsextensiveresearchintoallaspectsofonline,blendedanddigitallearning,examininglevelsandtypesofuse,bestpractices,instructionalmodels,instructionalimpact,andrelevantissues,suchaspolicy,staffing,finance,content,tools,andschoolfacilities.
Evergreenhasbeeninvitedtotestifyorpresenttostatelegislaturesandagencies,federalagencies,schoolboards,andcorporateboardsandexecutives.
2016Copyright2017EvergreenEducationGroup.
Allrightsreserved.
Allmarksandbrandsinthisdocumentarethepropertyoftheirrespectiveowners.
AcknowledgementsManypeoplecontributedinsignificantwaystotheKeepingPacewithOnlineLearning2016researchandwritingeffort.
First,wewouldliketothankButchGeminandLarryPape,whoweretheEvergreenresearchandwritingteamforthisyear'sresearchandreport.
Invaluablecontributionsweremadebyleadersandstaffofmorethantwentystatevirtualschools,includingtheVirtualLearningLeadershipAlliance,amembershiporganizationmadeupoftheexecutivedirectorsofstatevirtualschoolsandonlineconsortiaacrosstheU.
S.
ContributorsincludeACCESSAlabama,VirtualArkansas,ColoradoDigitalLearningSolutions,FloridaVirtualSchool,GeorgiaVirtualSchool,HawaiiVirtualLearningNetwork,IdahoDigitalLearningAcademy,IllinoisVirtualSchool,IowaLearningOnline,MichiganVirtualSchool,MississippiVirtualPublicSchool,MissouriVirtualInstructionalProgram,MontanaDigitalAcademy,VirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchool,IDEAL–NewMexico,NorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool,NorthDakotaCenterforDistanceEducationOregonAcademyofOnlineLearning,VirtualSouthCarolina,UtahElectronicHighSchool,VermontVirtualLearningCooperative,VirtualVirginia,WestVirginiaVirtualSchool,andWisconsinVirtualSchool.
Thisreportincludesseveralprofilesofexemplarprogramsatonlineandblendedschools,andonlinecourseproviders.
FortheiradditionaltimeandeffortwewouldliketothankFloridaVirtualSchool,NorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool,IdahoDigitallearning,MontanaDigitalAcademy,MichiganVirtualUniversity/MichiganVirtualSchool,IndianaOnlineAcademy,KentIntermediateSchoolDistrict,TheVirtualHighSchool,Inc.
,WisconsineSchoolNetwork,ArizonaVirtualAcademy,OhioConnectionsAcademy,GwinnettOnlineCampus,ClarkCountySchoolDistrictandtheNevadaLearningAcademy,ConnectionsEducation,FuelEducation,andK12Inc.
Also,wewouldliketoextendaspecialthankstothemanyschooldistricts,schools,regionalandstateagencies,andproviderswhocontributedtothisresearch.
Withouttheirstrongsupportandparticipation,thisreportwouldnothavebeenpossible.
SomeoftheorganizationsthatprovideddataandinformationforKeepingPace2016includetheTexasDepartmentofEducation,FloridaDepartmentofEducation,DigitalLearningDepartmentoftheWashingtonDepartmentofEducation,MinnesotaDepartmentofEducation,TheVirtualHighSchool,CapitalAreaOnlineLearningAssociation,CapitolRegionEducationCouncil(CREC),ExpandingLearningOpportunities(eLo),SUPERnetK12Consortia,MarylandStateDepartmentofEducation,MesaDistanceLearning,NewJerseyVirtualSchool,IndianaOnlineAcademy,MySchool@Kent(KentISD),WayneFingerLakeBOCESandCattaraugusAlleganyBOCESinNewYork,andIndianaVirtualAcademy.
KPK12.
COM3PrefaceOverthethirteenyearsofresearching,writingandpublishingtheKeepingPacereport,wehaveseentheonlinelearningspacegrowandevolve.
Wehavealwaysattemptedtoanticipateshiftsintypesandconcentrationofactivity,howpracticesarechanging,evolutionofinstructionalmodels,andhowstatepolicyimpactsdigitallearning.
Throughoutthisremarkableperiodofchangetherehasbeenaconstantpresencethathasbecomethebackbone,supportingthegrowthandsuccessofonlinelearning—thearrayoforganizationsthatsupplyonlinecourses,onlineteachers,digitalcontentandtoolstoschools.
Thenumberandbreadthoftypesofsuppliershaschangedandgrownasthedemandforbroaderanddeeperserviceshasincreased.
Suppliersrangefromschoolsthatsupplyregionsorwholestates,tostand-alone"intermediate"suppliersthatprovideonlinecoursesandrelatedservicestoschools,tovendorswhodevelopcoursesandcontentanddelivertheircoursesdirectlytoschoolsordistributethemthroughintermediates.
KeepingPacewithK–12OnlineLearning2016focusesonthesesuppliersofonlinelearningandreportsonlevelsandtypesofactivity,includingonlinecourseenrollments,typesofenrollmentsandnumberofstudentsinvolvedinonlinelearning.
Digitallearningdefinitions,sectors,categoriesandeveneducationinstitutionsinvolvedwithdigitallearningarenotnaturallyandclearlydelineated,andassuchKeepingPaceimposesageneraltaxonomyonadisciplinethatisindistinct,chaoticandundergoingconstantchange.
Ourclassificationsarenotmeanttobe100%accurateordiscrete,butareofferedtomoreeasilyandefficientlyexploreandexplainthefield.
SeeAppendixBfordefinitionsofthetypesoforganizations,servicesandtoolsthatmakeonlinelearningpossible.
4ONLINELEARNINGINTHEU.
S.
INTRODUCTION.
P.
8WHOARETHESUPPLIERSOFONLINELEARNINGCOURSESANDSERVICESINTRODUCTION.
P.
11INTERMEDIATES.
P.
13ONLINELEARNINGVENDORS.
P.
37DISTRICTSASONLINELEARNINGSUPPLIERS.
P.
47STATEAGENCYOVERSIGHTANDSUPPORTSERVICESFORONLINELEARNING.
P.
50BRIEFHISTORYOFONLINELEARNINGINTRODUCTION.
P.
57THEROOTSOFCOMPUTER-ASSISTEDINSTRUCTION.
P.
58THEROOTSOFONLINELEARNING.
P.
58THECURRENTDIGITALLEARNINGLANDSCAPE.
P.
59APPENDIXA:METHODOLOGY.
P.
61APPENDIXB:DEFINITIONS.
P.
62PREFACE.
P.
4ONLINELEARNINGINTHEU.
S.
ROUGHLY20YEARSHASPASSEDSINCETHEWORLDWIDEWEBBEGANTOBEUSEDWIDELY,andindeedtheoldestK–12onlineschoolsandprogramsarebetween15and20yearsold.
Inthelate1990sandearlyyearsofthenew2000stwotypesofonlineprogramsgrewrapidly.
StatevirtualschoolsproliferatedacrossthesoutheasternandmidwesternU.
S.
,spurredbytheearlysuccessesofFloridaVirtualSchool,andinotherstatesincludingMichigan,IdahoandGeorgia.
Atthesametime,onlineschoolsgrewquicklyasthecompanieslikeK12Inc.
andConnectionsAcademylaunched,spurringgrowthofonlineschoolsinmanyotherstates.
WhileConnectionsandK12werefocusedprimarilyonstartingandrunningtheirownonlineschools,othercompanieslikeAPEXLearning,Aventa(acquiredbyFuelEducation),E2020(nowEdgenuity),andothersbegantoprovideonlinecoursestoschools.
Sincethen,thecenterofactivityandgrowthhasexpandedfromstate-levelorganizations,suchasstatevirtualschoolsandonlinecharterschoolsdrawingstudentsacrossentirestates,toindividualdistrictsandschoolsthatsupplytheirownonlinecourses.
Programshaveevolvedfrombeingmostlyonlinetofrequentlycombiningonlineandonsitecomponents.
Assuch,avarietyofonlinelearningusageanddeliverymodelshaveevolved.
Thethreeexamplesbelowdescribethebasicmodelsofthelargemajorityofdigitallearningprograms.
Studentstakingsomeonlinecoursessupplementaltoregularclassroominstruction.
Millionsofstudentsaretakingsupplementalonlinecourseswhileattendingaphysicalschool.
Manyofthese—theexactnumberisunknown—arerecoveringcredits.
Othersaretakingadvanced,honors,ordualenrollmentonlinecoursesthatarenotavailableastraditionalcourses.
Stillothersaretakingcoursesthatareofferedattheirphysicalschool,butaretakingthemonlineinanextraperiod,oroverthesummer,inordertogainschedulingflexibility.
Theextenttowhichthestudent'senrollingschoolsupportstheonlinecoursesvaries.
Insomeschoolsthestudentissupportedwitharoom,computer,andmentor.
Attheotherendofthespectrum,somestudentstaketheonlinecoursesfromhomewithnosupportfromthephysicalschool.
Studentsuccessinonlinecoursescorrelateswithlocalschoolsupport.
Studentstakingalltheircoursesonline.
Hundredsofthousandsofstudentsareattendingfull-timeonlineschoolsthatprovidetheirentireeducation.
Manyofthesestudents(perhaps20%)wereformerlyhomeschooled,butbyenrollinginapubliconlineschoolthesestudentshavebecomepublicschoolstudents.
Otherstudentsareattendingtheseschoolsbecausetheyhavemedicalorbehavioralissues,areengagedinatime-consumingpursuitsuchasartsorsports,orhavenotbeenacademicallysuccessfulinaphysicalschoolandareseekingadifferentmodeofinstruction.
Mostfull-timeonlineschoolsarecharterschoolsthatenrollstudentsfromacrossentirestates,butagrowingnumberarebeingrunbydistrictsorregionalserviceagenciesthatenrollstudentsfromwithinadefinedboundary.
Hybridorblendedschoolscombiningface-to-raceandonlineinstruction.
Anunknownnumberofstudentsareattendinghybridschoolsthatcombineasignificantamountofonlineinstructionwithasignificantamountofface-to-faceinstructionwithateacherormentor.
Thesamecompaniessupportingfull-timeonlineschoolsrunsomeofthesehybridschools.
Otherhybridschoolshavetheirrootsinalternativeeducationprogramsthatprecededthespreadofonlinecourses.
Theseschoolsoftenservestudentswhoareatriskofdroppingout,orhavedroppedoutofatraditionalschoolandreturnedtopubliceducationviathealternativeprogram.
Inadditiontothesebasicmodelsthatincludeasubstantialelementofonlinelearning,awidevarietyofotheronlineanddigitallearningmodelshavebeenimplemented.
Forexample,manyteachersareusingdigitaltoolsandresources—mostofwhichareonline—withinregularclassroomsettings.
SuchtoolsincludetheuseofcontentwebsitesliketheNationalArchives;GoogleGSuiteforEducation;countlessothersoftwareapplicationsformath,reading,andothersubjects;classroommanagementsoftwareandlearningmanagementsystems;andcomputers,clickers,interactivewhiteboards,andothertechnologyproductsinphysicalclassrooms.
Themostsuccessfuloftheseeducationalapplicationshavegreatlyenhancedinstructionalmodelsandpractices,whileprovidinggreateraccessandequity.
KPK12.
COM9Whilethevariousdeliverymodelsandprogramtypeshave,andcontinuetoevolveandchange,oneconstanthasbeenthewidevarietyofsuppliersofonlinecontent,tools,professionallearningandotherrelatedservices.
ThisKeepingPacereportfocusesonunderstandingthelayersandtheirrelationshipsintheuniverseofsuppliersandusers,illustratedbelow.
Foronlineanddigitallearning,wedefinesuppliersasentitiesthatprovideonlineanddigitallearningproductsandservicestoschools,andsometimesdirectlytostudents,butusuallycoordinatedandmonitoredbyaschool.
Asupplierisnotresponsibleforastudent'sacademicactivityandperformanceandisnotauthorizedtodoso.
Assuch,suppliersdonotownthetranscriptofastudent,administerstateassessments,assigngradelevels,orofferdiplomas.
Somesuppliers,suchasmoststatevirtualschoolsandsomevendors,offercoursesthatincludetheonlineteacher,whoisusuallyemployedbythesupplier,butitisthestudent'shomeschoolthatmaintainsultimateresponsibilityforthestudent.
Thesupplier,offeringtheonlinecourseandperhapstheteacher,isessentiallyacontractedoutsourceproviderofinstructionalservicestoaschool.
Onlyauthorizedschoolscangrantcredittowardsgradeleveladvancementandconferdiplomas.
10WHOARETHESUPPLIERSOFONLINELEARNINGCOURSESANDSERVICESWHEREDOTHEONLINECOURSES,CONTENT,TECHNOLOGYANDOTHERSERVICESTHATHAVESUPPORTEDTHISDRAMATICINCREASEINONLINEOPTIONSANDACCESSIBILITYFORSTUDENTSCOMEFROMSomeschoolsanddistrictsdeveloponlineresourcesinternally,butthevastmajorityofschoolsuseonlinecourses,technologyandservicesfromacontinuumofsuppliers.
Suppliersareoperationalentitiesthatdeliveronlinecourses,content,instruction,technologytoolsandotheronlinelearningrelatedproductsandservicestoschools.
Theymaybecompanies,governmentalagencies,ornonprofits.
Supplierscanbeverylargecorporations—publisherslikePearsonorMcGraw-Hill—thatofferaverywidevarietyofdigitallearningproductsandservices,orsmallersupplierssospecializedthattheirproductsmight,forexample,belimitedtoonlinespeechtherapy,healthandphysicaleducationordriver'seducation.
11Somesuppliersspecializeinspecificinstructionalcontentareasofschoolneedlikecreditrecoveryprograms,worldlanguagesormathematics.
Othersfurnishproductsandservicesneededtosupportandmanageanonlinelearningprogram,suchascoursedeliveryandmanagementplatforms,assessmentsystems,andlearninganalytics.
Manyprovideprofessionaldevelopmentforteachersandadministratorsspecifictodigitallearning.
Inmanystates,intermediateprovidersareoneofthefirstresourcesschoolsusetoaccessonlinecourses.
Intermediatesuppliersareusuallyorganizationswithinastatethathavebeenestablishedtoprovideafull-service,coordinatedofferingofonlinecoursesandassociatedservicesdirectlytoschools.
Intermediatesmayredistributecoursesandotherproductsfromvendors,developtheirowncourses,createandprovidesupportandprofessionaldevelopmentservices,anddeliverthemtoschoolsusingcommerciallyavailablelearningmanagementsystemsandothereducationalplatforms.
Thisunifiedofferingprovidesavaluableservicetoschools,relievingthemfromhavingtodirectlymanage,integrateandsupportavarietyofproductsandservicesfromamultiplicityofvendorsandotherproviders.
Intermediatesaremostoftensomeformofgovernmentalorgovernmentcontrolledentity,suchasacoordinatednonprofitlikeastatevirtualschool,regionalservicesagency,orperhapsaconsortiumormembershiporganizationspecificallyestablishedtocooperativelyprovideonlineservicestoagroupofschoolsoritsmembers.
Vendorsarecompaniesororganizationsinthebusinessofdevelopinganddeliveringabroadrangeofproductsandservicestotheeducationindustry.
Inparticular,forthegeneralfocusofthisreport,vendorsprovideonlinecourses,surroundedbyabroadrangeofrelateddigitalcontent,toolsandsupportservices.
Vendorsareusuallynationalorworldwideinscopeanddirectlyserveschoolsatthelocal,regionalandstatelevel,aswellasworkwithintermediatedistributorsandproductandserviceaggregators.
Asaserviceofferingsomeevenmaintainastaffofteachersaspartofafullservicesofferingofonlineteacher-ledcourses.
Somevendorsalsodeliveronlinelearningdirectlytostudents.
FIGURE1OnlinelearningproductsandservicessupplychainSchools&StudentsSchoolsmaydevelopcoursesandcontentin-houseHostownLMSandothertoolsTrainandemploytheirownteachersStatevirtualschoolsRegionalserviceagenciesConsortiaIntermediateProvidersCONTENTFullonlinecurriculaOnlinecoursesDigitalcontentTOOLSEducationplatformsLearningmanagementsystemsLearninganalyticsSERVICESTeachersforonlinecoursesTeachertrainingImplementationassistanceCustomizationVendorsIntermediatesmaycustomize,packageorenhancevendorproductsforschools,orcreateoriginalcontent&toolsUseofvendorproducts&servicesbyintermediatesvariesfromnonetosignificantSchoolsmaybuydirectlyfromvendorsOnlinelearningsupplychainOnlinelearningsupplychainwithoversight12Figure1illustratesthesupplychainofonlinecourses,instructionandtechnologytoolsfromvendorstoschoolsandstudents.
Itshowshowvendorproductscantraveltoschoolsthroughintermediatesuppliers.
Schoolsanddistrictsoftenworkdirectlywithvendorsfora"turnkey"solution,anofferingdeliveredbyasupplierthatcompriseseverythingaschoolneedsforanentireonlineprogram.
Schoolsmaychoosetoworkthroughintermediates.
Theregionalfocusofmostintermediatesallowsthemtobuildcloserelationshipswithschoolsanddistricts,andintermediatesusuallyhaveathoroughunderstandingofstaterules,fundingandotherlocalissuesthatmightimpactonlinelearning.
Geographicproximityallowsintermediatestoprovideface-to-faceservicesthatvendorsmaynotbeabletoeasilyprovide.
Dependingonstatepolicy,schoolshavetheflexibilitytousewhateversuppliertheyplease.
However,selectionofasuppliermaybeinfluencedtosomeextentbyfundingsourcesforonlinecourses,astateapprovalprocessforsuppliers,ortheavailabilityofastatevirtualschoolorotherintermediatesupplier.
Stateagencyoversightandservicesimpactingonlinelearningarecoveredingreaterdetaillaterinthisreport.
Schoolsanddistrictsareincreasinglydevelopingtheirownonlinecourses,aswellasamassingthetechnologyinfrastructuretodeliverthem,butoutsideoflargerschooldistricts,mostrelyonsuppliersforthemajorityoftheironlinecoursesandsupportservices.
Vendorsandintermediatesworktogetherinmanyways.
Intermediatesmaylicensevendorproductsandservicesand,inturn,usethoseonlinecourses,instructionandtechnologytopackageafull-servicesofferingtoschools.
Vendorcoursescanbecustomizedandenhancedbyintermediatesuppliers.
Forexample,FloridaVirtualSchool,thecountry'slargestandoldeststatevirtualschool,partnerswithPearson'sConnectionsAcademytoprovidefull-timeonlineoptionsforstudentsinFlorida.
Somestatevirtualschoolssupplyselectcoursestovirtualcharterschools.
ThereisalargeandrapidlyexpandingnumberofsuppliersofdigitallearningproductsandservicesforK–12schools,chasingthegrowthrateofthedigitalproductsandInternetindustriesthemselves.
Thedifferentshapesandformsofsuppliersareasvariedastheenormousrangeofproductsandservicestheyprovide.
Thegoodnewsisthatthereisverylittleaschoolneedsthatisn'tavailablefromone,andusuallyseveralsuppliers.
Thebadnewsis,thatitisbecomingharderandharderforschoolstosortoutandmakesenseofthehugefabricofofferings.
Theroleofintermediatesaswellasstateagencyinvolvementhelpstoorganizeandprovideorderforschools.
IntermediatesMostintermediatesfocusonsupplyingonlinelearningandrelatedservicestoschoolswithintheirstates,oramajorregionwithinthestate.
Intermediatesmaybestatevirtualschools,regionalserviceagencies,districtsthatprovideonlinecoursesstatewideorregionally,oraconsortiumofschoolsordistricts.
Itvariesbystate,butmostoftenonetypeofintermediateisdominant.
Astatevirtualschoolisoftenthedominantintermediateprovider,likeFlorida,NorthCarolinaandAlabama.
Oritmightbearegionalserviceagency,likeIndianaandNewYork.
