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Fairfax high school considers going virtual

April 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment

The proposed virtual school will be discussed at a hearing this month. School board members are excited about the prospect, although questions concerning the cost, operations and attendance levels remain unanswered.

Superintendent Jack D. Dale said he does not believe many students would attend the digital school full-time, but rather see it as an educational option. If the proposal is approved, then the school would be open to students county-wide.

Aimed to launch in September, the sheer amount of logistics involved means this is probably over-ambitious, but the school board’s officials are keen to launch ‘before someone else does’. Dale says:

“It’s hard to do marching band online. Kids are going to pop in and out of the virtual school. They’ll just look at it as another method of taking a course, instead of face to face.”

In the virtual school teachers would work via phone and email, and occasional meetings would be conducted in time for revision and exams. Students and teachers would meet through an online platform approximately one-fifth of the time, and outside of this, students would have the freedom to organize their learning themselves.

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Plato Launches Virtual Academy

March 12, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Accreditation for the academy will be provided by the Northwest Accreditation Commission (NWAC) with the virtual academy designated as a distance education school. Established in 1917, NWAC is engaged in school accreditation in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

“Our goal is to help schools and districts to improve student achievement. The Plato Virtual Academy is an important step forward in doing that,” said Jamie Candee, Plato Learning vice president of product and marketing. “We are here to partner–not compete–with educators to meet the needs of 21st century learners.”

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With virtual platform, Alaska high school reverses decline

February 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When Virtual High School Global Consortium, a non-profit organization specializing in collaborative online education and professional development, offered 25 students spots at a reduced price in exchange for one Advanced Placement teacher, Petersburg saw it a as an opportunity to be able to offer their students more diverse classes.

Now Petersburg offer engineering, architecture, art history, and veterinary science, among other classes. Sue Hardin, the school’s English and Spanish teacher, says that she facilitates advanced placement classes for student in some Northeastern schools, as well as that Oklahoma, Washington State, Switzerland, Venezuela and even China.

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Virtual Schools Remain in Session During Winter Storm

January 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Online schools like those offered by Washington Online School Network are a good choice for students looking for a personalized program that lets them complete their studies at their own speed and in their own setting, such as home-schooled-students, advanced learners, students with health or physical challenges, or those needing a flexible schedule in order to work or pursue outside interests. Washington Online School Network complies with all Washington graduation requirements and offers a full middle and high school curriculum, including electives and college preparatory courses.

“One benefit of attending an online school like those in Washington Online School Network is its flexibility. Our students can do their work any time and any place that works for them,” said Jeffrey A. Elliott, Advanced Academics president. “While bad weather closes brick-and-mortar schools and learning labs, our students can continue their studies uninterrupted.”

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Playing school with scantrons

January 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

There are virtual schools that play school with virtual scantrons. According to the U.S. Department of Education, “Technology ushers in fundamental structural changes that can be integral to achieving significant improvements in productivity.”

Read on and you learn that unlike those gosh darn teachers, technology is there, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to accelerate your child’s learning. Even better, in the virtual world of learning, you only pay for results. Just think of it. If kids never finish a course in a virtual school, it would not cost taxpayers a dime! Florida Virtual Schools, in partnership with Pearson Education, expects to make $20,000,000 in the next five years—so they can afford to offer clients a “virtual success guarantee” that “80 percent of your students will achieve a passing grade — or your money back for those students that do not!”

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Virtual Schools Booming, while States Mull Warnings about Lack of Oversite

December 24, 2011 By Leave a Comment

States are taking halting steps to increase oversight, but regulation is not moving as fast as the virtual school boom. Critics point to gaps in state oversight to ensure students–and not their parents or tutors–are actually completing tests and coursework.

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EdGate’s Curriculum Matrix® Creates A Seamless Transition to Common Core Standards and Digital Learning

December 20, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Originally developed as a filtered educational search engine, the Curriculum Matrix has evolved into a precise and powerful curriculum management and digital learning tool, giving teachers the resources they need to transform curriculum. The Curriculum Matrix helps them reach the goal of differentiating instruction by providing targeted, aligned content for every student in the classroom.

Teachers have access to more than 250,000 of the best resources online, all aligned to grade-specific Common Core and state standards. Every bit of content in the Curriculum Matrix is ready to use with state standards, Common Core, currently adopted textbooks or any set of objectives used by a district. With one click, teachers can see the relationship between Common Core standards and their own textbooks, current state standards or district curriculum. For teachers using standards-based curriculum, the Curriculum Matrix not only allows teachers to share lessons, it also facilitates their efforts to designate specific standards related to existing lessons.

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Two Families, Two Takes on Virtual Schooling

December 19, 2011 By Leave a Comment

With all the talk about online education lately, it’s clear that the vision evoked by the words “home schooling” is changing. The image of Mom and kids sitting at the kitchen table has given way to a child logging onto a virtual class from the home office.

The number of students in kindergarten through 12th grade enrolled in virtual schools nationwide has grown to 225,000 from 50,000 a decade ago—and 30% year over year since 2001, says Susan Patrick, chief executive of the International Association for K-12 Online Learning, a nonprofit advocacy group. Some parents choose virtual schooling to accommodate a heavy schedule of extracurricular classes or interests; others feel their children’s needs are better served outside a traditional classroom. Here are two families’ experiences.

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Bethel School Board reviews list of about 25 budget-cut options

December 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The Bethel School Board is getting a jump on nasty budget news headed its way from Olympia by reviewing a list of about two dozen budget options and estimating how many dollars could be saved with each cutback.

Among the options that would net some of the biggest savings in the Spanaway-based school district:

  • Closing one or two junior high/middle schools for a savings of $1 million.
  • Eliminating teacher stipends for evening activities for a savings of $2 million.
  • Reducing all employee pay by 1 percent, for a savings of $1 million.

Other savings possibilities:

  • Eliminate the Bethel Online Academy. Estimated savings: $600,000. Seigel said a reduction in state reimbursement for online students has resulted in lower funding for the program and that students could be served elsewhere.
  • Change to a new model for custodian services. Estimated savings: $500,000. Details are still being worked on.
  • Eliminate positions for six assistant principals – three at middle schools and three at elementary schools – for a total estimated savings of $720,000.
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Red Comet Accredited Online High School Learning Program Free for Home Schooled Students in WA State

December 10, 2011 By Leave a Comment

“Private high schools do an excellent job in offering a solid curriculum to their students. However, many private schools are strong in some subject areas while they would like to further solidify their curriculum offering in the remaining areas. Private high school teachers are well trained in a variety of subjects but the changes in state standards sometimes requires focused expertise in certain key concepts. A partnership with Red Comet will help the private high school extend its curriculum while allowing the students to gain credits that they otherwise may not have earned. Since Red Comet is approved by the Washington State Office of the Superintendent of Public Instructions (OSPI) as a “Multi-District Online Course Provider”, a partnership with Red Comet will be a win-win situation for any private school in the State of Washington,” said Dr. Jay Srinivasan, Managing Director of Red Comet.

About Red Comet: Red Comet is an online transfer credit program, designed to assist students facing difficulties in attaining credits to graduate from high school. The courses offered meet state standards and requirements. Thanks to this innovative online high school program, students are able to graduate from their own high school.

 

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