During my research of virtual learning I discovered there
are many levels. There are full time virtual schools and there is blended
virtual learning. Alabama has several different options for students in the
virtual learning environment. ACCESS
is Alabama’s virtual learning program for grades 9-12. Students can take
classes through ACCESS that may not be available through their high school. For
full time virtual school, Alabama students have to attend one of the virtual academies
like Alabama
Connection Academy. Another option students may have is a computer program
that has been purchased by their school system. Chilton County School System
uses Edmentum for its virtual learning
option. Through my research I discovered different states use different
programs with different levels of student-teacher interaction. Some states
offer full time virtual schools and some only offer a degree of virtual
learning.
Alabama vs Florida's Virtual K-12 Schools by Tracy Johns
Alabama vs Florida's Virtual K-12 Schools by Tracy Johns
3 Interesting things
I learned:
Course management systems (CMS) are not just for the
delivery and organization of distance learning. Schools must be careful when
choosing a CMS to administer their distance learning so that it can accommodate
students with special needs (Simonson, Smaldino, & Zvacek, 2015). Students that are enrolled in a virtual school
must also be enrolled in a local high school. The local high school is their
home school and this is from where their support comes. The student’s home
school holds the accountability for the student’s success. There are various
levels of virtual learning. Virtual learning can be as simple as using videos
for instruction all the way to full time virtual school. Different states requires
different levels of virtual learning in their schools. For instance, the state
of Florida has mandated that all K-12 schools have a virtual school (Simonson,
Smaldino, & Zvacek, 2015).
2 Things that concern
me:
Cost and teacher readiness are two areas about virtual
learning that concern me. The cost of distance learning can be impactful to
budgets and schools have limited funds to support a distance learning program (Simonson,
Smaldino, & Zvacek, 2015). The list
of required items that are needed to properly support a distance learning
program is long. This leads me to my second concern which is teacher readiness.
Teachers who are monitoring or instructing distance learning must be trained and
possess certain characteristics (Simonson, et al., 2015). Proper support for
the program and teachers will determine the success of the program.
1 question I have:
Do students in a virtual school or blended classroom achieve
academically as well as their classmates in traditional classrooms? To
determine success, states need to create standards to measure virtual schools
results along with blended programs that are equal to traditional schools (Gulosino,
Miron, 2017).
Gulosino, C., & Miron, G.
(2017). Growth and performance of fully online and blended K-12 public
schools. Education Policy
Analysis Archives,25,
124. doi:10.14507/epaa.25.2859
Simonson, M. R., Smaldino, S.
E., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning
at a distance: Foundations of distance education. Charlotte, NC: IAP, Information Age
Publishing.
The two concerns that you have with virtual learning are also the ones that personally have as well: cost and readiness. I believe that cost is probably the main concern for the majority of individuals and organizations. As a supporter of virtual learning, it bothers me that skeptics use this reasoning quite frequently. Simonson, Smaldino, and Zvacek (2015) point out that:
ReplyDeleteThe costs of of distance education programs “range from basic operation of the administrative offices for distance education to faculty salaries to instructional design and technical support personnel to student support personnel to the delivery technology infrastructure, and to course and program promotion, including advertising (p. 296).
Wow! When you really consider and identify the many facets to providing virtual learning, the costs add up quickly. I certainly feel that this is the main limitation to implementation for many organizations.
You posed an excellent question. Do students learn better in one setting as compared to another? According to Tanyel and Griffin‘s (2014) research, “U.S. Department of Education conducted a meta-analytic review originally of K-12 instruction that indicated on average students in the online learning conditions performed modestly better than those in traditional settings” (p. 4).
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning at a distance:
Foundations of distance education. Charlotte, North Carolina: Information Age
Publishing, Inc.
Tanyel, F., & Griffin, J. (2014). A ten-year comparison of outcomes and
persistence rates in online versus face-to-face courses. B> Quest, 1-22.
Tracy, your concerns are so appropriate and practical. As Samantha mentions, it is a popular opinion that digital learning is expensive. Simonson, Smaldino, and Zvacek (2015) make a point of the range in costs for virtual schooling. The focus that you bring to this issue shed light on another potential issue for this domain. At my school, we orginally used the course content provided by ACCESS, but have since transitioned to Edgenuity, a purchased program. There must be a reason that this switch was made and money was allotted for the program, indicating that there may be something lacking in the free state provided option. This could lead to a different form of educational inequity.
ReplyDeleteSimonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning at a distance:
Foundations of distance education. Charlotte, North Carolina: Information Age
Publishing, Inc.