Intermediatesareusuallypubliceducationentitiesorcloselycontrollednonprofits,directlyrelatedtothestateeducationorothergovernmentalagency.
Historically,intermediatesweresomeoftheearliestsuppliersofonlineoptionstoschools,fromstatevirtualschoolslikeFloridaVirtualSchool(1997),toamember-basedconsortiumliketheVirtualHighSchool(1996).
KPK12.
COM13Intermediatesprovidecomprehensiveservicestodeliverafullysupportedonlineprogramtoschools.
They,Maintainanoperationalentitywithastaffengagedintheintegrationofonlinelearningproductsandservicesthatthey,inturn,delivertoschoolsonaturnkeybasis,Coordinatewithschools(usuallythroughsitecoordinatorsineachschool)todirectlyenrollstudentsandmonitorcourseactivity,Employandtrainhighlyqualified,statecertifiedonlineteachers,Providetechnologynecessarytodeliveronlinecoursesandperformcriticaladministrativefunctions,andTrainandworkwithschoolanddistrictstafftomanageandadministerallaspectsoftheonlinelearningprogram.
Multipleintermediatescouldbeoperatinginasinglestatesimultaneously.
Forexample,Floridahasthelargeststatevirtualschool,FloridaVirtualSchool(FLVS),full-timeonlineschoolsthroughvendorpartnershipswithFLVS,districtprogramsthatprovidecoursestootherdistrictsacrossthestate,andconsortiathatprovidecoursestomemberdistricts.
Michiganalsohasalargestatevirtualschool,butschoolsalsohaveaccesstoonlinelearningthroughastatewideconsortiumofdistrictsandatleastoneregionalserviceagencyprogram.
InSouthCarolinadistrictsaccessonlinecoursesthroughthestatevirtualschool,VirtualSC,orparticipateinadistrictfranchiseprogrammanagedbyVirtualSC.
SouthCarolinaalsohasvirtualcharterschoolsthatprovidefull-timeoptionsforstudentsandafewdistrictsindependentlyoperatedigitallearningprograms.
Althoughvendorsaremajorsuppliersofonlinelearningtoschools,intermediatesplayacriticalrolenotonlyindeliveringonlinecourses,butaddressingschoolneedsandstaterequeststhatmaybetoospecializedorsmallofamarketformostvendorstosupport.
Becauseintermediateshaveastateratherthannationalfocus,intermediatesareoftencalledupontomeetspecificneedsidentifiedbythestate.
Forexample,VirtualArkansas,thestatevirtualschool,respondedtothegovernor'srequesttomakeonlineComputerScienceavailableatnocosttoanystudentinthestate.
MichiganVirtualUniversity,theorganizationthatrunsMichiganVirtualSchool,wastaskedwithdevelopingandmaintainingtheMichiganOnlineCourseCatalogtoprovidecourseaccesstosupplementalonlinecoursesforstudentsstatewide.
14StateVirtualSchoolsStatevirtualschoolsareanimportantpartoftheonlinelearninglandscape,servingover523,000studentsinabout935,000supplementalonlinecourseenrollmentsduringthe2015–16FiscalYear(FY).
Theyareoneofthelargestandmostrecognizedintermediatesupplierstoschools,deliveringonlinecourses,instruction,technologyinfrastructure,professionaldevelopmentandotheronlinelearningrelatedservicestoschoolsanddistrictsacrossthestatesinwhichtheyoperate.
Statevirtualschoolsareoperationalintermediatesupplierorganizationsthatprovideonlinelearningprogramstoschoolsstatewide.
Statevirtualschoolswerecreatedbylegislationorbystatelevelagencies,usuallyfundedpartiallyorentirelybyastateappropriationorgrant.
Statevirtualschoolsarenotactually"schools"inthetraditionalsense.
Theysupplyonlinecoursesandrelatedservicestoschools,butwithonlyafewexceptions,statevirtualschoolsdonotgrantdiplomasandarenotresponsibleforthefunctionsperformedbyschools(re.
administrationofstateassessments,stateandfederalreporting,counseling,etc.
).
Studentsareusuallyenrolledwithdistrictapproval,withtheexceptionofstateswithcourseaccesspoliciesthatallowstudentstodirectlytakeoneormoreonlinecoursesfromaproviderotherthanthestudent'sdistrictofenrollmentandhavetheirfundingflowtotheprovider.
Eventhentheschoolordistrictplaysanintegralroleincounseling,mentoringandenrollingstudentsinthestatevirtualschool.
Statevirtualschoolscanbeadministeredbyastateeducationagency,butcanalsobeseparatenonprofitorganizations,charterschools,highereducationinstitutionsandevenregionalserviceagenciescontractedbythestateeducationagencytooperatethestatevirtualschool.
GeorgiaVirtualSchool,OregonAcademyofOnlineLearning,VirtualVirginiaandotherstatevirtualschoolsarepartoftheirstatedepartmentsofeducation.
IdahoDigitalLearning(IDL)isnotpartofthestatedepartmentofeducation,butratheraseparategovernmentalentitycreatedbylegislationwithaBoardofDirectorsresponsibleforoversight.
MontanaDigitalAcademyisadministeredbythestateuniversitysystem.
MichiganVirtualSchoolreceiveslegislativefunding,butisa501(c)3nonprofitorganizationwithaBoardofDirectorsprovidingoversight.
IllinoisVirtualSchoolisadministeredthroughthePeoriaCountyRegionalOfficeofEducation,whichwasawardedtheIllinoisStateBoardofEducationcontracttomanageandoperatethestatevirtualschool.
NewHampshire'sstatevirtualschool,VirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchool,wascreatedthroughcharterschoolrules.
Statevirtualschoolcoursesandservicesareprovidedtoschoolsatnocost,orfornominalfeestohelpcovercosts.
Statevirtualschoolsalsosometimesreceivefederalorprivatefoundationgrants.
Statevirtualschoolshavesimilarcharacteristics;theyprovideteacher-ledonlinecourses,havededicatedstaff,enrollstudents,hireandtrainteachers,andmaintaintechnologyinfrastructuretodeliverandsupportonlinecourses.
Theymayalsocreatetheirownonlinecoursecontent,licensecontentfromvendors,useopeneducationalresources,orcombinecontentfromvarioussources.
KPK12.
COM15TABLE1StatevirtualschoolsStateMainofficecityStatevirtualschoolYearopenedStaffFTEOperatingbudgetGradesservedNo.
ofschoolsservedAlabamaMontgomeryACCESSAlabama2004919,865,7687–12405ArkansasPlumervilleVirtualArkansas201375,040,000K–12258**ColoradoWheatRidgeColoradoDigitalLearningSolutions20022412,4276–1238FloridaOrlandoFloridaVirtualSchool1997385197,154,877K–123,227GeorgiaAtlantaGeorgiaVirtualSchool20054010,958,7536–12549HawaiiHonoluluHawaiiVirtualLearningNetwork2007NR*NR*7–12NR*IdahoBoiseIdahoDigitalLearningAcademy2001419,700,0005–12304IllinoisEdwardsIllinoisVirtualSchool200372,300,0005–12251IowaDesMoinesIowaLearningOnline20046.
751,500,0009–12190MichiganLansingMichiganVirtualSchool2001168,100,0006–12514MississippiJacksonMississippiVirtualPublicSchool2006NR*600,0009–12127MissouriJeffersonCityMissouriVirtualInstructionalProgram20072390,000**K–12NR*MontanaMissoulaMontanaDigitalAcademy20105.
11,838,3706–12195NewHampshireExeterVirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchool200775,916,8336–12364NewMexicoSantaFeIDEAL–NewMexico20086890,0006–12121NorthCarolinaRaleighNorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool20072523,471,8886–12945NorthDakotaFargoNorthDakotaCenterDistanceLearning1996155,100,0006–12327OregonSalemOregonAcademyofOnlineLearning20050.
9400,0006–12NR*SouthCarolinaColumbiaVirtualSC2006248,284,7276–12417UtahSaltLakeCityUtahElectronicHighSchool200421,013,4416–12245VermontBenningtonVermontVirtualLearningCooperative20103.
75544,6507–1261VirginiaRichmondVirtualVirginia200244,200,0006–12331WestVirginiaCharlestonWestVirginiaVirtualSchool2000NR*NR*6–12720**WisconsinTomahawkWisconsinVirtualSchool20004.
801,375,0006–12256*NR=Notreported**2014–15data16StateVirtualSchoolsbytheNumbersNotlongago,statevirtualschoolswerethelargestsuppliersofsupplementalonlinecoursestoschoolsanddistricts.
Onlinecoursesnowcomefromvarioussuppliers,butstatevirtualschoolsarestilloneoflargestprovidersinthe24statesinwhichtheyoperate.
Statevirtualschoolsuccesshasoftenbeenviewedintermsofthetotalnumberofonlinecourseenrollments,butKeepingPacereportsonstatevirtualschoolmetricsthatgobeyondcourseenrollmentsandgiveamorecompletepictureofthiskeysupplier.
FIGURE2StateswithstatevirtualschoolsStateswithstatevirtualschoolsStateswithoutstatevirtualschoolsAlaska,TexasandSouthDakotapreviouslywerestatesdesignatedashavingstatevirtualschoolsinKeepingPace.
Oregonisnewlyrecognizedasastatevirtualschool.
RICTVTMDNHHIALNCSCARMSCOWYMTNDSDTNNMIDILVAIAKYWVMONEWACAKSINPANYDEDCNJAKOHMEMAMNNVAZTXORLAOKMIGAFLUTWIStateswithstatevirtualschoolsStateswithoutstatevirtualschoolsAlaska,TexasandSouthDakotapreviouslywerestatesdesignatedashavingstatevirtualschoolsinKeepingPace.
Oregonisnewlyrecognizedasastatevirtualschool.
VHIALNCSCARMSCOWYMTNDSDTNNMIDILVAIAKYWVMONEWACAKSINPANYAKOHMNNVAZTXORLAOKMIGAFLUTWIKPK12.
COM17TABLE2StatevirtualschoolscourseenrollmentsoverthelastfouryearsStateStatevirtualschool2012–20132013–20142014–20152015–2016AlabamaACCESSAlabama51,91051,80941,57857,485ArkansasVirtualArkansas2,0003,73429,72829,213ColoradoColoradoDigitalLearningSolutions1,007914705433FloridaFloridaVirtualSchool410,962377,508394,712471,576GeorgiaGeorgiaVirtualSchool25,87733,04152,29066,460HawaiiHawaiiVirtualLearningNetwork1,8341,5141,3581,502IdahoIdahoDigitalLearningAcademy19,03620,82022,95425,488IllinoisIllinoisVirtualSchool2,9943,0974,6816,493IowaIowaLearningOnline1,2401,2011,2942,975MichiganMichiganVirtualSchool20,81221,94423,71624,397MississippiMississippiVirtualPublicSchool3,1212,3602,2624,319MissouriMissouriVirtualInstructionalProgram1,6231,9926231,639MontanaMontanaDigitalAcademy7,9936,7857,1116,946NewHampshireVirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchool17,62622,73124,72427,717NewMexicoIDEAL–NewMexico2,6972,8232,1992,442NorthCarolinaNorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool94,716104,799111,634116,006NorthDakotaNorthDakotaCenterDistanceLearning3,2006,1005,4145,264Oregon**OregonAcademyofOnlineLearning983SouthCarolinaVirtualSC16,81824,49140,36341,666UtahUtahElectronicHighSchool10,3084,7416,9657,985VermontVermontVirtualLearningCooperative9402,7071,6932,229VirginiaVirtualVirginia13,02619,43324,61125,600WestVirginiaWestVirginiaVirtualSchool6,03911,27010,428NR*WisconsinWisconsinVirtualSchool5,0365,3575,5116,150TOTALsemesterequivalentcourseenrollmentsserved720,815731,171816,554934,968*Notreported**FirstyearoperatingasastatevirtualschoolwasSY2015–201618Statevirtualschoolshadayear-over-yeargrowthrateincourseenrollmentsof14.
5%inFY2015–16.
Moststatevirtualschoolsshowedcontinuedgrowth.
ThestatevirtualschoolsinAlabama(38%),NewHampshire(12%),Georgia(27%)andIllinois(39%)allsawdouble-digitgrowthinthe2015–16FY.
Althougharelativelysmallprogram,Iowamorethandoubleditscourseenrollmentnumberwitha130%increase.
FloridaVirtualSchool,byfarthelargeststatevirtualschoolinthecountry,hadasecondconsecutiveyearofgrowthwitha19.
5%increaseincoursecompletionsinthe2015–16FY.
Thesecondlargeststatevirtualschool,NorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool,continueditssteadygrowthpatternwitha4%increaseincourseenrollmentsanda22.
5%increaseoverthepastthreeyears.
TABLE3NumberofstudentstakingonlinecoursesfromstatevirtualschoolsStateVirtualSchoolNameNumberofstudentswhotookclasses1TotalcourseenrollmentsAveragecoursesperstudent3AlabamaACCESSAlabama25,26157,4852.
28ArkansasVirtualArkansas16,834229,2131.
74ColoradoColoradoDigitalLearningSolution2964331.
46FloridaFloridaVirtualSchool290,456471,5761.
62GeorgiaGeorgiaVirtualSchool30,37466,4602.
19HawaiiHawaiiVirtualLearningNetworkNR*1,502–IdahoIdahoDigitalLearningAcademy15,97325,4881.
60IllinoisIllinoisVirtualSchool4,4276,4931.
47IowaIowaLearningOnline2,6412,9751.
13MichiganMichiganVirtualSchool14,46524,3971.
69MississippiMississippiVirtualPublicSchool1,9404,3192.
23MissouriMissouriVirtualInstructionalProgram7141,6392.
30MontanaMontanaDigitalAcademy4,0236,9461.
73NewHampshireVirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchool13,19627,7172.
10NewMexicoIDEAL–NewMexico1,6392,4421.
49NorthCarolinaNorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool36,454116,0063.
18NorthDakotaNorthDakotaCenterDistanceLearning2,4875,2642.
12OregonOregonAcademyofOnlineLearning6019831.
64SouthCarolinaVirtualSC24,79241,6661.
68UtahUtahElectronicHighSchool8,5177,9851.
884VermontVermontVirtualLearningCooperative1,1712,2291.
90VirginiaVirtualVirginia11,79025,6002.
17WisconsinWisconsinVirtualSchool3,2006,15011.
92TOTALS511,251934,9681.
84(Weightedaverage)(1)Numberofstudentswhotookoneormoreonlinecoursesfromastatevirtualschool(studentsarenotdoublecountediftheytookmorethanonecourse)(2)Exactcountunavailable.
EstimatednumberofstudentscalculatedbasedonweightedaverageofreportingSVSs(3)Averagenumberofsemesterequivalentcoursestakenbystudentsduringthefiscalyear(4)Basedon8,517studentstaking15,970quartercourses(7,985semester-equivalentcourses)Note:WestVirginiaVirtualdidnotreportdataforFY2015–16.
KPK12.
COM19Table3showsthenumberofstudentstakingonlinecoursesinstatevirtualschools,rangingfrom290,456studentsinFloridaVirtualSchoolduringthe2015–16FYtoasfew300–700studentsinsomeofthesmallerprograms.
Basedon22ofthestatevirtualschoolsprovidingdata,studentstookontheaverage1.
8onlinecoursesinthe2015–16FY.
Studentonlinecourseloadsvaryfromprogramtoprogram.
NCVPShadthehighestcourseloadat3.
18coursesperstudent,largelyduetoafocusonyear-longcourseenrollments.
VirtualVirginiaalsoemphasizesyear-longcourses,plusitisrunningafull-timeonlinepilotcontributingtoanabovenationalaverage2.
17coursesperstudent.
Severalofthesmallerprograms—Iowa(1.
13),Illinois(1.
47),NewMexico(1.
49)—runbelowthenationalaverage.
Courseenrollmentsbysubject.
Collectively,thecoresubjectsofmath,science,languageartsandsocialstudiescombineforabout53%ofcourseenrollmentsinFY2015–16,downfrom56%thepreviousyear(figure3).
ThelargestincreaseinanysinglecategorywasinWorldLanguages,accountingfor11.
84%ofallcourseenrollmentsaftertallyingjust5.
93%ofcourseenrollmentsin2014–15.
ThecostanddifficultyoffindingqualifiedWorldLanguageteachersforcampus-basedcoursesisdrivingmanydistrictstorelyononlinelearningoptions.
StatevirtualschoolsandothersuppliersarebeingaskedtocreatefullclasssectionsofonlineWorldLanguagecoursestomeettheshortfallinqualifiedlocalteachers.
TherewasalsoasignificantincreaseinHealthandFitnessat9.
94%ofallcourseenrollmentsinFY2015–16comparedto3.
53%in2014–15.
Driver'sEducationcomprised6.
16%ofcourseenrollmentsinFY2015–16.
Only2.
23%ofenrollmentswerereportedincategoriesthatdidnotlogicallyfitintothemorestandardcoursedesignations.
Twenty-oneofthetwenty-fourstatevirtualschoolsreporteddetaileddataoncourseenrollmentsbysubjectarea.
11.
19%Science12.
33%Englishlanguagearts13.
94%Math15.
83%Socialstudies7.
19%Electives11.
84%Worldlanguages3.
22%Arts6.
16%Driver'sed2.
23%Other9.
94%Health/Fitness6.
14%CTE53.
3%CoresubjectsOtherareas46.
7%StatevirtualschoolsbysubjectareaFIGURE3CourseenrollmentsbysubjectareaStatevirtualschools20FLORIDAVIRTUALSCHOOLStudentsoutperformstateaverageinend-of-courseexamsFloridaVirtualFloridaVirtualSchool(FLVS)isboththeoldeststatewideInternet-basedschoolandcertainlythelargest,successfullyserving290,000studentscollectivelythroughFLVSFlexandFLVSFullTimeprogramsinFY2015–16.
FLVSstudentsbestedthestateaverageinEnd-of-Course(EOC)examstakenbyFloridastudentsinspringof2016.
Thebenchmarktestsmeasurehowwellstudentshavemasteredcoursematerial.
AsthestaterequiresmoreEOCassessments,studentsinFLVSPart-TimeandFLVSFull-Timeprogramscontinuetosurpasstheaveragesetbystudentsintraditionalschools.
BasedonMay2016AdvancedPlacement(AP)Exams,FLVSstudentsalsooutperformedstateoverallaveragesby7.
8percentincomparingthe15APcourseofferedbyFLVS,andscoredabovethestatequalifyingAPaveragein12ofthe15courses.
EndofcourseassessmentcomparisonEndofCourseAssessmentComparisonFIGUREX:2016EndofCourseAssessmentComparison,StateAverageascomparedtoFLVSPart-timeStudentsandFull-timeStudentsStateaverageFLVSpart-timeFLVSfull-time020406080100Biology1CivicsU.
S.
History54%61%63%67%85%76%66%77%81%KPK12.
COM21FIGURE4Statevirtualschoolcourseenrollmentsbygradelevel84.
39%GRADES9–12(757,714)4.
45%GRADESK–5(39,984)11.
16%GRADES6–8(100,175)StatevirtualschoolsbygradelevelCourseenrollmentsbygradelevel.
Statevirtualschoolsbeganprovidingsupplementalcoursesprimarilyatthehighschoollevel,andabout84%ofallstatevirtualschoolcourseenrollmentsremainingrades9–12.
Servingmiddleschoolgradeshasbeenamorerecentdevelopment,andassuchtherateofgrowthintheselowergradesisfasterthanthetraditionalhighschoolsegment.
Allbuttwoofthe24statevirtualschoolsnowservegrades6–12or7–12withtwoprogramsofferingcoursesforgrades5–12.
Amongthestatevirtualschoolsreportingcourseenrollmentsbygradesweresomeofthelargestandoldest,includingFloridaVirtualSchool,NorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool,ACCESSAlabama,GeorgiaVirtualSchoolandIdahoDigitalLearning.
FloridaVirtualreported38,473coursecompletionsinK–5,practicallytheentireK–5enrollmentamongstatevirtualschools.
