As bandwidth increases, more and more people are gaining high-speed access to the internet which creates opportunities that weren't possible before. Virtual education has expanded as a result of these developments. Schools have electronically moved closer to students, even in the most remote areas of the country. Program offerings have expanded beyond the basic to the intriguing. Virtual classrooms offer students a chance to explore learning in many new and exciting ways.
With every new innovation come new questions.
Does virtual teaching and learning help students achieve the same level of success you would find in a classroom? Are learning virtually and learning in a classroom setting equally challenging? The list of questions goes on...
In this issue of the Electronic School eZine, we will examine various programs that are teaching virtually. We take a look at research from organizations that live and breathe online and virtual learning. We also highlight workshops that have been scheduled for the upcoming T+L conference this October. (www.nsba.org/tl)
Please let us know your opinion of the Electronic School eZine. Your feedback is essential - in fact, several of your suggestions have been included in recent issues of the Electronic School eZine. We want to hear from you!
Additional Resources
Virtual Realities: A School Leader’s Guide to Online Education
This guide, produced by NSBA in conjunction with Florida Virtual School, features profiles of virtual school programs operated by districts in NSBA’s Technology Leadership Network; discusses and illustrates promising practices and successful models and approaches; provides planning and implementation resources; presents costs and benefits of launching virtual schools, and offers preventive strategies that help districts anticipate and avoid common pitfalls. (click title to order online)
ACCESS - Alabama's Distance Learning
The State of Alabama's vision is to "...provide equal access to high quality instruction to improve student achievement through distance learning."
Florida Budget Threatens Online Ed. Mandate
"Lawmakers are mulling restrictions and budget cuts for the state’s nationally known virtual school." (Education Week)
iNACOL Promising Practices in Online Learning: Management and Operations of Online Programs: Ensuring Quality and Accountability
by John Watson and Butch Gemin (April 2009). This series, Promising Practices in Online Learning, explores some of the approaches being taken by practitioners and policymakers in response to key issues in online learning in six papers being released throughout 2008 and 2009.
Breaking Away From Tradition: E-Education Expands Opportunities for Raising Achievement
Click here to view the on-demand event now (free registration required). Technology Counts 2009 examines how online learning is disrupting traditional ways of delivering education and what this means for educators as they rethink the best ways to improve their schools and raise achievement. Presenters: Susan Patrick, President and CEO, International Association for K-12 Online Learning, and William R. Thomas, Director of Educational Technology, Southern Regional Education Board.
E-Learning Industry Evolving
"Even in today’s gloomy business climate, market experts predict that the K-12 online education industry will continue to grow, as rapidly increasing enrollments in virtual schools begin to taper off and the country’s economic troubles persist." (Education Week)
E-Education's Role in Tough Times
"Elizabeth R. Pape, the president and chief executive officer of the Maynard, Mass.-based Virtual High School Global Consortium, talks with Education Week's Digital Directions about the ways that online courses can help save money in tough economic times and also give schools more options for offering quality courses to students." (Digital Directions)
Experts Debate Cost Savings Of Virtual Education
"The discussion centers around whether e-learning is really more cost effective than traditional brick-and-mortar schooling." (Education Week)
Online Learning Policy and Practice Survey: A Survey of the States
by the Center for Digital Education (October 28, 2008). "In 2008, the Center for Digital Education conducted a review of state policy and programs to determine the status of online learning policy and practice across the United States. This report is underwritten by Blackboard and Pearson Education and produced with the advice and consultation of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) and the North American Council for Online Learning (NACOL)."
Going Virtual! Unique Needs and Challenges of K-12 Online Teachers
by Kerry Rice, Lisa Dawley, Crystal Gasell and Chris Florez (November 2008). "In this report, we posed the question, “What are the unique needs and challenges of K-12 online teachers?” The first phase of the Going Virtual! research series, conducted in 2007, addressed the need to investigate the national status of professional development for K-12 online teachers."
K12 Online Learning: A 2008 Follow-up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators
By The Sloan Consortium (January 2009). "In 2007, the Sloan Consortium issued a report on the extent and nature of online learning in K-12 schools. Entitled, K-12 Online Learning: A Survey of U.S. School District Administrators, this report was welcomed by professional organizations and the popular media interested in the use of online technology for instruction in the public schools. It was based on a national survey of school district administrators ..."
Breaking Down the Walls: Using Online Learning to Reach The Underserved
Genesee Intermediate School District (2008 Salute District) in Flint, Michigan, will present this session at upcoming T+L in Denver. This session will outline how distance learning -- especially online learning -- is transforming traditional education at the secondary level. Learn how innovative leadership has created the first countywide Seat Time Waiver using online courses to allow students to "school" 100% online.