Virtual Schools: Trends and Issues A Study of Virtual Schools in the United States October 2001 By: Tom Clark, Ph.D. TA Consulting Phone: 217/522-7710 Email: tomclark@yahoo.com … … By: Distance Learning Resource Network A WestEd Project Peg Kinder, Director Co-Sponsored by: The Center for the Application of Information Technologies Western Illinois University ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This study was commissioned by the Distance Learning Resource Network (DLRN) at WestEd, a research, development and educational services …

Example: The Florida Virtual School (previously the Florida Virtual School), begun in 1997, has been state funded as an independent entity. It offers a full online curriculum but not a diploma. The largest virtual school in terms of enrollments, it acts as a course provider for districts in Florida and other states. College and university-based. Some university independent study high schools and video-based continuing education programs have taken their K-12 courses online. Virtual colleges and universities make hundreds of their introductory college-level virtual courses available to upper division high school students through dual or concurrent enrollment, a phenomenon not studied in depth here. Example: The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Independent Study High School developed CLASS online diploma program courses with a federal grant, marketed through the for-profit CLASS.com, and is now creating its own new courses. Consortium and regionally-based. A number of virtual school consortia have been created. Virtual school consortia are national, multi-state, state-level and regional in nature. Many regional education agencies have added virtual K-12 courses to their service menus for schools. Most virtual school consortia act as brokers for external provider opportunities or share courses among members. Massachusetts . The nonprofit VHS Inc. (formerly Concord VHS) is the most successful collaborative or barter model of virtual schools in existence, seeking sustainability through its broad network of participating schools. Local education agency-based. A large number of local public schools and school districts have created their own virtual schools, mainly to serve their own supplemental or alternative education needs and to reach out to home school populations. They usually employ their own regular certified K-12 teachers, either within the regular course of instruction, or “on the side.” Example: The HISD Virtual School in Houston offers middle school curricula for enrolled and home school students, and AP courses to supplement its high school offerings, while Mindquest is a Bloomington (MN) public schools program offering interdisciplinary project-based courses for persons 17 or older, for remedial work, GED Fast Track and regular high school diplomas Virtual charter schools. State-chartered entities including public school districts, nonprofit and for-profit organizations operate public charter schools exempt from some rules and regulations. Charter school legislation has a major impact on how these schools operate. Example: Basehor-Linwood Virtual Charter School in Kansas focuses on providing state- funded public education opportunities for K-12 home schoolers across the state. Founded in 1998, it delivers self-developed courses in a full diploma program, using a certified district teacher in each elementary grade level and secondary content area….. Grade levels. Peer schools were asked to indicate for which grade levels their courses were designed. All said they offered courses intended for high school students. A surprising number (51 %) indicated that junior high and middle school grade courses were offered as well. This continues a trend noted in the previous study (Clark, 2000) toward online schools focusing on all of K-12, not just high school instruction. About one if four schools indicated they currently offered courses across the entire K-12 spectrum.

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