FIGURE5StatevirtualschoolscoursecompletioncriteriaStatevirtualschoolscoursecompletioncriteria*Completes90%to100%ofthecourseincludedstudentsthatcompletedapproximately90%ofthematerialbutdidnotnecessarilyreceiveagrade,tocountingacompletionaslongasthestudentwasstillinthecoursewhenthecoursewasmarkedclosed.
**Basedoninformationfromover70%ofstatevirtualschools.
21%10.
5%ANYFINALGRADECompletes90%to100%ofcourse*InsomecasesFand/orWithdrawal68.
5%PASSINGGRADECommonlydefinedasgradesC,D,or60%Completionrates.
Moststatevirtualschoolsdefinedcoursecompletionbasedonapassinggrade,mostcommonlydefinedasgradesC,D,or60%orhigher.
FloridaVirtualSchool,whichisfundedoncoursecompletions,notenrollments,definesacompletionasastudentthatsuccessfullycompletesavirtualschoolcoursewithaDorhigher.
Severalstatevirtualschoolsrequireagradeof70%oraboveforacompletion.
Afewdefinecoursecompletionasanyfinalgradeissued,includinganFandevenWithdrawal.
Asmallpercentageofstatevirtualschoolsacceptastudentcompleting90–100%ofacourseasacompletionanddidnotrequirethatagradetobeissued.
Anothercountsanonlinecourseascompletedifthestudentwasstillinthecoursewhenthecoursewasmarkedclosedontheclosingdate.
22Scheduleconfigurations.
Oneoftheprimaryreasonsstatevirtualschoolswerecreatedwastogivestudentsaccesstocoursesunavailableinthetraditionalsetting.
Anemergingtrendamongstatevirtualschools,aswellasotheronlinelearningsuppliers,istoprovideawiderrangeofflexibleschedulingoptionsbeyondthetraditionaltwo-semesterandsummerschoolschedulestomaximizeaccessforstudents.
Today,schedulingoptionsrangefromtraditionalsemestercoursesandblockschedules,toopenenrollment(registeratanytime)androllingenrollmentswithmultiplestartdates.
Forexample,IowaLearningOnlineadherestothetraditionfall,spring,summersemesterenrollmentschedule,whileIllinoisVirtualSchooloffersfixedtermsofvariouslengths(8-,10-,13-,and17-weekterms)plus10-weekopenenrollmentcoursesforcreditrecovery.
ACCESSAlabamaoffersyear-longcoursescoveringsemesters,bothsinglesemesterandtrimesterschedules,andblockandhalf-blockoptions.
Teachertypeandcompensation.
Moststatevirtualschoolshavecometorelyheavilyonpart-timeteacherstostaffonlinecourses.
Seventeenofthe19statevirtualschoolsreportingdataonteachertyperelymoreonpart-timeteachersthanfull-timeinstructors.
Eightprogramsemploynofull-timeteachers,exclusivelyusingpart-timeinstructors.
FloridaVirtualSchoolisthenotableexceptionwith1,380full-timeteachersandabout90part-time.
Sincealmostallonlinecoursesdeliveredbystatevirtualschoolsareteacher-led,theprimaryfactorindeterminingannualbudgetrequirementsisteachercompensation.
Part-timeoradjunctteachersaretypicallypaidonaperenrollmentbasis,generallyrangingfromabout$130toover$200perenrollment,basedonfactorssuchasexperienceandtypeofcourse.
Full-timeteachersaretypicallypaidinasimilarwayandonsimilarscalesasteachersinthetraditionalschoolsintheirstate.
Sourcesofonlinecourses.
Statevirtualschoolsgettheironlinecoursesfromawiderangeofsources.
Somestatevirtualschools,likeMissouriOnlineVirtualProgramandWestVirginiaVirtual,relylargelyonvendorsuppliedcoursesandservices,oftenincludingvendor-providedonlineteachers.
OtherslikeFloridaVirtualSchool,Alabama'sACCESS,IdahoDigitalLearning,andGeorgiaVirtualSchoollargelydeveloptheirownoriginalcoursecontent.
IllinoisVirtualSchool,MontanaDigitalAcademyandotherscombineoriginaldevelopmentwithvendorcoursestoprovideacompletecoursecatalog.
NORTHCAROLINAVIRTUALPUBLICSCHOOLOccupationalCourseofStudyTheNorthCarolinaVirtualPublicSchool(NCVPS)OccupationalCourseofStudy(OCS)programisacollaborativeeffortbetweentheNCVPSonlineteacherandtheface-to-faceOCSteacherontheschoolcampus.
NCVPSOCScoursesrequireaco-teachingexperiencewheretheface-to-faceteacherisdrivingtheinstructionaldecisionswhileworkingdailywiththeonlineteachertobestusetheonlinecontentprovidedbyNCVPS.
TheNCVPSonlineteacherhelpstheclassroomteacherindividualizeanddifferentiateinstructionforeachstudent,whiletheteacherdeliversreal-timeinstruction.
Theclassroomteacherusestheonlinecontent,her/hisownresources,andcollaborateswiththeonlineteachertodeterminethebestwaytoteachthecontenttothestudent.
TheonlineOCSteacherisavailabletothestudentoutsideofcampustimeifneeded,althoughmostcontactisscheduledthroughtheclassroomteacherwhoispresentduringthestudentinteraction.
OCScourseenrollmentshavegrownfrom1,000duringtheprogram'sfirstsemester(2010)toover18,189bytheSpring2016.
KPK12.
COM23TheEvolutionofStateVirtualSchoolServicesSincearound1997,statevirtualschoolshavebeensomeoftheearlypioneersinonline,providingonlinelearningoptionstosupplementastudent'slearninginthetraditionalschoolsetting.
Overthepastdecadeplus,statevirtualschoolshavesignificantlyexpandedthetypesofservicesandrangeofproductsoffered,whilemaintainingthetraditionalroleofsupplementalonlinecoursesupplier.
Innovativestatevirtualschoolsarenowintroducingandmanagingchangeinthedeliveryonlinelearningservices.
Supplementalonlinecoursesarestillattheheartofthestatevirtualschoolmission,butmoststatevirtualschoolsprovideavarietyofothervalue-addedservicestomeetthechangingneedsofschoolsandstudents.
Theyworkwithdistrictstoprovideaccesstoonlinecurriculum,technologyinfrastructureandteachertrainingtoexpandblendedlearningopportunitiesintheclassroom.
Manyhaveexpandedofferingsincollegeandcareerreadinesscoursesandtools,addressingstateandlocalconcernsoverpreparingstudentsforlifeafterhighschool.
Someexamplesoftheexpandingservicesprovidedbystatevirtualschoolsincludethefollowing.
VirtualSCofferedonlinekeyboardingfor34,368SouthCarolinastudentsingradesK–12across35schooldistrictsinFY2015–16.
ItalsoworkswithfivehighschoolstoprovideVirtualLearningCentersacrossthestateforstudentstoreceivesupportfromcertifiedteachers,mentorsandrobots.
VirtualSCstartedusingfiverobotsin2014,furtherexpandingtheinstructionalreachoftheprogram.
VirtualVirginiaisinthesecondyearofpilotinga"full-time"programof100studentsingrades9–12.
Thefull-timestudentpilotmaygiveschoolsanoptiontoofferresidentstudentslookingforfull-timeonlinelearningwhileremainingpartofthelocalschooldistrict.
VirtualVirginiaisprovidingsupplementalonlinecoursestofilleachstudent'sfullclassschedulewhilethestudentremainsenrolledintheirlocalschooldivision.
Studentsregisterthroughlocalpublicschoolcounselorsandwiththeapprovalofparentsandschooladministration.
Studentsreceivediplomasfromtheresidentschoolandtakestateassessmentsatthelocalschool.
IdahoDigitalLearning(IDL),incollaborationwiththeIdahoCareer&TechnicalEducation,hasdevelopedSkillstack,abadging/micro-certificationplatformthatallowseducatorstovalidatetheskillsinwhichtheirstudentsdemonstrateproficiency,leadingtoindustry-relevantbadges.
Thegoalsaretodocument,assess,andvalidatestudentskillsutilizingindustryanddisciplinarydefinedstandardstocreateawidertalentpoolforIdahoemployers,andtoassistwiththearticulationofcreditfromsecondarycareerandtechnicaleducationprogramsintoIdaho'scollegesanduniversities.
VirtualArkansasisofferingartcoursestostudentsingrades10–12throughapartnershipwithCrystalBridgesMuseumofAmericanArt,makingtheartsmoreaccessibletostudentsinallpartsofthestate.
NCVPSaddressedapressingneedinNorthCarolinabylaunchinganEnglishIcoursespecificallydesignedforEnglishLearnersbuiltwithWIDAandShelteredInstructionObservationProtocol(SIOP)supports.
ThecourseincludesenhancedinstructiontohelpEnglishLearnerswithvocabularyandlanguagedevelopmentandincludesaliveclassfeaturetohelpstudentsbuildverbalcommunicationskillswiththeirinstructorandpeers.
Afterasuccessfulpilotsemester,thecourselaunchedstatewideinFall2016andincludesstudentsidentifiedasEnglishLearnersaswellastraditionalstudents.
EnglishII,withEnglishLearnersupports,launchedstatewideinJanuary2017.
24TheMontanaDigitalAcademy(MTDA)redevelopedtheircreditrecoveryprogramforthe2015–16SYwithafocusoncreatingapersonalizedlearningpathforstudentsbasedoncontentmastery.
AllcoursesembedanadvancednotificationsystemthatfosterscommunicationbetweentheMTDAteacher,localschoolsupportandadministrativestaff,parentsandthestudentsoallstakeholdersareinformedoftheprogressorareasoffocusneededforeachstudent.
Usingadaptiverelease,studentsarepresentedwithonetasktobecompletedbeforethenexttaskappearsintheirlearningpath.
Thisredesignhasresultedinenhancedcommunicationtoallstakeholdersandaclearpathwaytomeaningfulrecoveryofcreditforstudents.
Statevirtualschoolsfillothervalue-addedrolesintheirstates.
Theybuildandmaintainexpertiseinonlinelearningwithinastatethatbecomesanassettopolicymakers,stateagencies,districtsandotherstakeholders.
Theymayhelpreducecostsbyprovidingonlineservices,suchasstatewideonlineandprofessionaldevelopmenttoreplaceinefficientface-to-facemeetingsandreducetravelexpenses.
Twostatevirtualschools—NewHampshire'sVirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchoolandFloridaVirtualSchool—enrollfull-timeonlinestudents,grantdiplomas,andperformtheotherdutiessimilartotraditionalschools.
Blendedlearningservices.
Providingtheservicesneededfordistrictstoimplementblendedlearningapproachesisoneofthefastestgrowingcomponentsofstatevirtualschools.
Statevirtualschoolsaresupportingschoolsbyofferingaccesstoonlinecourses,learningmanagementsystem(LMS)access,professionaldevelopmentforblendedlearninginstruction,technologysupportandevenplanningandconsultingservices.
Approachesvarybystatevirtualschoolandrangefromadistrictblendedlearningconsortiumandtorealtimetwo-wayvideoinstruction.
Someexamplesinclude:TheAlabamaConnectingClassrooms,Educators,andStudentsStatewide(ACCESS)FranchiseModelisanagreementbetweentheschooldistrictsandtheAlabamaStateDepartmentofEducationtouseselectACCESSonlinecoursesinahostedLMSatnocost.
SupportincludesaccesstoteacherprofessionaldevelopmentandLMStraining,adistancelearningspecialist,helpdesksupportandtwocampusvisitsduringthefirstyearforconsultationandrecommendations.
GeorgiaVirtualSchools(GaVS)makesmorethan100coursesavailabletothepublicasopeneducationalresources(OER).
Districtscanaccessthesecourses,plusassessments,atnocost.
ThepublicOERcoursesareavailablewithoutassessments.
TheMichiganVirtualSchool'sMyBlendprogramoffersdistrictsacombinationofblendedlearningservices;hostedonlinecourses,teachertrainingforblendedlearninginstruction,andcoachingandconsultingforadministratorsontheimplementationofblendedlearning.
VirtualArkansasmakesalimitednumberofitsonlinecoursesavailableforschoolstouseintheclassroominahostedLMSatnocost.
Italsohasasix-person"TeamDigital"fieldstaffthatconsultswithdistrictstoplanandimplementblendedlearning.
TeamDigitalmembersalsoconductmuchoftheface-to-faceteachertrainingandothercampusfunctionsforVirtualArkansas.
KPK12.
COM25Collegeandcareerreadinesshasarenewedfocusinmanystates.
Collegeandcareerreadinessprogramshavebeeninplaceintraditionalschoolsformanyyears,butnowstatevirtualschoolsaretakingaroleinprovidingonlinecoursesforcollege-boundstudentsandthoseinterestedinCareerandTechnicalEducation(CTE).
Onlinecollegereadinesstoolsincludemathremediation,ACTtestpreparationandcollegeplanningtoolsthatbetterpreparecollegeboundstudents.
VirtualArkansasoffersasignificantnumberofonlineCareerTechnicalEducation(CTE)courses,whichmakeupabout4%ofcourseenrollmentinstatevirtualschools.
CTErequiresacampus-basedlabwithamentor/facilitatorfortheseclassesbecauseofthehands-onrequirements,andallcoursesmustbeapprovedbythestateDepartmentofWorkforceDevelopment.
TheprogramoffersdualorconcurrentenrollmentinpartnershipwithtwoArkansasstateuniversitieswithabout2,372courseenrollmentsinFY2015–16.
IDAHODIGITALLEARNING'SBlendedLearningConsortiumIn2009,IdahoDigitalLearning(IDL)launchedastatewideblendedlearningconsortiumtoofferonlinecoursesandcontent,training,planningservices,andtechnologytosupportIdahoschooldistrictsinterestedinimplementingablendedlearningapproachintheirclassrooms.
IDLnowprovidesconsortiummembersaccessto27completeonlinecourses,morethan60"contentonly"courses,andover25coursesdevelopedandsharedamongconsortiummembers.
MembersarealsoabletoaccessIDL'sdigitalcontentrepositoryoflearningobjects,andhaveaccesstoIDLcontentdevelopmentspecialiststosupportthecreationoforiginalmultimediainteractivelearningobjects.
Consortiummembersreceiveninehoursofonsiteprofessionaldevelopment,onlinetraining,learningmanagementsystemaccess,andtechsupport.
IDLhasthreeBlendedSpecialiststhattravelacrossIdahotoprovideonsiteteachertrainingandconsultingservicestohelpdistrictsdevelopplanstosupportblendedlearning.
Technologysupportisanimportantaspectoftheservicesconsortiummembersreceive.
IDLprovidesanLMSforcourseandstudentmanagement,progressreporting,assessmentsandproactiveperformancedataanalysisandmanagement.
Membersarealsoabletohaveaschoolportal,developedbyIDL,thatprovidesschoolswithaneasywaytoaccesscoursesfrombothIDLandvendors,andintegrateIDLonlinecourseswithdistrictprograms.
Districtsretaincontrolovercoursesandprogramsaccessedthroughtheportal.
Therearenow25districtsintheblendedlearningconsortium,including30highschools,eightmiddleandfourelementaryschools.
AnnualmemberfeesaredeterminedbythenumberofstudentsandthenumberofteachersaccessingonlinecoursesthroughtheLMS.
IDLhasestablishedseveralindicatorsofsuccess;thenumberofcoursesdeveloped,numberofteacherstrainedandusingtheIDLcoursesintheclassroom,consortiummemberandenrollmentgrowth.
Theconsortiumisworkingtowardgatheringdatapertainingtostudentgrowthandmotivation.
26IdahoDigitalLearning'siPATH(IndividualizedProfessionalAdvancementThroughHighSchool)isastatewideearlycollegehighschoolprogramthatprovidesthecourseworkrequiredtoearncollegecredit,industrycertificationoranassociate'sdegreewhilestillenrolledinhighschool.
Incombinationwithpartnerinstitutionsandorganizations,studentscangraduatewithahighschooldiplomaandacertificationorassociatesdegree.
TheVirtualLearningAcademyCharterSchoolinNewHampshirehasacollegeandcareerreadinessfocusthatincludesannualassessmentofcollegereadinessskills.
ItsLearningThroughCollegeprogramgivesstudentstheoptionofcompletingoneormorecollegecourses,completingthefirstyearofanassociate'sdegreeprogram,orcompletinganentireassociate'sdegreeprogramwhileinhighschool.
Supportingstateonlinelearninggoalshaslongbeenaroleplayedbystatevirtualschools.
State-directedprogramdevelopmenthasestablishedstatevirtualschoolsasaresourceforstateagenciesandlegislatures,aswellasschoolsanddistricts.
Forexample,aspartofastatewideinitiativetomakecomputerscienceavailableineveryhighschool,theArkansasGovernorrequestedthatVirtualArkansasmakeonlineComputerScienceavailableforfreetoallschoolsinthestate.
TheIdahoTechnologyCouncilawardedIdahoDigitalLearningtheroletodevelopCode.
orgcomputercodingcoursesforthestate.
StatewideonlineProfessionalDevelopment(PD)forallteachersandadministrativestaffisanotherareawherestatevirtualschoolshavebeenaskedtocreateand/ormanageonlineservicesthatreachbeyondtheirtraditionalrole.
MichiganVirtualUniversityhasoperatedtheLearnPortonlineprofessionaldevelopmentportalsince2003.
BetweenSeptember2015andAugust2016,MVUprovided97,620hoursofprofessionallearningonlineaswellasanadditional14,496hoursofface-to-faceorblendedprofessionallearning.
IllinoisVirtualSchool(IVS)managestheonlinedeliveryofstatewideprofessionaldevelopmentaspartofitscontractwiththeIllinoisStateBoardofEducation.
IVShashostedprofessionaldevelopmentopportunitiesforalleducatorsstatewidesinceJanuary2011.
GeorgiaVirtualSchoolwasdesignatedbytheGeorgiaDepartmentofEducation(GaDOE)asitsleadingpartnerinimplementingtheGeorgiaCreditRecoveryprogramthathadover30,000enrollmentsduringthe2015–16FY.
GAVSsuppliesanonline,self-paced,teacher-lesscoursespecificallydesignedforcreditrecovery.
However,schoolsmustprovideacreditrecoverymonitorforthesecourses.
Theprogramisadministeredbyparticipatingschooldistricts,islegislativelyfunded,andfreetostudents.
Over90%ofstudentscompletingthecreditrecoverycoursesreceivecreditforthecourse.
KPK12.
COM27MONTANADIGITALACADEMYLeadingtheWaytoBetterMathSkillsIn2014MontanaDigitalAcademylaunchedEdReadyMontana,anonlinecollegeandcareerreadinessprogramthatassessesstudentskillsinmathematicsandprovidesamastery-basedpersonalizedlearningpathforstudents.
EdReadyMontanawasinitiallyusedbyincomingcollegefreshmentohelpthemprepareforthemathportionofcommonlyusedplacementexamssuchasAccuPlacer,Compass,SAT,andACT.
Sinceitslaunch,MTDAhasmadetheEdReadyonlineprogramavailableforuse,atnocharge,byanylearnerinMontana-studentsandadults.
Thisallowsmiddle,highschoolandhighereducationstudentstheopportunitytohonethecriticalmathskillstheyneedtomasterinpreparationfortheirdesirededucationalandcareergoals,fromalgebratopre-calculustotheHiSethighschoolequivalencyexam.
UnderthemanagementoftheMTDA,withfinancialsupportfromtheDennisandPhyllisWashingtonFoundation,EdReadyMontanahasservednearly58,000studentaccountsasofDecember2016.
Whiletheinitialpilotandintroductionwereinhighereducation,theprogramhasgrownwellbeyondtheintentoftheinitialdesign.
UsagedatashowsthemostsignificantincreasesinMontanamiddleandhighschoolenrollmentsaswellastheadultbasiclearningcentersthroughoutthestate.
EdReadyMTenrollmentsbyorganizationtype2yearcolleges4yearuniversitiesHighschoolsMiddleschoolsElementaryschoolsAdultbasicedNonaffiliated5000010,00015,00020,00025,0003,3207,25221,96219,2862,2732,8181,078EdReadyMTEnrollmentsbyOrganizationType28MICHIGANVIRTUALUNIVERSITYBuildingExpertisetoSupportaState'sOnlineLearningGoalsMichiganVirtualUniversityisfairlyuniqueinthatitwasstrategicallyincorporatedasa501(c)(3)non-profitcorporationratherthanasaMichiganschooloraspartofastateeducationagency.
Fromitsinception,itsmissiontochangeK–12educationthroughdigitallearningwasviewedasmostlikelytobeachievedbypositioningitoutsideofthetraditionalsystemanditsbureaucracies.
ThroughMVU'sMichiganVirtualSchool(MVS),onlineprofessionaldevelopmentforK–12educators,staff,andadministratorsthroughoutthestate,itsprofessionallearningportalLearnPort,anditsdigitallearningresearchunitMichiganVirtualLearningResearchInstitute,MVU/MVShasbecomeastate-recognizedexpertintheK–12onlinelearningenvironment.
MVUhasbecomeahighlyvaluedproviderofservicesandcounseltoMichigan'seducationalcommunity.
Forexample,MVUprovidessupplementalonlinecoursesforK–12students,butalsoprovidesprofessionaldevelopmenttoschoolstaffonhowtoprovideon-sitesupporttoonlinestudents.
Italsoprovidestrainingtoexpandschools'capacitytocreatetheirownonlinelearningcoursesaswellashowtomovetowardincreasedlevelsofblendedlearningintheclassroom.
Inhighereducation,MVUworkswithMichiganteacherpreparationprogramstoshapepre-serviceteachercourseworkandfieldexperiencessothatnewly-mintedteachershavetheskills,attitudes,anddispositionstoservewithinthisgrowingfield.
MVUalsoofferscontinualsupporttotheMichiganLegislature,Governor'sofficeandtheMichiganDepartmentofEducation.
ThesebodiescalluponMVUtoprovideinputononlinelearningpoliciesaswellastoprovideannualupdatesastothestateofK–12onlinelearninginMichigan.
RegionalServiceAgenciesRegionalserviceagenciesplayanintermediatesupplierroleinmanystates.
Forty-fivestateshavesomelevelofeducationagencybetweenthedistrictandstatelevel.
Regionalserviceagenciesgobymanynames;intermediateschooldistricts,BoardsofCooperativeEducationalServices(BOCES),intermediateunits,educationalservicecenters,CooperativeEducationServiceAgencies(CESA),countyofficesandothers.
Manyofferonlinelearningservicesrangingfromonlinecoursesandprofessionaldevelopmenttotechnologytoolsandcoursedevelopment.
Regionalserviceagencies(RSA)areparticularlyactiveinonlinelearninginstatesthatdonothavestatevirtualschools,andwherelocalcontroldominates.
InNewYorkstate,forexample,BOCESworkcloselywithschooldistrictstohelpdeliveronlinecoursesandservices.
TheWayneFingerLakesBOCES'AccelerateUprovidesonlinecoursesforNewYorkstudents,aswellasprofessionaldevelopmentforonlineteachers.
AccelerateUemploysitsownpart-timeonlineteachers,usesitsownLMS,andusescontentfromseveralvendors.
KPK12.
COM29IndianaOnlineAcademyIndianahasseveraltuitionandfee-basedprogramsthatoffersupplementalonlinecoursestostudentsstatewide.
TheIndianaOnlineAcademy(IOA),aprogramoftheCentralIndianaEducationalServiceCenter,isthelargestonlinesupplierinthestate,anddelivered20,353courseenrollmentstostudentsin162public,privateandcharterschoolsacrossIndianaduringthe2015–16FY.
Indianahasnostatevirtualschool.
IOAisself-fundedandreceivesnolegislativefinancialsupport.
However,Indianapublicschoolsreceivereimbursementfromthestateforsummerschoolcourses.
Coursescost$275forpublicschoolstudentsand$295forprivateandhomeschooledstudents.
IOAcontractswith42teacherswhofacilitatecoursesthroughouttheschoolyearand231teacherswhofacilitatesummerschoolcourses.
IndianaOnlineAcademydevelopsitsowncoursesusingsubjectmatterexpertsanditstechnologystaff.
Theyhavedesignedathree-phasecoursedevelopmentprocessbasedontheeightstandardsoftheQualityMattersRubric.
Oncedevelopedthecoursesareevaluatedbyareacontentteachersusingtherubricasaguide.
OneoftheirmainprioritieshasbeentoaddressSection508accessibilitystandardsforallstudents.
UsingtoolsprovidedbyitsLMSsupplierandothersoftwareproducts,theyareworkingtowardensuringaccessibilityforallstudents.
IOAandtheIndianaDepartmentofEducationOfficeofeLearningformedastrategicpartnershipinApril2016tolaunchseveralinitiatives.
ThispartnershipispartoftheOfficeofeLearningstrategyforbuildinginnovationcapacitythrougheducationaltechnology.
ThethreejointinitiativesaretheeLearningLeadershipCadre(eLLC),Administrator'sFocusForum,andtheLEADINCohort.
TheFocusForumandLEADINworkshopsareofferedstatewideatnocostandfocusoncurrentdigitalinnovationstoprepareeducationalleadersfortoday'slearners.
TheCapitolRegionEducationCouncil(CREC)isoneofthelargestofsixregionalserviceagenciesinConnecticut,andprovidesonlinecoursestostudentsstatewide.
Theonlineprogramoperatessolelyonrevenuefromcoursefeesandreceivesnostatefunding.
CREChaspartneredwithGenNET,aconsortiumofdistrictsinMichiganmanagedbytheGeneseeIntermediateSchoolDistrict,toprovideonlinecourses,providervettingandstudentenrollmentfunctions.
TheCRECalsohasapartnershipwiththeVirtualHighSchool(VHS)asthesoledistributorofVHScoursesinthestate.
ThereisminimalsupplementalonlinecourseactivityinConnecticutoutsideoftheCREC,withmostschoolanddistrictactivityfocusedoncreditrecoveryprograms.
30TheWayneFingerLakesBOCES'isoneof29BOCESthatmakeuptheNewYorkDistanceLearningConsortium(NYDLC).
TheCattaraugusAlleganyBOCESisanotherNYDLCmemberthatprovidesonlinecoursestodistrictswithintheregionalserviceagency,includingdualenrollmentandAP.
DistrictsandschoolscanchoosetousetheirownonlineteachersofrecordorcanpurchaseinstructionfromtheGSTBOCESorvendorteachers.
TABLE4RegionalserviceagencyprogramexampleRegionalserviceagencyprogramsStateYearonlinestartedNo.
ofdistrictsCourseenrollmentsNotesIndianaOnlineAcademyIndiana200512625,000Statewideprogramwithlargesummerschoolenrollments.
MySchool@KentMichigan2012203,000+Morethan750grade9–12students,somefull-time.
CapitolRegionEducationCouncilConnecticut1966781,318Servesstudentsstatewidethroughstrategicsupplierpartnerships.
CapitalAreaOnlineLearningAssociationPennsylvania20099718,713Districtscancustomizecoursesandhaveflexibleteacheroptions.
NorthernStarOnlineMinnesota200394*4,466*Fifteenmemberdistrictsand94districtsservedstatewide.
CattaraugusAlleganyBO-CESNewYork199523714Supportsblendedlearningforteachersintheclassroom.
WayneFingerLakeBOCESNewYork200349484AccelerateU.
isastatewideprogram.
*2014–15SYdataTheCapitalAreaOnlineLearningAssociation(CAOLA)notonlyworkswithmanydistrictsinPennsylvania,theRSAalsoworkswithdetentioncenters,daytreatmentfacilitiesandalternativeandspecialeducationprogramstohelpstudentswhoarestrugglingcontinuetheireducation.
Eachdistricthastheopportunitytocreateand/orcustomizetheirowncoursesusingCAOLAvendorcontent.
Memberdistrictsalsohavethechoicetousetheirownteachersfortheonlinecoursesorvendorteachers,andsomeuseacombinationofboth.
Insteadofdirectlyprovidingonlinelearningservices,someregionalserviceagenciesprovidecoordinationandadministrativeservicesforschoolsanddistricts,assistinginonlineprogramplanningandadvising,contactingandvettingproviders,andnegotiatingagreementsforonlinecourses,servicesandtechnology.
KPK12.
COM31KENTINTERMEDIATESCHOOLDISTRICTMySchool@KentMySchool@KentispartoftheKentIntermediateSchoolDistrict(ISD)intheGrandRapidsareaofMichiganthatsupportsabout55,000secondarystudentsin20schooldistricts.
MySchool@Kentisahybridonlinemodelthatservesbothoriginalcreditandcreditrecoverystudentssupportedbybothahighly-qualifiedinstructorinonlineandaface-to-facesettings.
Studentsmeetwithonsiteteachersatleasttwiceaweek.
Originalcreditstudentsarelargelyservedatthecampusofthecountyregionalserviceagencywherestudentshaveaccesstoavarietyofothercareeropportunitiesincludingdiverseprogramssuchasrobotics,dieselmechanicsandculinaryarts.
Mostcreditrecoverystudentsareservedatfoursatellitesitesthatareclosertotheirneighborhoodsandprovideadifferentlookandfeelthantraditionalhighschools.
Partnershipswiththelocalcountylibrarysystem,anewYMCA,alocaluniversityandlocalcommunityserviceagenciesprovidethedistributedlocationsforstudentsandteacherstomeet.
Studentscanenrollinanonlinecoursetosupplementacampusschedule,ortakealloftheircoursesonline.
Full-timestudentsremainenrolledinandreceiveadiplomafromtheresidentschooldistrict.
Thisallowsstudentstoparticipateinalllocalco-curricularandextracurricularprogramsintheirdistrict,andtoreceivesupportnotavailablefromtheMySchoolprogram.
TwonationalconsultingfirmshelpeddesigntheMySchoolprogramthatisnowstaffedbyaprincipal,fourcounselors,twointerventionists,ateacherconsultantandasocialworkertosupportstudentswithanactiveIEP.
FundingfortheprogramcomesfromthelocaldistrictsinKentCounty.
Schoolspaycoursefeesonacourseanddaybasistoensuretheyareonlypayingforservicesusedbyeachonlinestudent.
Summerschooloperatesonasimilarmodel,butchargesparentsa$120feepercourse.
Ascholarshipfundisinplacetoserveasmanyas20%ofthesummerschoolstudents.
StudentsarefreetoenrollinMySchoolatanytimeofyear.
EachstudentisprovidedalaptopandaWiFiaccesscardwhileenrolledinMySchool.
Curriculumconsistsofacombinationofvendor-providedcoreandelectivecourses,supplementedbylocallydevelopedcontenthousedonaproprietaryLMScreatedbytheKentISD.
32OnlineLearningConsortiaAnonlinelearningconsortiumisanassociationoftwoormoreschools,districts,orevenregionalserviceagenciespoolingresourcestoexpandorimprovedeliveryofonlinelearningoptionsforstudents.
Itisaconceptthatisseeingrapidadoptionacrossthecountryasdistrictsbantogethertocreatecooperativeonlineanddigitalleaningprogramstogaineconomiesofscaleandtalent,inhopesofprovidingasuperiorprogramtomemberschoolsthattheycouldaccomplishindividually.
Theycomeinallshapesandsizes,withdifferingprogrammodels,buttheysharethecommoncharacteristicofdeliveringsomecombinationofonlinecourses,instruction,technologytoolsand/orotherservicesforthebenefitoftheirmembers.
Consortiaoperatestatewideandregionally—someevennationally.
TheVirtualHighSchool(VHS),oneofthelargestconsortia,includesmembersinmanystatesandforeigncountries.
SUPERNet,aconsortiumof17largelyruralschooldistrictsinEastTexas,hasaregionalfocus.
Otherconsortiahavemembersstatewideandsomeconsiststrictlyofneighboringdistricts.
eLo(ExpandingLearningOpportunities)isapartnershipamongthreesuburbanChicagoschooldistricts,justenteringitsthirdfullyearofoperation.
Consortiacanbelarge,withannualcourseenrollmentsover20,000,orassmallasseveralhundredcourseenrollments,andvaryintermsofthescopeofwhattheysupplytheirmembers.
TABLE5OnlineanddigitallearningconsortiaexamplesConsortiaStateYearformedReachNo.
ofmembersCourseenrollmentsNotesTheVirtualHighSchoolMassachusetts1996National63918,455Studentsfromnon-memberschoolscanalsoenrollinVHSsupplementalcourses.
GenNETMichigan1995Statewide400+*18,000*GenNETextendstheMichiganDepartmentofEducationseat-timewaivertopartnerdistrictsacrossMichigan.
SUPERNetTexas1996Statewide166,824SUPERNetservesmemberdistricts,butenrollsstudentsstatewidethroughtheTexasVirtualSchoolNetwork.
WisconsineSchoolNetworkWisconsin2002Members2527,341CourseenrollmentsincludetheeSchool'spartnershipwithWisconsinVirtualSchool.
HamptonRoadsEducationalCommunications(WHROEducation)Virginia1984Members19NAFocusesoncoursedevelopmentformembers;licensescoursestootherVAdistricts.
IndianaVirtualAcademyIndiana2002Statewide53,223Fivepartnershipschoolsenrollstudentsstatewidefrom75schools.
*2013–14SYdataKPK12.
COM33Membershipmodelsandgovernancevaryaswidelyassizeandgeographicreach.
Someconsortialimittheirofferingstotheirmembers,butothersextendtheirservicestoschoolsanddistrictsoutsidetheconsortium.
TheIndianaVirtualAcademy(IVA)isaconsortiumthatwasformedtoprovideonlinelearningforstudentsintheschooldistrictsinRipleyCounty.
ItdiscountsservicesforpartnerschoolsandresidentsofRipleyCounty($190percourse),butenrollsstudentsacrossthestateatacostof$295percourse,witharound3,200totalcourseenrollmentsinFY2015–16.
TheconsortiumisgovernedbyaBoardofDirectorsthatconsistsofaregionalcareercenter,thedirectorofalocalcommunityfoundation,andthesuperintendentsofthefourschoolcorporationsinRipleyCounty.
SUPERNetinTexasreachesbeyonditsregionalmembershiptoincludesomeofitscoursesintheTexasVirtualSchoolNetworkcatalogthatallowstudentsfromacrossthestatetoenrollinSUPERNetcourses.
SUPERNetdevelopsallofitscoursecontentin-houseusingmemberdistrictteachers.
Memberspayanannualfeetohaveaccesstoallcourseofferings.
THEVIRTUALHIGHSCHOOLAGlobalConsortiumTheVirtualHighSchool's(VHS)uniquestructureandapproachtoworkingwithmemberschoolsisoftenreferredtoasacollaborative.
ForthepurposesofKeepingPace,thisnonprofitorganizationismostlikeaconsortiumsupplier,wheremembersshareonlineinstructionandcontent.
Inaddition,membersbenefitfromonlinecoursedevelopment,technology,teacherprofessionaldevelopmentandotheronlinelearningservicesprovidedbyVHS.
AlthoughparticularlystrongintheNortheast(VHSpartnerswithnearly200middleandhighschoolsinMassachusettswithover6,800enrollmentsinthestate),theVirtualHighSchoolisnationalinscopewithmembersin40statesandterritoriesandaninternationalpresencewithstudentsin33countries.
VHShad18,455courseenrollmentsandabout12,000studentsinFY2015–16.
VHShasmultipleoptionsforschoolpartnerships.
SchoolswithTeachingMembershipsdesignateteachertoteachaVHScourseandinreturntheschoolsavesonmembershipfees.
StudentOnlyMembershipschoolsmayparticipateinVHSinastudent"seat"model,withasfewastwoseatsandschoolsenjoydiscountsbasedonthesizeoftheirmembership.
ConsortiumMembershipsshareseatsandtakeadvantageofavolumediscountoptionforeducationalserviceagencies,stateordistrictprograms.
StudentsmayenrolldirectlywithVHSatacostof$450persemestercourse.
TheVHSalsooffersafull-timeprograminwhichstudentsmaytaketheirentirehighschoolcurriculumonlinethroughVHS,whilestillremainingstudentswithintheirlocalschooldistrict.
VHShasdevelopedover200originalonlinecourses,includinganinnovativesciencecourse,SpaceStationAcademy,thatoffersstudentsavirtualtriptotheInternationalSpaceStation.
Studentsworkonreal-worldexperimentswithastronautsandreceivefeedbackandfacilitationfromformerspaceexplorers.
SpaceStationAcademycombinesSTEMdisciplinestocreateanengagingandinteractivelearningexperienceformiddleandhighschoolstudents.
34Otherexamplesofconsortiamembershipmodelsandservicesincludesomeofthefollowing:GenNETOnlineLearningisaconsortiumdevelopedbytheGeneseeIntermediateSchoolDistrictinMichiganthatoffersdistrictsaccesstoonlinecoursesthroughitsOnlineLearningPortalofcoursesfromapprovedonlinecourseproviders.
GenNETisauthorizedbytheMichiganDepartmentofEducationtoextenditsseat-timewaivertopartnerdistrictsacrossthestate.
Theseat-timewaiverallowsadistricttohavethestate'spupilaccountingruleswaivedtoalloweligiblestudentstotakecourseworkonline.
Anymemberdistrictcanenrollstudentsingrades6–12inuptotwocoursesviaGenNETwithoutaseat-timewaiver.
StudentsingradesK–5enrolledinaGeneseeCountyschooloranycontiguouscountycanenrollinGenNETcoursesaswell.
HamptonRoadsEducationalTelecommunicationsAssociation(Virginia)isauniquedistrictmembershipandonlinecoursemodelthatbeganasapartnershipbetweentheNorfolkandHamptonPublicSchoolsandWHROpublictelevision.
Overthepastdecade,ithasevolvedintoWHROEducationthatprovides23onlinecoursescorrelatedtoVirginia'sstandards19memberdistricts.
ThecoursescanbelicensedbyVirginiaschoolsoutsidetheconsortiummembershipandimportedintoseveraldifferentlearningmanagementsystems.
Oncelicensed,schoolsarefreetomodifythecontentasnecessary.
ThereareseveralactiveonlineandblendedlearningconsortiainOhio.
Learn21isaconsortiumof18schooldistrictsthatworktogethertoreviewonlinelearningsupplierproductsandbrokerlicensesforthemembersoftheorganization.
Learn21offersprofessionaldevelopment,digitalcoursedesign,dataintegration,andotheronlinelearningservicestomembers.
TheStark-PortageAreaComputerConsortium(SPARCC)servesschooldistrictsinStark,PortageandCarrollcounties,andisoneof22InformationTechnologyCenters(ITC)locatedthroughoutOhio.
SPARCCledinthecreationofacooperativeofdistrictsthatpooledresourcesforagrouppurchaseofonlinecoursesfromFloridaVirtualSchool,resultinginanestimated$500,000insavingsforparticipants.
TheindependentOhioBlendedLearningNetwork(OBLN),ledbyMentorPublicSchoolsDistrictandfacilitatedbythenonprofitorganizationSmarterSchools,has60membersstatewide,rangingfromsmallcharterschoolstolargepublicschooldistricts.
PrivateschoolsinterestinonlinesupplementalcourseshasdriventheformationandgrowthofseveralconsortiaincludingtheHybridLearningConsortium,theMaloneSchoolsOnlineNetwork,theGlobalOnlineAcademy,andtheOnlineSchoolforGirls.
Inadditiontotheseconsortia,whichoperatenationwideoracrosslargegeographicareas,severalregionalconsortiafunctionaswell.
TheseincludetheBayAreaBlendEdConsortiumintheSanFranciscoBayArea,theEightSchoolsAssociationinNewEngland,VizNetinthesoutheasternU.
S.
,andMSAISnetinthemid-South.
KPK12.
COM35WISCONSINESCHOOLNETWORK'SUniqueConsortiumStructureandServicesTheWisconsineSchoolNetwork(WEN)isoneofthelargestonlinelearningconsortia,consistingof25partnerschooldistricts,eightofwhichareamongthe11largestdistrictsinthestate.
WENhad27,341courseenrollmentsinFY2015–16,includingover5,000supportingitspartnershipwiththeWisconsinVirtualSchool.
Ithadover1,350enrollmentsinAdvancedPlacementcourses.
WENwasformallyestablishedasa501(c)(3)nonprofitorganizationin2012afteryearsasaninformalconsortiumofdistricts.
WENhasatwo-tiermemberstructure.
InvestedPartnermembershipisdesignedformemberswithacomprehensiveplanforonlineandblendedlearningthatincludesanemphasisonlocalautonomyanduseoflocalteachersandstaff.
InvestedPartnersmakeasignificantone-timeinvestmentthatprovidesthelowestoperatingexpensesofanypathwayandavotingseatontheWENboardofdirectors.
InvestedPartnersarebuildingscalabledigitallearningprogramstosupportgrowingonlineenrollments,increaseduseofstudentdevicesoncampusandgreaterintegrationofdigitalcontentandinstructionintheclassroom.
OneofthemostpowerfulbenefitsWENaffordsInvestedPartnersistheopportunityforteachersandstafftocollaboratewithpeersfacingthesamechallengesandimplementationissues.
InvestedPartnersalsocontributetothedirectionofonlinelearningpracticeandpolicyatthestateandlocallevel.
AffiliatePartnermembershipisappropriatefordistrictsreadytotakeonmorecontrolandownershipoftheirprogramastheybecomemembersintheWENconsortium.
AffiliatePartnerdistrictshaveaccesstoWEN'sonlinecoursecatalog,licensedteachers,technologytools,studentorientationcoursesandprofessionallearningwhilebenefittingfromlowercost,scalableenrollmentfees.
TheAffiliatemembershipallowsdistrictstoretainahighdegreeoflocalcontrol,usingacombinationoflocalinstructorswithonlineteachersfromNetworkpartnersasneeded.
WENprovidescloud-basedinfrastructureforallmembers,includingacourseregistrationandmanagementportal,learningmanagementsystem,onlinecontentownedbyWEN,licensedcontentfrommultiplevendors,infrastructurethatallowspartnerstobuildlocaldigitalcontent,andprofessionallearningcurricula.
WENemploysfourfull-timeandsixpart-timestaffthatworkwithaboardcomprisedofInvestedPartnersandothereducators.
WENisapartnerintheWisconsinDigitalLearningCollaborative,acollaborationwithWisconsinVirtualSchoolandtheWisconsinDepartmentofPublicInstructiontoprovideasinglepointofaccesstoonlinecourses,digitallearningsolutions,andresourcesforstudentsstatewide.
AdditionaldetailsabouttheWENstructureanddistrictpartnersareavailableinthe2016report,WisconsinDigitalLearningCollaborative:AReviewofProgramsandPartners.
36OnlinelearningvendorsSomewherealongtheline,somebodywrotethefirsttextbookhereinAmerica.
Perhapsitwasthe"TheNewEnglandPrimer,"writtenin1690,requiredreadingbyallschoolsinAmerica.
Atsomepoint,thisorsomeothertextbookhadtobeprintedinvolume,andsoldanddistributedtoschools.
Theeducationvendorwasborn.
WeusethetermvendorinKeepingPaceasanumbrellatermtorefertoafairlywidevarietyandcomplexfabricofcompaniesandorganizationsthatservetheK–12educationindustry,particularlyasitappliestodigitallearning.
Wethinkofacompanyasavendorifit'sprimarybusinessfunctionisthecreationanddistributionoforiginalproductsandservicesfortheeducationindustry.
FIGURE6MajoreducationcompanytypesMajoreducationcompanytypesFIGUREx5010:EducationpublishersStudentinformationsystem(SIS)companiesVendorsEducation/chartermanagementorganizationsContentprovidersanddevelopersProfessionaldevelopmentcompaniesLearningplatform/learningmanagementsystem(LMS)companiesThelargemajorityofeducationcompaniesinthedigitallearningarenaaretypicallyidentifiedasoneofthecompanycategoriesinfigure7.
Companiesdonotalwaysidentifythemselvesasa"contentprovider,"forexample,butmoreoftenmightsaytheyareaproviderofinnovativeonlineandblendedlearningsolutions.
Otherthaneducationmaterials,digitalcontent,andotherinstructionalitemsthatarecreatedwithinschools,bytheirownteachersandstaffs,virtuallyallothereducationtechnologyandrelatedcontentandtoolscomefromthislargecadreofcompanies—mostlyfor-profitcompanies,butsomearenonprofit.
EducationPublishers.
Mostofthesecompanieswerelongtimetraditionaltextbookandeducationmaterialspublishersthathavemovedintoofferingawidevarietyofdigitalcontent,toolsandrelatedproductsandservices.
Aprimarymotivationforthesepublisherstoenterintothedigitallearningproductsandservicesarenahasbeentosustainandexpandtheircompanies,asthedemandforprintinstructionalmaterialsdeclinesandthedemandfordigitalcontentandtoolsincreases—the"shifttodigital"movement.
Thelargestofthesepublishershaveproductsandservicesinvirtuallyeverycategory,includinginafewcasesowningtheirownschools.
Manyofthenotablepublishersarewellover100yearsold—Pearsonwasfoundedin1844.
KPK12.
COM37ContentProviders.
Contentproviders,alsoreferredtoascontentdevelopers,areinthebusinessofcreatinganddeliveringoriginalinstructionalcontent,likeapublisher.
Butmostcompaniesreferredtoascontentproviders—ratherthanpublishers—startedtheircompanyfromtheoutsettocreateanddeliverdigitalcontent.
Assuchmostofthesecompanieshavestartedwithinthelast20years,withahandful(e.
g.
PLATO/Edmentum)thatare50yearsold.
Somefocusonlyoncontent,butmanysurrounddigitalcontentwithotherproductsandservices.
Often,forexample,acontentproviderwilldevelopitsownlearningplatformoradaptivelearningsoftware,inwhichitembedscontent.
LearningPlatformandLMSCompanies.
Intheearlyyearsofonlinelearning,thesystemsusedwereusuallycalledcoursemanagementsystems.
Thiswasforgoodreason,becausetheirpurposewastomanagecoursesyllabisostudentscouldlaunchcoursesandcommunicatewiththeirteachers.
Nottodiminishtheseearlysystems,onlinelearningcouldnothaveflourishedasitdidwithouttheseearlypioneers.
Overtime,however,mostofthesehaveevolvedintolearningplatformsthatprovideawiderangeoffeaturestoenhancethelearningexperience,andhencehavebecomeknownaslearningmanagementsystem—andlearningplatforms.
Adivergenceinproductphilosophybyvariousvendorshastakenmanyoftheseproductsindifferentdirections,suchasadaptivelearning,dataanalytics,socialcollaboration,andstillothersfocusedonparentandmentorcommunication.
StudentInformationSystems(SIS).
Studentinformationsystemscompanieshavebeenthebackboneoftheeducationsoftwareindustrysincetherewerecomputersandsoftware.
Intheearlydays—meaningthemid-1960s—computerandsoftwarecompaniescreatedarobustbusinessacrossAmericadevelopingcustomstudentinformationandadministrativesoftwaresystemsforschoolsanduniversities.
Therewerenooff-the-shelfapplicationsthen—foranyapplications.
Buttheseearlysystemsevolvedintostandardproductsthattodayareapplicationsintegratingallaspectsofaschool'sordistrict'sinformationsystemsenvironment.
ProfessionalDevelopmentcompanies.
Theprofessionaldevelopment(PD)industrywasestimatedatanannualspendratein2015ofaround$3.
9billionintheUnitedStates.
Theoverwhelminglylargepercentageofthisnumberismadeupofinternalschool,districtandstateagencyexpenseindevelopingand/ordeliveringitsownPD,mostlylaborexpense.
Alesser,butsignificant,portionofPDisprovidedbyawiderangeofcompaniesandorganizationsthatofferPDproductsandtrainingservicestoschoolsanddistricts.
Afairamountofprofessionaldevelopmentassociatedwiththeonlineanddigitallearningproductsisprovideddirectlybythecompanieswhomakedigitallearningproducts,butagrowingnumberoffocusedPDcompaniesarefillinganeedgapindigitallearning,particularlyintheareasofnewschoolteachingandlearningmodels,suchasblendedlearningandcompetency-basedlearning.
EducationManagementOrganizationandCharterManagementOrganization.
Educationmanagementorganizations(EMOs),andchartermanagementorganizations(CMOs)arecompaniesandorganizationsthatprovide"whole-schooloperation"servicestopublicschoolagencies.
Therearealargenumberofcompaniesandorganizationsinthisbusiness.
SomeCMOs/EMOsaredivisionswithinlarger,multi-divisionalcompanies.
TheymanagetraditionalK–12publicschoolsonbehalfofaschooldistrict("contractschools")ormanagecharterschoolsasthecharterholder("charterschools")orundercontractwiththecharterholder("contractcharters").
Weincludetheminthisgroupoforganizations,becauseaverysignificantportionofthefull-timeonlinelearningactivityisincharterschools,particularlythosemanagedbyCMOs.
ManynotableEMOsandCMOsarefor-profitcompanies;most,however,arenonprofits.
Inanefforttokeepstateandlocalcontrol,nonprofitCMOsareincreasinglybeingcreatedatthelocallevel.
38ArizonaVirtualAcademyArizonaVirtualAcademy(AZVA)isoneoftheoldestonlinecharterschoolsinthecountryandisthelargestoffivevirtualcharterschoolsinArizona.
AZVAservedabout4,000studentsingradesK–12fromacrossthestate;approximately41%areelementarygrades,36%middleschooland23%arehighschoolsstudents.
Studenteligibilityforfreeandreduced-pricelunchcloselymirrorsthestateaverageof58%.
AZVAismanagedbyK12Inc.
,whichalsomanagesInsightAcademyofArizona.
InsightAcademywaslaunchedin2012asanalternativeschool,servingat-riskstudentsingrades7–12,includingthosewithsignificantcreditdeficiencies,dropoutsreturningtoschoolandteenparents.
InsightAcademyenrolledabout1,000studentsinFall2016.
Bothschoolsfollowthesamereportingrequirementsandmandatesasallotherpublicschoolsinthestate.
AZVAisafullyonlinestudyprograminwhichlearningtakesplaceathome,ontheroad,orwhereveranInternetconnectioncanbefound.
Whileattendance,teacherinteraction,anddailylessonsareconductedonline,AZVA'slessonsalsoincludephysicalmaterialsandofflinetoolswhenappropriate.
Expectationsforparentalinvolvementvarybasedontheageandgradelevelofthestudent.
Forelementaryagestudents,AZVAsetstheexpectationthatalearningcoach(parentofotheradult)willworkwiththestudentthroughoutthedayincoordinationwiththeAZVAonlineteacher.
Thelearningcoachkeepsthechildontask,answersquestions,workswithonlineteachersandmaintainsahighlevelofhands-oninvolvement.
AZVAsetstheexpectationthatthelearningcoachwillbeintegrallyinvolvedwithmiddleschoolstudents,althoughthereisusuallylessparental/coachinvolvementasstudentsgetolderandhavemoreexperiencewithonlinelearning.
Bythetimestudentsreachmiddleschool,theyaretypicallyworkingwithmultipleonlineteachersinmultiplesubjectareas.
Onlinemiddleschoolteachersaretrainedtobeawareofthegradualshiftawayfromparentalcoachingforelementarychildrenandemploydifferentinstructionalandcommunicationstrategieswithmiddleschoolstudents.
Bythetimeanonlinestudentreacheshighschool,itisassumedthatthelearningcoachhasaminimalroleincoachingthroughouttheschoolday.
Highschoolstudentsmayhaveasmanyassixorsevenonlineteachersinvarioussubjectareas,plusanonlinementor.
Forthepasttwoyears,ArizonaVirtualAcademyHighSchoolhasrankedasoneofthetop50highschoolsinthestatebasedonSATscoresinthePhoenixBusinessJournal'sannualrankingsoftheTop50HighSchoolsinArizona.
AZVAHighSchoolwasranked38thin2016.
AZVAHighSchoolachievedhigherpassingtestscoresin9th–11thgradeEnglishLanguageArts(ELA),inAlgebra1andGeometryend-of-courseexams(EOC),andwerewithinone1%ofthestateaverageinAlgebra2EOCpassrate.
(continuedonnextpage)KPK12.
COM39ARIZONAVIRTUALACADEMY(CONT.
)9thgradeELA*10thgradeELA11thgradeELAAlgebra1EOC**GeometryEOCAlgebra2EOCAZVA40%passing4139373529AZStateaverage35%passing3030363432*EnglishLanguageArts**EndofcourseexamsSomestudentsandparentspreferanenvironmentinwhichstudentslearnataphysicallocation.
TomeetthisdemandAZVAbeganofferingstudentsblendedlearningoptionsin2010,combiningonlinelearningwithface-to-faceinstructionandsupportatlocationsacrossArizona.
Studentsvisitlearningcentersfromapproximately8:30amto3:30pm,followedbyoptionaltimetoparticipateindigitalclubsandothergroupactivities.
Currentlyabout450ofAZVA's4,000studentsparticipateintheblendedlearningprogram,andthereisawaitinglist.
Fullyonlinestudentsmaydropbythelearningcentersafterclasstimetoparticipateingroupactivitiesanddigitalclubactivities.
Thelearningcentershavethreeorfourclassroomswithacoordinatorineachclassroom;helpingstudentsgetstartedwiththeirwork,answeringquestions,assistingwithtechnologyskillsandproblems,andgenerallycoachingstudentsthroughthelearningprocess.
Thereisalsoafull-timeteacheron-site,usuallyamathteacherthatfloatsbetweentheclassroomsasneeded.
Thefiveactivelearningcentersarelocatedacrossthestate,inbothmetropolitanareas(PhoenixandTucson)andruralcommunities.
AZVAhasonelearningcenterinnorthwestAZwithabout130students,andanewlearningcenterinQueenCreekwithabout75studentsthatopenedinJanuary2017.
AZVAenteredapartnershipwiththenonprofitorganization,one-n-ten,toprovideablendedlearningsiteforLGBTQyouth.
Manyofthesestudentshaveleftthetraditionalschoolbecauseofbullyingandothersocialissues.
Theone-n-tenschoolhasabout15studentsattendingonadailybasisandtheschoolwillbemovingtoalargerspacein2017toaccommodatemoreLGBTQstudents.
GroupactivitiesattheblendedsitesrangefromSTEMclubswithanactiveroboticsprogram,togardeningclubsthatincludecreatingindoortowergardens.
Themiddleschoolroboticsclubincludesbothvirtualandblendedcomponents,performingadmirablyincompetitionsacrossthestatewithtraditionalstudents.
TheroboticsclubisnowexpandingtoAZVAHighSchool.
40OhioConnectionsAcademyOhioConnectionsAcademy(OCA)isafullyonline,accreditedpublicschoolwherestudentslearnathomethroughdailylessonsconductedovertheInternet.
ItisapersonalizedapproachtoonlinelearningsupportedbyhighlyqualifiedOhiocertifiedteacherstrainedinonlineinstruction.
OCAenrolled3,600studentsinFall2016;1,004ingradesK–5,922ingrades6–8and1,674highschoolstudents.
OCAhasprovidedonlineoptionsforstudentssince2004makingitoneoftheoldestcybercharterschoolsinOhio.
ItismanagedbyConnectionsEducation,anationwideproviderofvirtualeducationmanagementsolutions.
StudentdemographicsatOCAareverysimilartothestateaveragewithapproximately79%whiteand21%minorities.
Approximately10%ofOCAstudentsareonIndividualizedEducationPrograms(IEPs).
Thepercentageofeconomicallydisadvantagedstudentsandthosewithdisabilitiesareslightlylowerthanthestateaverage.
OhioConnectionsAcademyhasatrackrecordofsuccessthathascontinuedtoimproveinrecentyears.
Duringthe2015–16SY,theschoolreceivedan"A"gradeonitsstatereportcardinallvalue-addedcategories.
Aspartofteacherevaluation,Ohioappliesvalue-addedcategoriesthatmeasuretheimpactschoolsandteachershaveonstudents'academicprogressratesfromyeartoyear.
TheOhioStateBoardofEducationalsoawardedOCAaMomentumAward(2016)thatrecognizesschoolsforexceedingexpectationsinstudentgrowthfortheyear.
SchoolsmustalsoearnstraightA'sonallvalue-addedmeasuresonthereportcard.
Theschoolordistrictmusthaveatleasttwovalue-addedsubgroupsofstudents,whichincludesgifted,lowest20%inachievement,and/orstudentswithdisabilities.
AcademicsuccessatOCAdoesnotcomewithoutitschallenges.
Studentsareusuallyattractedtovirtualeducationtosolveaproblemoraddressaspecialcircumstance—aproblemtheydidnotthinkatraditionalbrick&mortarschoolcouldsolve.
Students'familiesmaybehighlymobileorcomewithsignificantcreditdeficiencies.
Astudentmayhaveashort-orlong-termmedicalissue,orsuffersocial-emotionalproblemsorbullying.
"Forsomefamilies,thisistheonlyoptionthatworks,"notesOhioConnectionsAcademySuperintendentMarieHanna.
"Icouldciteendlessanecdotalevidence;theballetdancerwhoneededaflexibleschedule;thechildwhowasbulliedinherresidentpublicschooltothepointofneedingtherapy;thestudentwhosemedicalconditionkepthimhomefromschool.
"Sometimesparentsmaysimplyhaveconcernsaboutthequalityoftheirlocalpubliceducationoptions.
StudentmobilityposesoneofthebiggestchallengesfacingOCAregardingstudentperformance.
Almostthree-fourthsofOCAstudentshavebeenenrolledfewerthanthreeyears,andmobilitybythismeasureishigherthanover90%ofschoolsinOhio.
Virtualschools,ingeneral,haveasignificantlyhigherrateofstudentmobilitythantraditionalbrickandmortarpublicschools.
Onaverage,inavirtualschool,roughly35%ofthestudentsarenewtothevirtualschool,havingswitchedfromtheirpreviousschoolforawidevarietyofreasons.
Thisisseveraltimesthemobilityrateofallbutthehighest-mobilitytraditionalpublicschools.
(continuedonnextpage)KPK12.
COM41OHIOCONNECTIONSACADEMY(CONT.
)OhioConnectionsAcademyhasdevelopedastrongcollegepreparatoryprogram,offeringarangeofAdvancedPlacementcoursesandcollegecreditoptions.
OCAstudentsingrades7–12mayearndualcreditsthroughOhio'snewCollegeCreditPlusprogramthatallowsstudentstotakecoursesatalocalpubliccollegeandaccruecreditstowardanAssociatesdegreebeforehighschoolgraduation.
Dualenrollmentcoursesarefree,includingtuition,books,andotherfees.
OCAisfocusedonimprovementplansincriticalcollegeandcareerreadinessareaslikemathematics.
ConnectionsEducationhasinvestedheavilyinprovidingcurriculumenhancementsinmathematicsforgrades3–12,winningthe2015UnitedStatesDistanceLearningAwardforBestPracticesinDistanceLearningProgrammingforitsworkinmathcurriculum.
Connectionshasaddedmathdiscourseandreasoningelementstoitsmathcourses,expandedprofessionallearningandaddedmoremathinterventiontoitscurriculum;studentreflectionexercises,portfolioassignments,continuousmathassessmentswithalternativemathpresentationsforremediation,andanewNationalHonorSociety(NHS)PeerTutoringprogramforhighschoolmathcourses.
ConnectionshasdevelopedLiveLesson"classrooms"forteacherstoworkwithstudentsinreal-time;asaclass,smallgroupsor1:1.
Teachersreviewdatafromonlinecourseassessments,developalternateinstructiontoprovidemorepersonalizedlearningbasedonperformancedata,andthenuseLiveLessonenvironmenttoworkwithstudentsinrealtime.
OCAemploysaK–12MathFacilitatortosupportbothmathstudentsandteachers.
TheFacilitatorsitsinonLiveLessons,andmayhelpteachersworkwithstudents,makesuggestionstoteachersformakinginstructionalimprovements,analyzeandsupplyteacherswithstudentdata.
TheFacilitatoralsoconductsfourmiddleschoolmathsessionseachweekwherestudentsdropintoherLiveLessonclassroomforadditionalhelp.
OCArecognizedtheneedtoenhancetheskillsofteachersaswellasmathcurriculum,andreemphasizedtheuseofprofessionallearningcommunities(PLC).
PLCsnowmeettwiceamonth.
FourmathPLCteamsorganizedbygradelevelsaddresstopicsrangingfromhowtobetterworkinLiveLessonandstudentdataanalysis,tocommongradingquestions,howtohandleinterventions,anddiscussionsonsupplementalprogramsforalternativelearningoptions.
ElementarymathteachersparticipateinanationalprofessionallearningprogrammanagedbyConnectionsEducation.
SuperintendentHannaattributesmuchofthegrowthandacademicachievementofOCAstudentstothestrongstaffretentionrecordattheschool.
Ms.
HannahasbeenwithOhioConnectionsAcademysince2005,startinghercareerasanAssistantPrincipal.
"Mostofouradministrativestaffandteachershavebeenwithschoolforatleastfiveyears,"notesSuperintendentHanna.
"OCAisalsothefirstConnectionsEducationvirtualcharterschooltohavenotonlyone,buttwoofitsgraduatesreturntobecomeonlineteachersattheschool.
"42PoudreSchoolDistrictGlobalAcademyPoudreSchoolDistrictGlobalAcademy(PGA)isoneof59schoolsinthePoudreSchoolDistrictinFortCollins,Colorado.
PGAbeganasavirtualschoolin2009usingFuelEducation(FuelEd)instructorsteachingonlinecoursesforstudentsingrades6–12.
From2010through2013,PGAevolvedintoaschoolforanystudentwhoneededorwantedanon-traditionaleducationalexperience,attractingadvancedandacceleratedstudentsaswell.
In2016,PGAembracedablendedlearningmodelwherestudentsingradesK–12attendon-campusclassestwodaysperweekandworkonlinethreedaysperweekwiththeirlocalclassroomteachersusingboththeFuelEdcurriculumandcoursesdevelopedbyPGAteachers.
TheAcademyhasgrownfromanenrollmentof22studentsandthreestaffin2009toa30-memberstaff(18teachersand12administrativestaff)serving194K–12studentsinFall2016.
PGA'smotto,"globaleducation—localcommunity"alsoexemplifiestheimportanceofrelationshipsintheschool'ssuccess.
Globally,PGAstudentsconnectwithstudentsinotherschools,otherstates,andothercountries.
Closetohome,studentsareregularlyactivelyinvolvedincommunityprojectsthatenhancetheireducationalexperience.
Eachschoolyear,forexample,thePGAStudentCouncilcollaborateswithPGAstudentsatlargetoselectastudent-ledcommunityserviceproject,whichinthepasthasincludedprojectssuchastheColoradoStateUniversityCansAroundtheOval,theMcBackpackWeekendMealprogram,andtheUnitedWayMake-A-DifferenceWeek.
CherylFenlason,PGA'sprincipal,pointstothreekeystogrowthinstudentachievement:1)comprehensiveandwell-designedstudentperformancereportsfromFuelEd,2)one-to-onementoringthatteachersprovideeachstudent,and3)theparentalorguardianroleaslearningcoaches.
Learningoccursbothathomeandintheschoolbuilding,i.
e.
,oncampus.
Studentsareoncampustwodaysperweekandstudyingonlinefromhometheotherthreedays.
On-campusschedulesvarybygradelevel.
Approximately60%ofallinstructionforK–8studentsisonlineand80%isonlinefor9th–12thgradestudents.
FuelEdanditscontentpartnerK12Inc.
providemostoftheonlinecoursesandrelatedcontent,whichstudentsaccessbothonandoffcampus,providingcontinuityacrosstheentirelearninglifecycle.
Eachofthepastsevenschoolyears(throughSY2016–2017)hasseenstudentassessmentsimprove,goingfrom"noofficialdataduetotoofewstudents"toacademicgrowthratesinreadingandmaththatsurpassboththeirColoradopeersandtheirpeersacrosstheUnitedStates.
PGAreceivedtwoprestigiousawardsbasedonthe2015–16SYstudentperformance;theColoradoDepartmentofEducation'sJohnIrwinSchoolsofExcellenceinEducationAwardforexceedingexpectationsinstudentachievementandthe[Colorado]Governor'sDistinguishedImprovementAwardforexceedingexpectationsinacademicgrowth.
(continuedonnextpage)KPK12.
COM43POUDRESCHOOLDISTRICTGLOBALACADEMY(CONT.
)PGAMathandReadingYearlyPercentileGains010203040506070804thGradeSocialStudies5thGradeScience7thGradeSocialStudies8thGradeScienceDistrictAverageStateAveragePGASchoolAverageNote:Studentsareassignedapercentilerankingbasedonnationalnormsforage.
Ifastudenthasthesamepercentilerankatthebeginningandendoftheyear,thatstudenthasessentiallyachievedoneyear'sgrowth.
Studentswhoseeanincreaseintheirpercentilerankinghaveachievedmorethanayear'sacademicgrowth.
Whilemuchhaschangedfrom2009to2016,theoneconstantistheimportancePGAplacesonrelationshipsbetweenandamongteachers,students,parents,andstaff.
PGA'steachers,staffandlearningcoachescollaboratetoteachandmentorstudentsthroughouttheweek.
Teachersteachblendedlearningclassesoncampusonaprescribedschedule,andtheyalsofacilitateandmentorstudentswithintheirFuelEdonlinecoursesonamoreflexibleschedule.
Learningcoachesmentorandworkwithstudentstoaugmentandsupportteachers.
Thefabricofthelearningexperienceisstrongbecauseofitsdiversity,comprehensiveness,andfocusonindividualstudentsuccess.
PGAteachersareresponsibleforon-campusinstruction,aswellasfacilitatingstudents'onlinecourses.
Theymonitortheonlineworkofindividualstudentsandprovidesuggestions,encouragement,andlearningstrategies.
Oncampus,teachersworkwithsmallgroupsofstudents,orwithindividualstudents,toensureeachstudentissuccessfulandmeetinghisorhergrowthgoals.
PGAteacherscollaboratetocustomizeonlineandclassroominstruction.
Theycancustomizetheonlinecontent,ortheycandeveloporiginalonlinecontent.
(continuedonnextpage)44POUDRESCHOOLDISTRICTGLOBALACADEMY(CONT.
)FuelEdteachersarepartoftheteachingteam.
Notonlydotheyprovidetheonlinecourses,theyalsoprovidecertifiedteachersforelectivessuchasworldlanguageandAdvancedPlacementcourses.
WhilePGAteachersareresponsibleforteachingallcorecourses,bothonlineandoncampus,FuelEdonlineteachersfillinwherePGAneedsteachersforelectives.
Learningcoachesareanintegralpartoftheteachingteam.
Students'parentsorotherresponsibleadultsareactivelyinvolvedinmentoringandtutoringatPGA.
Asstudentsmoveintohighergradesinvolvementgraduallychangesanddecreasessomewhat.
Forexample,learningcoachesofK–3studentsaredeliveringinstruction,tutoring,andprovidingfeedback,whilelearningcoachesofstudentsingrades4and5arelessinvolvedindeliveringinstructionbuttheystillarerequiredtoreviewandsignoffonstudentwork.
Bygrades4and5,studentsarelearningtobecomeindependentlearners.
Intheuppergrades,learningcoachesmonitorlearningathomeandcommunicatewithteachersasneeded.
Parentsorotherresponsibleadultslearntobeeffectivelearningcoachesbyparticipatinginthefollowingtrainingsessions:LearningCoachMentorshipProgram–Currentsuccessfullearningcoachesmentornewfamilies.
JumpStartWeek–Thefirstweekofschoolalllearningcoachespracticeactivitiessuchasschedulingaconferencewiththeirchild'steacheroremailingtheirmentor.
Orientation–Ahalfdayon-campussessioninwhichlearningcoachesdiscussPGApoliciesandexpectations,meetwithteachersandlearntologintotheonlinesystemtoreviewstudentgradesandassignments.
LearningCoachAcademy–AnoptionalmonthlyupdatesessionforK–8learningcoaches.
KPK12.
COM45VendorproductsandservicesforonlineanddigitallearningInsomecases,theproductsandservicesprovidedbydigitallearningvendorsmaybeevidentbasedonthenameorcompanytypeasshownabove,butasignificantnumberofthesecompaniesprovideamuchbroaderrangeofproductsandservicesinordertoprovidecomprehensivesolutionstoschools.
Afewoftheverylargestcompaniesprovidealmostalloftheproductsandservicesshowninfigure7,above.
Itisoftentruethatthemorecomprehensiveasolutionis,coveringawiderangeofproductsandservices,theeasieritisforaschoolordistricttoimplementandsuccessfullyoperateonlineanddigitallearningprograms,relievingitfromthechallengesofworkingwithalargernumberofvendors,andhavingtointegratemultipleproductsintoaunifiedstudentlearningexperience.
FIGURE7TypesofvendorproductsandservicesProductsandservicesFIGUREx5020:InstructionalcontentFullonline&blendedcurriculaIndividualcoursesLessons&exercisesAssessmentsInstructionalmanagement&trackingLearningmanagementsystems(LMS)LearningplatformsAdaptivelearningDataanalyticsToolstomanagestudentdata&adminStudentinformationsystem(SIS)ClassroommanagementRegistrationServicesProfessionaldevelopmentOnlinecourseteachersCustomizationImplementation46DistrictsasonlinelearningsuppliersThemajorityofschoolsuseonlinecoursesfromsuppliersthatoperatenationally,statewideorthroughregionalconsortia.
Manyalsousetheonlineteachersthatareanoptionalserviceprovidedbymostvendors.
However,schooldistricts,particularlylargermetropolitandistricts,increasinglyfilltheroleofsupplierstoschools.
Districtsactingassupplierstoschoolsmayhavesomeorallofthefollowinggoalsforactingassuppliersofonlinelearning.
Retainagreaterdegreeoflocalcontroloveronlineofferingstoitsstudents.
Buildonlinelearningexpertiseamongitsownteachers,technologyandadministrativestaff.
Managecostsbybuyingorlicensingonlinecoursesandcontentfromothersuppliers;vendors,statevirtualschools,etc.
Mostdistrictprogramsarefocusedonin-districtstudents,butinsomestatesdistrictsmayactmuchlikestatevirtualschools,providingcoursesforstudentsoutsidethebasedistrict.
Forexample,MesaDistanceLearningProgram(MDLP)inArizonaisanonlineprogramofMesaPublicSchoolsthatserved33districtswithover20,000courseenrollmentsacrossArizonaduringthe2015–16FY.
OvertheyearsMDLPhasdevelopeditsownonlinecontentanddeliversthecoursesoveritsownLMS,allowingMDLPtokeepcoursesfeestodistrictspricedbelowmostothersuppliers($150percourseenrollment).
Althoughasmalldistrict,GrantsburgSchoolDistrict'siForwardprogramisinitsninthyearofofferingfull-timeonlineoptionsforabout550studentsingrades6–12,representingalmosteverycountyinWisconsin.
Somedistrictshavegonesofarasestablishinganonlinelearninggraduationrequirementforresidentstudents,regardlessofthestatepositiononsuchrequirements.
KPK12.
COM47GwinnettOnlineCampusGwinnettCountyPublicSchools(GCPS)isalargesuburbanschooldistrictoutsideofAtlanta,Georgia,withapproximately178,200students.
GwinnettOnlineCampus(GOC)isanaccreditedonlineschoolwithinGCPSthathad5,124courseenrollmentsduringthe2015–16FY.
GwinnettOnlineCampusalsoenrolledover500full-timestudentsingrades4–12inFY2015–16,allGCPSresidentstudents.
Theinstructionalprogramforstudentsingrades4–9offersablendedapproachtotheonlineexperienceinwhichfull-timeonlinestudentscanattendLearningLabsoncampustwomorningsperweekorloginfromhometojointheliveclasssessions.
Thesestudentsmeetface-to-facewiththeironlineteacheronceperweekthatreplacestheonlinelessonforthatday.
HighschoolstudentstakingonlinecoursesareabletocometocampusonceperweekandmeetwiththeDepartmentChairortheironlineteachertoreceiveadditionalcurricularsupport.
Studentsenrolledinsciencecoursesalsoattendlivesciencelabseverythreeweeks.
About65%ofcourseenrollmentsduringthe2015–16FYwereinthecoresubjectareasofmath,Englishlanguagearts,scienceandsocialstudies.
CourseenrollmentsbysubjectareaSY2014–15GwinnettOnlineCampusstudentsscoreabovetheaverageonDistrictDevelopedAssessmentsandStateMilestoneExamsinthemajorityofsubjectareasacrossgrades4–12.
Allstateassessmentsandfinalexamsaretakenoncampusinproctoredsettings.
Inthefallof2015,GwinnettOnlineCampuslaunchedaprogramtargetingdropoutstudentswith18ormorecredits.
TheGraduateGwinnettProgramtargetsstudentswhohavedroppedoutoftheirlocalhighschool,providingindividualizedonlinelearningenvironmentwithface-to-facesupportasneeded.
StudentsarecontactedbyGOCstaffandinvitedtojointheprogram.
Afteranorientationtotheprogram,studentsareenrolledinoneonlinecourseatatimeduringa20-daysession.
Ifstudentsdonotcompletethecourseinthefirst20-daycycle,theycontinueinthecourseduringthenextsession.
Oncampusorvirtualsessionsareprovidedwithteachers.
Duringthefirstfullyearoftheprogram51studentsearnedtheirdiploma.
Inthespringof2017therewere70studentsenrolledintheprogram.
CourseenrollmentsbysubjectareaSY2014-15FIGUREz212:16%Math15%Science15%Socialstudies31%Electives4%Worldlanguages19%ELA48ClarkCountySchoolDistrictandtheNevadaLearningAcademyClarkCountySchoolDistrict(CCSD)isthefifthlargestschooldistrictintheU.
S.
,anduniqueinthatitservesalmost75%ofallNevadapublicschoolstudents—over320,000ofthem.
NevadaLearningAcademyatClarkCountySchoolDistrict(NVLA)istheprimaryproviderofbothsupplementalandfull-timeonlinelearningopportunitiesforgrades6–12forthedistrict.
Launchedinfall2004asClarkCountyVirtualHighSchool,itcombinedwiththeAcademyofIndividualizedStudiesprogram,expandedonlinecoursesformiddleschoolsinthedistrictandbecameNVLA.
NVLAhad11,439studentstake23,513onlinecoursesinFY2015–16.
InadditiontoNVLA,CCSDhighandmiddleschoolsusesupplementalonlinecoursessuppliedbyvendors,taughtCCSDteachers.
Thedistricthad93,240courseenrollmentsinvendorcoursesinthe2015–16FY.
NVLAprovidesavarietyofonlineoptionsincludingamiddleschoolhybridmodel,wherefull-timeonlinestudentscometocampustwodaysaweekforteacherled-instructionandproject-basedlearning,andtwoonlineprogramsforhighschoolstudentsthattakeacompetencybasedapproach.
NVLA'sCreditbyExamgiveshighschoolstudentsanopportunitytodemonstrateknowledgeequivalenttohighschoolcourseworkthroughanexamination.
Studentsmayearncreditforacoursebypassinganexaminationratherthantakingthecourse.
CreditbyExam(CBE)isonlyavailablewithincoursesthatthestudenthasnotpreviouslybeenissuedaprogressgrade.
Duringthe2015–16SYstudentsearned629creditsthroughNVLA,TheNVLAindependentstudyprogramoffershighschoolstudentsflexibilitywithinamastery-basedsystem.
Studentworkthroughonlinecontent,demonstratingcompetencyalongthewayonlessonquizzes,projects,andotherassessments.
Weeklyattendanceismandatory.
UsingtendifferentlocalschoolsitesacrossClarkCounty,includingtheNVLAcampus,studentsattendsessionsforproctoredend-of-unitassessmentsuntiltheycompletethecourse.
Thisallowsforashortenedtimeframeforcoursecompletion,typically6to9weeks.
Studentscanaccesstheironlinecoursewhenandwheretheychoose,progressingattheirownpace,offeringflexibilitywithinastructuredsystem.
Allonlineclassroomshavehighlyqualifiedteachersinthesubjectareamonitoring,supporting,andinteractingwithstudentsthroughcoursecompletion.
Inaddition,studentshaveaccesstoalicensedteacherattheirassignedproctoredtestingsitewhoactsasaguideorcoach.
Overthelasttwoyears,whileexpandingtheNVLAsemester-basedonlineprogram,ClarkCountySchoolDistricthasbeenintheprocessofcreatingdistrict-wideonlinecoursesforuseoutsideofNVLA.
Traditionalcomprehensiveschoolscanutilizethesedistrict-createdonlinecoursesattheirneighborhoodschools,usingsite-basedteachers,ratherthanrelyingonvendorproducts.
CCSDhad4,414courseenrollmentsindistrictdevelopedonlinecoursesinFY2015–16.
Duringthefallof2015,CCSDembarkedonadistrictGoogleSuiteforEducationdeployment.
Thedistrictoperates356schools,andbeganwithalimitedrolloutto32schools,addingnewschoolseachweek.
Bymid-Decembernearly200schoolswereonboardandbytheendoftheschoolyear257schoolshadenrolledintoGSuiteforEducation.
KPK12.
COM49StateAgencyOversightandSupportServicesforOnlineLearningGovernmentagenciesinmanystates,butnotall,playanactiveroleinoversightandadministrationofonlinelearning,includingmonitoringofthesupplyofonlinelearningtoschools,aswellashowonlinelearningisaccessedandusedbyschools.
Thesestateagenciesoftenapproveonlinecoursesand/orsuppliersperstateregulations,and/oractasafacilitatorbetweenschoolsandsupplierstoassiststudentsinfindingandenrollinginonlinecourseswithsuppliers.
Manyofthestateswiththemostactiveoversightprogramsarethosewithoutstatevirtualschools,FloridaandMichiganbeingnotableexceptions.
Thisisbecausethestatevirtualschoolsarethemselvesprovidingadministrativeandregulatoryleadershipintheirstates.
Stateagencyinvolvementinonlinelearningvariesdramatically,frombeingactivelyinvolvedinonlinelearningtostateagencieswithminimalinvolvement.
Activestateagenciesperformarangeoffunctions,suchas:Overseeingthereviewandapprovalofsupplementalonlinecoursesandsuppliersofonlinecourses,andfull-timeonlineschoolprograms.
Providingweb-basedcatalogswherestudentscanreviewandselectapprovedonlinecourses.
Supportingoroperatingstatewideprofessionaldevelopmentprogramsforonlinelearningteachersacrossthestate.
Oversightofstatevirtualschools,virtualschoolsandvirtualcharterschools.
Datagatheringandreportingforeducationstakeholders(re.
policymakers).
Stateagenciesminimallyinvolved,ornotatall,inonlinelearningaretypicallystatesinwhichschooldistrictshaveagreatdealoflocalcontrol.
Inlocalcontrolstates,onlinelearningisoftenlocalizedattheschool,districtand/orregionalserviceagencylevel.
Somestatesdelegatetoandrelyonastatevirtualschooltotaketheleadinonlinelearningprogramoversightandregulatoryleadership.
Fewstatesprovidealloftheoversightorservicesdepictedinfigure8,butmanyperformseveraloftheseonlinelearningfunctions.
Oneofthemajorfunctionsofactivelyinvolvedstateagenciesisthereviewandapprovalofsuppliersand/orthecoursestheyprovide.
Thegoalsofcourseandsupplierreviewsandapprovalinclude,ensuringalignmentwithstatestandards,thatsuppliersareaccredited,andthatonlineteacher-ledinstructionissuppliedbyhighly-qualifiedteacherscertifiedinthatstate.
Somestateagenciesrequirearigorousreviewandapprovalprocesswhileotherssimplyrequiresupplierstocompleteapplicationstogainapproval.
Approvalsusuallymustberenewedannually,butsomeasinfrequentlyasfiveyears.
50FIGURE8StateagencyoversightandsupportSchools&StudentsSchoolsmaydevelopcoursesandcontentin-houseHostownLMSandothertoolsTrainandemploytheirownteachersStatevirtualschoolsRegionalserviceagenciesConsortiaIntermediateProvidersCONTENTFullonlinecurriculaOnlinecoursesDigitalcontentTOOLSEducationplatformsLearningmanagementsystemsLearninganalyticsSERVICESTeachersforonlinecoursesTeachertrainingImplementationassistanceCustomizationVendorsIntermediatesmaycustomize,packageorenhancevendorproductsforschools,orcreateoriginalcontent&toolsUseofvendorproducts&servicesbyintermediatesvariesfromnonetosignificantSchoolsmaybuydirectlyfromvendorsOnlinelearningsupplychainwithoversightSupplierand/orcoursereviewandapprovalDataanalysisandreportingVirtualandcharterschoolauthorizationandoversightProfessionaldevelopmentforonlinelearningStatevirtualschoolandregionalagencyoversightOnlinecoursecatalogand/orenrollmentprocessingStateAgenciesKPK12.
COM51Severalstateeducationagenciesprovideweb-basedcatalogsorotherresourceswherestudents,parentsandcounselorscangotoreviewapprovedonlinecoursesorfull-timeonlineprogramproviders.
Thisisparticularlytrueincourseaccessstatesthatallowstudentstotakeoneormoreonlinecoursesfromaproviderotherthanthestudent'sdistrictofenrollmentandhavetheirfundingflowtotheprovider.
Theprocessforusingstateagencycatalogstofind,selectandenrollstudentsinonlinecoursesorfull-timeschoolissimilaracrossstates.
TheTexasDepartmentofEducation'sTXVSNprogramisagoodexample.
Theprocessbeginswiththestudent,parent,and/orcounselorbrowsingtheTXVSNcatalogtoselectanonlinecourseorfull-timesupplier.
TheschooldesignatedTXVSN"sitecoordinator"enrollsthestudentdirectlywiththesupplier.
Attheendofeachsemester,suppliersreportstudentperformancetotheschoolandTXVSN.
SuppliersarethenpaidbyTXVSNforsuccessfulcoursecompletions.
Stateagencyfunctionsmayalsoincludeoversightofvirtualschoolsandvirtual(orcyber)charterschools.
ThiscanincludemonitoringvirtualschoolperformanceandenforcingenrollmentcapsinstatesthathaveMARYLANDSTATEDEPARTMENTOFEDUCATIONCourseReviewandApprovalProcessTheStateDepartmentofEducation'sVirtualLearningOpportunitiesProgram(MVLO)offerslocallydevelopedandvendor-providedonlinecoursesapprovedbytheMarylandStateDepartmentofEducation(MSDE)toall24localschoolsystems.
MarylandlawrequirestheMSDEtodevelopstandardsfortheevaluationandapprovalofonlinecoursestoensurequalityandrigorofinstruction,accessibilityforindividualswithdisabilities,andalignmentwithcontentstandards.
In2012,theMSDEreleasedProcessandProceduresforOfferingStudentOnlineCoursesinMarylandPublicSchools.
Thissetsforthschoolsystemresponsibilities,minimumtrainingrequirementsforfacilitators,anonlinecoursereviewprocess,theprocessforconvertingface-to-facecoursestoonlinecourses,andMSDE/SchoolSystemresponsibilitiesinthecourseapprovalprocess.
OnlinefacilitatorsforMarylandsponsoredonlinecoursesmustsuccessfullycompleteanMSDE-approvedonlinethree-creditcoursefollowedbyashadowingexperiencewithamentorfacilitator.
TheCodeofMarylandRegulations(COMAR)definescredit-bearingonlinecoursesasthoseinwhich"80%ormoreofinstructionisconductedonline.
"Coursesthatprovidelessthan80%oftheinstructiononlinedonothaveanyrequirementsotherthanthosethatapplytoallcoursesinMaryland.
COMARalsorequirestheMSDEtocreateonlinecourseevaluationandapprovalguidelinesasoutlinedintheProcessandProceduresdocument;itallowstheMSDEtochargeavendorfeeof$1,400percourseevaluation.
Ifanapprovedcontractororaschoolsystemreviewsavendorcourse,MSDEmaychargethevendora$360percoursefeeforthefinalevaluationprocess.
MSDE'sfinalevaluationrequiresthateachonlinecoursecomplywithWCAG2.
0LevelAAstandardsforaccessibility.
52suchmeasures.
Insomecases,stateagenciesactasauthorizersofvirtualschools,althoughmoststateshavemultiplevirtualschoolauthorizers,includingschooldistrictsandpostsecondaryeducationinstitutions.
Thefollowingarestateagencyexamplesthatillustratesomeofthespecificsregardingoversightandsupportservices,withvaryinglevelsofinvolvementinonlinelearning.
TexasState-levelonlineactivityinTexasishandledthroughtheTexasVirtualSchoolNetwork(TXVSN),whichprovidescourseaccessoptionstostudentsthroughtwoprograms:asupplementalstatewidecoursecatalogofhighschoolcourses(includingAdvancedPlacementanddualcredit)andthefull-timeTXVSNOnlineSchools(OLS)programforgrades3–12.
InFY2015–16theTXVSNcatalogserved5,654supplementalcourseenrollmentsandthefull-timeTXVSNonlineschoolsserved12,205students.
TexaspassedlegislationeffectiveinSY2013–14thatgavestudentstheoptiontotakeuptothreeyear-longsupplementalonlinecoursesthroughtheTXVSNeachyeartobefundedbytheirdistrictoropen-enrollmentcharterschoolaspartofthestudent'snormalcourseload;astudentmayenrollinadditionalcoursesbutmayberequiredtopay.
Anormalcourseloadisdefinedassevencredithoursperinstructionalyear.
Districtsandopen-enrollmentcharterschoolsmaydenyastudent'senrollmentrequestifthedistrictorschooloffersa"substantiallysimilar"course,andhavediscretiontoselectthecourseproviderforthecourseastudentrequests.
TXVSNcourseprovidersofferingcoursesthroughtheTXVSNcatalogareresponsibleforinstruction.
Receiverdistricts(student'shomedistrict)participatingintheTXVSNstatewidecoursecatalogapprovetheirstudents'TXVSNcourserequestsandcandenythosecourserequestsperTexasEducationCode(TEC),§26.
0031,provideongoingsupporttolocalstudentsenrolledinTXVSNstatewidecatalogcourses,andawardcreditsanddiplomas.
Districtsandopen-enrollmentcharterschoolsservingasTXVSNcourseprovidersmayseekawaiverfromtheTXVSNcoursereviewandapprovalprocessadministeredbytheTEA,buttheymustcertifythatthedistrictorcharterhasverifiedthateachcoursemeets100%ofallTXVSNcoursestandards.
InadditiontotheTXVSN,severaldistricts,includingthoseinHouston,Katy,Plano,andIrving,havesignificantonlineprogramsthatprovideonlinecoursesforresidentstudents.
StudentsmustbephysicallypresentatschooltobeeligibletogenerateFoundationSchoolProgram(FSP)fundingforthesenon-TXVSNcourses.
Forstudentsingrades9–12enrolledinTXVSNcatalogcoursesandthefull-timeTXVSNOLSprogram,statefundingisgeneratedwhenastudentsuccessfullycompletesacourseprovidedthroughtheTXVSN,whichisdefinedashavingdemonstratedacademicproficiencyofthecontentforahighschoolcoursebyearningaminimumpassinggradeof70%oraboveona100-pointscale,sufficienttoearncreditforthecourse.
AstudenttakingoneormorecoursesthroughtheTXVSNcatalogmaycounttheirparticipationintheTXVSNcoursetowardeligibilityforpart-timeorfull-timeFSPfunding,presumingthestudentsuccessfullycompletestheTXVSNcourse.
Districtsmaynotcountmorethanthreeyear-longTXVSNcourses,ortheequivalent,perstudentperschoolyeartowardFSPfundingeligibility.
AuthorizedKPK12.
COM53full-timeTXVSNonlineschoolsareexemptfromthisfundinglimitation.
StudentsenrolledinaTXVSNonlineschoolarefundedatoneofthreelevels:ifthestudentcompletesatleastfivecredits,theschoolreceivesfullfunding;ifthestudentcompletesatleastthreecredits,theschoolreceivespartialfunding;andifthestudentcompletesfewerthanthreecredits,theschoolreceivesnofunding.
StudentsparticipatinginonlinecoursesorprogramsofferedthroughtheTXVSNarenotrequiredtobephysicallypresentatschooltobeeligibletogenerateFSPfunding.
Forgrades3–8,studentsinfull-timeTXVSNonlineschoolsgeneratestateFSPfundingbasedonsuccessfulprogramcompletionandpromotiontothenextgradelevel.
Studentsmustdemonstrateacademicproficiencybyearningaminimumpassinggradeof70%oraboveona100-pointscale,sufficientforpromotiontothenextgradelevel.
Fundingisequivalenttostatefundingforastudentenrolledfulltimeinatraditionalclassroom.
Ifastudentsuccessfullycompletestheirgrade-levelinstructionalprogramandispromotedtothenextgrade,theschoolreceivesfullfunding;ifthestudentdoesnot,theschoolreceivesnofunding.
FloridaFloridahasanactivestateeducationagencythathasbeenresponsibleforimplementingalonghistoryoflegislationsupportingonlinelearning.
FloridawasthefirststateinthecountrytolegislatethatallK–12publicschoolstudentshavefull-andpart-timevirtualoptionsandthatfundingfollowseachstudentdowntothecourselevel.
TheFloridaDepartmentofEducation(DOE)providestechnicalassistanceandsupportrelatedtostatepolicyandlegislationfordistrictandstatevirtualeducationoptions.
Specifically,itisresponsibleforvariousareasofoversightand/orsupportservices,including:DevelopmentandmanagementoftheapprovalprocessofVirtualInstructionProgram(VIP)providersfordistrictprogramsandvirtualcharterschoolssince2009.
TheDOEdevelopedarenewalprocessforcurrentlyapprovedprovidersbeginningwiththe2015–16SY.
TherearefiveapprovedVIPprogramprovidersasofMarch2016.
DevelopmentoftheFloridaApprovedCoursesandTests(FACT)initiativeandanewapprovalprocessforonlinecourseproviderstoexpandstudentchoiceandonlinecourseoptions,includingMOOCs,fullyonlinecourses,andblendedcourses.
TherearefiveapprovedcourseprovidersasofMarch2016.
ManagingtheFloridaOnlineCourseCatalogtosupportvirtualinstruction,whichlaunchedinJuly2014.
Thecatalogincludescoursesofferedbydistrictvirtualschools,FloridaVirtualSchool(FLVS),andprovidersapprovedbytheDOE.
Thecatalogprovidesafullofficialcoursedescriptionaswellasadescriptionofuniquecoursefeaturesbythedistrictorprovider,andamethodforstudentstoprovideevaluativefeedback.
Completionandpassagerateswereaddedtothecatalogin2016.
AsofMarch2017,thecatalogincludedover20,000onlinecourses.
Inadditiontomanydistrictprogramsandfull-timeonlineschools,FLVSisthelargeststatevirtualschoolinthecountry,accountingforatotalofover2millioncoursecompletionssinceitopenedin1997.
InSY2015–16,enrollmentsinone-semestersupplementalonlinecoursesinFlorida,includingFLVSanda54varietyofdistrictprograms,exceeded510,000coursecompletions.
Studentstakingalloftheircoursesonlinereachedabout23,000.
FloridahasavarietyofonlineoptionsforstudentsingradesK–12.
FloridaVirtualSchoolisthemainsupplementalonlinecoursesupplierinthestate.
In2000,legislationestablishedFLVSasanindependenteducationentity.
Legislationenactedin2002and2003grantedparentalrightsforpublicschoolchoice,listedFLVSasanoption,anddefinedfull-timeequivalent(FTE)studentsforFLVSbasedon"coursecompletionandperformance"ratherthanonseattime.
FLVSisoneofthefewstatevirtualschoolsinthecountrythatisfundedbasedonsuccessfulcoursecompletions.
FloridastudentsretaintherighttochooseFLVScoursestosatisfytheireducationalgoals(perSection1002.
37,FloridaStatute).
DistrictFranchisesofFLVSallowdistrictstouseFLVScoursesandLMS;usingtheirownteacherstoofferonlinecoursestostudentswhoresidewithinthedistrict.
FLVSalsoprovidesprofessionaldevelopmentandmentoringfordistrictteachersandadministrators,andnumerouslearningresourcesandtools.
Thefranchisesalsoservehomeeducationandprivateschoolstudents.
Districtfranchisesenrolled64,901studentswith83,626coursecompletionsinSY2015–16.
ThroughtheVirtualInstructionProgram(VIP),allFloridaschooldistrictsofferpart-andfull-timevirtualinstructionprogramsforstudentsingradesK–12.
Schooldistrictsarerequiredtoofferonetothreevirtualoptions(basedonthedistrictssize).
Manysmallerdistrictsaresharingresourcesandenteringintoagreementswithregionaleducationconsortiatoprovidetheirrequiredvirtualoption.
Therewere2,708studentsinpart-timeVIPprogramsinthe2015–16SYand2,516studentsinthefull-timeVIPprogram.
DistrictVirtualCourseOfferingsallowdistrictstoofferonlinecoursesforstudentsingradesK–12.
In2013,studentswereallowedtocrossdistrictlinestotakeonlinecoursesfromotherdistrictsregardlessofwhetheritisofferedintheirdistrict.
Therewere14,862studentstakingdistrictvirtualcoursesinSY2015–16.
Virtualcharterschoolsgivestudentsadditionalfull-timeonlineoptions.
VirtualcharterschoolsarerequiredtocontractwithaDOEapprovedvirtualinstructionprogramprovidertooperatetheschool.
Floridahadninevirtualcharterschoolsinsevenschooldistrictswithanenrollmentof1,581studentsinSY2015–16.
MinnesotaMinnesotawasamongthefirststatestoallowstudentstochooseasingleonlinecoursefromamongmultipleproviders.
TheMinnesotaDepartmentofEducation(MDE)reviewsandapprovesonlinelearningprovidersandtracksenrollmentsforbothsupplementalonlinecourseenrollmentsandstudentsinfullyonlineprograms.
TheMDEengagesinacomprehensivestandards-basedapplicationandinternalreviewprocesstoassureonlineproviderqualityandongoingaccountability,aswellaseligibilityforprogramexpansion.
Publicschoolsofferingfull-timeonlineprogramstostudentsintheirdistrictboundariesandthoseenrollingpartorfull-timestudentsoutsideoftheirdistrictarerequiredtobecomeastate-approvedKPK12.
COM55onlinelearning(OLL)providerandpublishafullcourselisting.
OnlyapprovedOLLprovidersgeneratefunding.
Providerssubmitaletterofintent,completeastandards-basedapplication,hostasitevisit,andaddressanyconcernsthatariseduringtheapplicationprocess.
Approvedprovidersparticipateinathree-yearcontinuousimprovementprocessthatincludesareflectiveself-studyreport.
OLLproviderssubmitannualreportstoMDEwithenrollmentinformationandcoursecompletionrates.
Courseinformationisupdatedannuallyandisavailabletothepublicviaasearchabledatabase.
OLLprovidersseekingtoexpandtheirprogramrequireoneyearofexperienceandmustcompleteanapplicationprocess.
AsofJanuary2017,therewere33approvedonlinelearningpublicschoolprovidersthatrepresentamixofconsortia,regionalservicedistricts,charterschoolprograms,anddistrictprogramsservingstudentsstatewide.
WashingtonWashingtoncontinuestoofferoneofthebroadestrangesofonlineoptionsforstudentsofanystateinthecountry.
Onlineprogramsareoperatedbyamixofdistricts,privateprovidersandconsortia,someofwhichthatofferbothsupplementalandfull-timeonlineoptions.
ByJanuary2016,theOfficeofSuperintendentofPublicInstruction(OSPI)anditsDigitalLearningDepartment(DLD)hadlisted33approvedmulti-districtonlineschoolprogramsprovidingsupplementalandfull-timeoptionsstatewideorregionally,and81singledistrictonlineschoolprograms.
Therewere22approvedonlinecourseprovidersservingstudentsstatewide.
TheDLDapprovesallonlineschoolprogramsforthestate:singledistrictonlineschoolprogramswhicharepoisedtoserveonlyin-districtstudentsandmultidistrictonlineschoolprogramswhicharepoisedtoservestudentsstatewide.
Althoughtherearenoprivatefull-timeonlineschoolsapprovedbytheDLD,manydistrictspartnerwithprivateandapprovedonlinecourseproviderstooperatetheirownapprovedfull-timeonlineschoolprograms.
WashingtongathersoneofthemorecomprehensivestatewidedatasetsaboutonlinelearningintheU.
S.
,andpublishestheOnlineLearningAnnualReporttotheLegislatureatthebeginningofeachyear.
TheOSPIandDLDcollectonlinelearningdatafromthreestate-levelsources,1)themonthlyAlternativeLearningExperiences(ALE)enrollmentreport,2)ComprehensiveEducationDataandResearchSystem(CEDARS),and3)theDLD'sonlinecoursecatalogandregistrationsystem.
Blendedlearningprogramsarenotincludedinstatereportingmechanisms,thoughnumerousschoolanddistrictblendedlearninginitiativesexist.
StateAgencyandLocalControlAlthoughthelargeststateintheUS,withover6millionpublicschoolstudents,theCaliforniaDepartmentofEducation(CDE)hasminimaldirectinvolvementinonlinelearning.
Districtandcountyofficesleadthewayprovidinginonlinecourseoptionsandfull-timeonlineschools.
OnlinelearningoversightisdispersedacrossdifferentofficeswithintheCDE.
ManyofthestatesintheNortheastUSsupportlocalcontrolandstateagenciesplayminimalrolesinoversightandsupportofonlineprograms.
NewYork,Connecticut,NewJerseyandothereasternstateshavecomparativelylittleinvolvementoroversightofonlinelearningatthestateagencylevel,withmostonlinecoursesbeingprovidedbyregionalserviceagenciesandlocalschoolsanddistricts.
ThePennsylvaniastateeducationagencytrackscybercharterschoolactivity,butdoesnotplayaroleinsupplementalonlinelearning.
56BRIEFHISTORYOFONLINELEARNINGIT'SBEENABOUTTWODECADESSINCETHEFIRSTINTERNET-BASEDK–12ONLINEPROGRAMSBEGAN.
SomeoftheseincludetheLaurelSpringsonlineprivateschool,whichdatestotheearly1990s,theVirtualHighSchool,launchedwithafederalgrantinthemid-1990s,theFloridaVirtualSchool(FLVS),whichgrewoutofaFloridaDepartmentofEducationgranttotwodistrictsin1996,andseveralsmalldistrictonlineschools,suchastheMonteVistaonlineacademyinColorado,whichlaunchedin1997.
Thesepioneeringonlineschoolsandprogramspavedthewayfornumerousothers,evidencedbythesubsequentproliferationofstatevirtualschools,providingonlinecoursestoschoolsanddistricts,andvendorsandotherorganizationsprovidingsupplementalcoursesaswellasestablishingfully-onlineschools.
Thishasbeenmorerecentlyfollowedbytherapidgrowthofonlineanddigitallearningprogramsimplementedattheschoolanddistrictlevelsdirectly.
Thisshifthasbeenenabledinpartbythematuringoftechnologyandproductswithinthedigitallearningindustry,makingthemmoreaffordableandeasiertoimplementandmanageatlocallevels.
ButtotracetherootsofonlinelearningprimarilytoInternet-basedprogramswouldbeahugemistake.
Infact,theoriginofonlineanddigitallearningpre-datestheWorldWideWebbymanyyears,goingbacktothebeginningof"computer-assistedinstruction"inthe1960s.
Therootsofcomputer-assistedinstructionThehistoryofcomputer-assistedinstruction(CAI)islongandinvolved,andincludesmanyorganizations.
Anyattempttodetailitshistorywillinevitablyleaveoutsomeimportantdevelopments.
Mostaccounts,however,wouldpointtothePLATOprojectattheUniversityofIllinoisUrbana-Champaignthatstartedin1960asthemajormilestoneintheevolutionofusingcomputerstodeliverinstruction.
ThePLATOsystemwasusedtodeliverinstructionintopicsrangingfromFrenchtoOrganicChemistryandadvancedmilitarytraining.
Intheearly70ssupercomputercompanyControlDataCorporationtookovertheproject.
BythenthePLATOsystemdevelopershadaddedapowerfulonlinecourseauthoringlanguagecalledPLATOTutor,email(PersonalNotes),messageboards,chatrooms(Talkomatic),instantmessaging(Term-Talk),andremotescreensharing.
ThePLATOuserterminalsevenhadtouchscreens.
FirstmajorusesofthePLATOsystemaswellassomeotherearlyCAIsystemswereinhighereducation,corporateandmilitarytrainingandsimulationenvironments.
TheControlDataPLATOprojectevolvedovertimeandeventuallygavebirthtotwoofthemostwidelyadoptedproductlinesforpersonalcomputersandInternetusage,PLATOLearning(nowEdmentum)andNovaNet(acquiredby,andrecentlyretired,byPearson).
Thesesystemsandotherslikethemhavebeenusedintensofthousandsofschoolsacrossthecountry,primarilytoprovideinterventionandremediationforstrugglingstudents.
Becausethesestudentswereoftenrecoveringcreditorretakingmaterialforotherreasons,theyworkedthroughthecomputermaterialwithsomehelpfromateacher,butwithlimitedinteractionwiththeteacherandlittleornointeractionwithotherstudents.
CreditrecoverywasamajordriverofearlyCAIprogramsinschools,andcreditrecoveryremainsamajorelementofthedigitallearninglandscape.
TherootsofonlinelearningUnlikeCAI,whichbeganwithafocusonin-classroomandlearninglabuse,thetypeofonlinelearningweareaccustomedtotodayinK–12schoolshaditsoriginsasaformofdistanceeducation.
Theearlyformsofdistancelearningweregearedtowardhomeboundstudents(andvocationaleducationatapostsecondarylevel),andusedpre-WorldWideWebdeliverymethodsincludingprintmaterials,CD-ROMS,andvideoconferencingtodeliverinstructionandfacilitatecommunication.
AsdistancelearningevolvedwiththeadvanceoftheInternet,onlinecoursesweredevelopedforAdvancedPlacementstudents,ortoprovidecollegepreparatorycoursesthatwerenotavailableinruralorinner-cityschools.
Thegrowthofonlineeducationinpostsecondaryandprofessionaldevelopment58contributedtothelegitimacyandgrowthofonlinelearninginK–12.
Earlyformsofonlinelearninginitiallycenteredontranslatingacompleteclassroomcoursesyllabustoadistanceeducationenvironment,includingsimilarcontentandassignments,andthengrewtoallowforteacher-studentinteractionsalsosimilartoatraditionalclassroom.
ExamplesofthistypeofearlyonlinelearningprogramwereoftencreatedinruralstatessuchasAlaska,NorthDakotaandNebraska.
Onlineschoolshaveinnovatedinavarietyofways,butinmostcasestheyremainbasedonteacher-studentinteraction,andinsomecasesstudent-studentinteraction.
Becauseonlinecoursesoftenserveasanalternativetoregularclassroominstruction,andinsomecasesdrawstudentsoutoftraditionalschools,educationpolicyandoversightprovisionshaveevolvedtoaddressonlinelearning,whileveryfewregulationsaddressCAIandotherusesofeducationtechnology.
Tothisday,extensivepoliciesspecifictoonlinelearninggovernonlineschools,butrelativelyfewpoliciesspecifictodigitallearninggovernCAI.
ThecurrentdigitallearninglandscapeThekeybenefitsofCAIandonlinelearningwerelargelycomplementary,andinrecentyearsonlinelearningandCAIhaveconverged.
Fromasupplierstandpoint,PearsonEducationexemplifiesthisevolution:itacquiredConnectionsEducationandnowoffersbothConnectionscourses(rootsinonlinelearning)andotheronlinecontentwithrootsinCAI.
Schooldistrictsareprovidingbothtypesofoptions,andtheyareoftenbothmanagedatadistrictlevelbyonedistrictoffice.
IntheClarkCountyschooldistrictinNevada,forexample,theonlinelearningprogramservingstudentsathomeandinschoolsiscloselytiedtoeffortstosupportdistrictschoolsintheirmovetodigitalcontentanddevices.
Thisdynamicisincreasinglycommonintraditionalschooldistricts.
Muchliketoday'smusicalartistswhooftensampleothermusictore-mix,re-envision,andre-createnewsongsandsounds,practitionerstodayaretakingdifferentelementsofdigitallearning,withvariedbackgroundsandsources,foruseintheirownschools,programs,andclassrooms.
TheonlinelearningandCAIrootsofdifferenttypesofdigitallearninghavebeenobscuredaseachhasappropriatedelementsoftheother.
Threeadditionalelementsfurthercomplicatethelandscape.
First,confusionexistsbetweenentitiesthatareschools—thosethatenrollstudentsandprovideafullrangeofcoursesandassociatedservices—andthosethataresuppliersofonlinecourses,tools,andteaching,toschoolsandalsotofamilieswhoarebuyingcoursesandinstructionalmaterials.
Thisconfusionhasbeenexacerbatedbythefactthatsuppliersmaybecompanies,nonprofitorganizations,orpublicagencies,andthatsomesuppliershavetheword"school"or"academy"intheirname.
Second,someentitiesaresuppliersandalsoownandoperateschools.
Finally,insomeschooldistrictsthelinebetweenschoolandsupplierbecomesblurred,becausethedistrictrunsaprogramthatservesstudentsdirectly,buttheprogramdoesnothaveschoolcodeandstudentsareofficiallyenrolledinanotherdistrictschool.
Giventheseareasofcomplexity,understandingthedistinctionbetweenschoolandsuppliersiscriticalforcomprehendingthedigitallearninglandscape.
Foronlineanddigitallearning,suppliersareentitiesthatprovideonlineanddigitallearningproductsandservicestoschools,andsometimesdirectlytostudents,butusuallycoordinatedandmonitoredbyaschool.
Asupplierisnotresponsibleforastudent'sacademicactivityandperformanceandisnotauthorizedtodoso.
Theydonotownthetranscriptofastudent,administerstateassessments,assigngradelevels,orofferdiplomas.
Somesuppliers,suchasstatevirtualschools,offercoursesusingteachersemployedbythestatevirtualKPK12.
COM59school,butitisthestudent'shomeschoolthatmaintainsresponsibility.
Thesupplier,offeringtheonlinecourseandperhapstheteacher,isessentiallyacontractedoutsourcingofinstructionalservicestoathird-partyentity.
Schools,ontheotherhand,areentities,authorizedviastatepolicy,thathavetheprimaryresponsibilityforastudent'seducation.
Schoolsincludetraditionalpublic,charter,andprivateschools;independentstudyandsimilarnon-traditionalschoolsthatenrollstudents;andonline,onsite,andblendedschools.
Onlyauthorizedschoolscangrantcredittowardsgradeleveladvancementandconferdiplomas.
HowbigistheeducationindustryOnewaytounderstandthesizeoftheeducationindustryistolookattheamountofmoneyspentorgeneratedonanannualbasisforvarioussegmentsoftheindustry.
Thishelpsprovideaperspectiveonjusthowbigtheeducationindustryisandhowthegroupofeducationcompaniesservingthedigitallearningmarketfitintotheoverallpicture.
Ifyouaddupalltheannualfundingandrevenuegoingtoschools,fromK–12throughgraduateschool,plusalltherevenuegeneratedbyallthefor-profitandnonprofiteducationcompanies,theaggregatesizeoftheeducationindustryisthesecondlargestindustryonearth,secondonlytohealthcare—alsosecondtohealthcareintheUnitedStates.
So,whatarethenumbersBelowaresomeannualestimatesfromvarioussourcesbasedon2014–15data.
Afairlysignificantportionofthevendorsintheonlineanddigitallearningsegmentfallinthedigitalcontentandtextbooksegments.
SizeofeducationindustrySupplierspending$4.
5trillionWorldwide$1.
4trillionUnitedStates$670billionU.
S.
K–12U.
S.
Textbooks<$14.
0billionK–12textbooks$8.
0billionandshrinkingU.
S.
Digitalcontent&toolsnon-hardware$8.
4billionK–12hardware&associatedspending$10.
2billionK–12learningmanagementsystems&platforms$380millionU.
S.
Testing&assessment$2.
5billion60AppendixA:MethodologyDatareportedinKeepingPacewithK–12OnlineLearning2016focusesonthe2015–16fiscalyearforschool,districtandstateorganizations.
MoststateeducationalsystemsworkonafiscalyearfromJuly1toJune30,somestartfiscalyearsAugust1andfewerstillstartfiscalyearsSeptember1.
Inthepast,KeepingPacehasreporteddatabasedon"schoolyear,"definedbythereportassummerandfallinoneyearandspringofthefollowingyear.
Byconformingtothefiscalyearreportingoftheorganizations,KeepingPaceisgettingevenmorereliabledatafromorganizationsprofiledinthereport.
Onlineanddigitalusagedataandinformationwascollecteddirectlyfromstateeducationagencies,stateeducationstatisticsdatabases,statereports,regionaleducationservicesagencies,andasampleoflargeandsmallschooldistrictsandschools.
TheEvergreenEducationGroupresearchteamattemptstocollectstatewideonlinelearningusagedataatthestateagencylevelwherepossible.
Inmanystatesonlineprogramsarenotrequiredtoreportonlineenrollmentsandassociatedinformation.
Also,somestatesthatdocollectsuchdatadidnothaveitavailableintimetobeanalyzedandpublishedinthisreport.
Datawascollecteddirectlyfromonlinelearningorganizations—includingstatevirtualschools,consortia,regionalserviceagencies,stateagencies,vendorsanddistricts—throughdatacollectionsurveyinstrumentsandpersonalinterviewswithkeyrepresentativesfromeachorganization.
Inordertoshowasupply-sideviewnotavailablethroughtraditionaldatacollectiontechniques,interviewswereheldanddatawascollectedfromavarietyofproductandserviceproviders,includingsmallandlargeeducationpublishers,contentproviders,softwaretoolsproviders,andeducationmanagementorganizations.
Evergreenalsoutilizedarangeofsecondaryresearchfromsources,includingrecentresearchfromfoundations,theNationalCenterforEducationStatistics(NCES),theNationalAllianceforPublicCharterSchools,andseveralothers.
Anyerrorsoromissions,however,arefullytheresponsibilityoftheEvergreenEducationGroup.
KPK12.
COM61AppendixB:DefinitionsDigitallearningisanyinstructionalpracticeinoroutofschoolthatusesdigitaltechnologytostrengthenastudent'slearningexperienceandimproveeducationaloutcomes.
Ouruseofthetermisbroadandnotlimitedtoonline,blended,andrelatedlearning.
Itencompassesawiderangeofdigitaltoolsandpractices,includinginstructionalcontent,interactions,dataandassessmentsystems,learningplatforms,onlinecourses,adaptivesoftware,personallearningenablingtechnologies,andstudentdatamanagementsystems.
Anonlinecourseisateacher-lededucationexperiencethattakesplaceovertheInternet,withtheteacherandstudentseparatedgeographically,usinganonlineinstructionaldeliverysystemtoaccesscoursecontentandallowcommunicationbetweentheteacherandstudentandbetweenstudents.
Itmaybeaccessedfrommultiplesettings(inschooland/oroutofschoolbuildings).
Astatecertificatedteacheristheteacherofrecordforthecourse.
Ahybridcourseisonewherethemajorityofthelearningandinstructiontakesplaceonline,withthestudentandteacherseparatedgeographically,butstillincludessometraditionalface-to-face"seattime.
"Inhybridonlinecoursestheonlineinstructorremainstheteacherofrecordeventhoughthestudentspendstimewithadditionaleducators.
Acourseenrollmentisonestudentinasinglesemesterlong-courseorequivalent(.
5credit).
Auniquestudentisoneindividualstudent,whomaytakeanynumberofcourses.
Onlineprogramsworkdirectlywithstudentsanddeliveronlinelearningservices,butarenot"schools.
"Onlineprogramsmayincludestatevirtualschools,districts,consortia,andothersuppliers.
Supplementalonlinecoursesareusedtoaugmentastudent'seducationalprogramorcampusclassschedule.
Studentstakingsupplementalonlinecoursesusuallytakeabout1to2onlinecoursesinaschoolyear.
Anoriginalcreditcourseisonetakenbyastudentforthefirsttime,andiscreditbearing.
Thesemaybecoreorelectivecourses.
Originalcreditcoursesarealsoreferredtoasinitialcreditorfirst-timecourses.
Creditrecoveryrefersto"awidevarietyofeducationalstrategiesandprogramsthatgivehighschoolstudentswhohavefailedaclasstheopportunitytoredocourseworkorretakeacoursethroughalternatemeans,andtherebyavoidfailureandearnacademiccredit.
"(GlossaryofEducationalReform)Charterschoolsprovidefree,publiclyfundedelementaryand/orsecondaryeducationtoeligiblestudentsunderaspecificchartergrantedbystate-designatedcharterauthorizersoranappropriateauthority.
Charterschoolsmayhavephysicalcampuses,beonline,orincludeelementsofboth.
62Virtualschoolsarefull-timeonlineschools,sometimesreferredtoascyberschools,whichdonotservestudentsataphysicalfacility.
Teachersandstudentsaregeographicallyremotefromoneanother,andallormostoftheinstructionisprovidedonline.
Thesemaybevirtualcharterschoolsornon-chartervirtualschools.
Onlineschoolstypicallyareresponsibleforensuringtheirstudentstakestateassessments,andfortheirstudents'scoresonthoseassessments.
Full-timeonlinestudentsarethosethattaketheirentirecourseloadonline.
Privateschoolsaresupportedbyaprivateorganizationorprivateindividualsratherthanbythegovernment.
Privateschoolsdonotreceivesignificantfederal,stateorlocalgovernmentfunding,asopposedtoapublicschool,whichisoperatedbythegovernmentorinthecaseofcharterschools,independentlywithgovernmentfundingandregulation.
ThemajorityofprivateschoolsintheUnitedStatesareoperatedbyreligiousinstitutionsandorganizations.
Districtstatewideorregionaloperatorsaredistrictsthatsupplyonlinecourses,instruction,technologyandotherservicestoschoolsbothwithinandoutsidetheoriginatingdistrict.
Thesearesometimesreferredtoasmulti-districtonlineprograms.
Regionalserviceagencies(RSA)are"publicentitiescreatedbystatestatute,toprovideeducationalsupportprogramsandservicestolocalschoolsandschooldistrictswithinagivengeographicarea"(AssociationofEducationalServiceAgencies).
RSAsfunctionasalevelofeducationagencybetweenthedistrictandstate.
Regionalserviceagenciesgobymanynames,includingintermediateschooldistricts,BoardsofCooperativeEducationalServices(BOCES),intermediateunits,educationalservicecenters,CooperativeEducationServiceAgencies(CESA),countyofficesandothers.
Intermediatesuppliersdeliveronlinecoursesandservicestoschoolsanddistricts,usuallyinasinglestate.
Theymaydeveloporiginalonlinecontent,licensecontentfromvendors,oruseacombinationoforiginalandvendordevelopedcontent,whichismostoftenthecase.
Intermediatesuppliersareoftensomeformofgovernmentalentity,includingstatevirtualschools,districtstatewideandregionalprograms,regionalservicesagencies,consortia,andpostsecondaryonlineschoolsservinglargelyhighschoolstudents.
Teacherofrecord(TOR)isaneducatorwhoisresponsibleforastudent'slearningactivitiesthatarewithinasubjectorcourse,andarealignedtoperformancemeasures,includingassignmentofthestudent'sfinalgradeinacourse.
(CenterforEducationalLeadershipandTechnology)Suppliersareanyentitiesthatdeliveronlinecourses,instruction,technologytoolsand/orservicestosupportonlinelearning.
Suppliersmaybefor-profitvendors,educationorganizationsoragencies(re.
statevirtualschools,regionalservicesagencies),ornonprofitorganizations.
Vendorsarecompaniesororganizationsinthebusinessofdevelopinganddeliveringabroadrangeofproductsandservicestotheeducationindustry.
Vendorsdeliveronlinecourses,instruction,technologyinfrastructureandotheronlineservicesdirectlytoschoolsanddistrictsforlicenseorpurchase,andmayprovidethosesameservicestointermediates.
Vendorsmayincludecompaniesthatprovideonlinecontent,teachers,learningmanagementsystems,learninganalytics,teachertrainingandotheronlineproductsandservices.
KPK12.
COM63Statevirtualschoolsareintermediatesupplierorganizationsthatdeliveronlinecourses,instructionandotheronlinelearningservicestoschoolsanddistrictsacrossthestatesinwhichtheyoperate.
Statevirtualschoolsareusuallycreatedbylegislationorbyastate-levelagency,employstaff,andreceivestateappropriationorgrantfundingforthepurposeofprovidingonlinelearningopportunitiestostudentsacrossthestate.
Theyalsomaychargecoursefeestohelpcovercosts.
Theorganizationsmaybeadministeredbyastateeducationagency,butmayalsobe501(c)(3)nonprofits,charterschools,ororganizationscontractedtooperatethestatevirtualschoolbythestateagency.
Blendedlearningis"aformaleducationprograminwhichastudentlearnsatleastinpartthroughonlinelearning,withsomeelementofstudentcontrolovertime,place,path,and/orpace;atleastinpartinasupervisedbrick-and-mortarlocationawayfromhome;andthemodalitiesalongeachstudent'slearningpathwithinacourseorsubjectareconnectedtoprovideanintegratedlearningexperience"(TheClaytonChristensenInstituteforDisruptiveInnovation).
Inmostblendedlearningmodels,theteacherofrecordislocatedintheschoolbuilding,whereasinonlinelearningtheteacherofrecordisalmostalwaysremote,notinthephysicalschool.
Dualcreditcoursesarecoursesinwhichastudentearnscreditfromthepostsecondaryinstitutionofferingthecourse,aswellasaccruingcreditatthestudent'shomeschool.
Competency-basedlearningallowsstudentstoadvanceuponmasteryofcoursecontent.
Competency-basededucationisbasedoncompetenciesthatincludeexplicit,measurable,transferablelearningobjectivesthatempowerstudents.
Assessmentismeaningful.
Studentsreceivetimely,differentiatedsupportbasedontheirindividuallearningneeds.
Learningoutcomesemphasizecompetenciesthatincludeapplicationandcreationofknowledgealongwiththedevelopmentofimportantskillsanddispositions.
(iNACOL,2013)Courseaccessprogramsandpolicies(sometimescalledcoursechoice)allowstudentstotakeoneormoreonlinecoursesfromaproviderotherthanthestudent'sdistrictofenrollmentandhavetheirfundingflowtotheprovider.
64KEEPINGPACEWITHK–12DIGITALLEARNING2015ISPROUDLYSPONSOREDBYCopyright2017EvergreenEducationGroup.
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