Think Virtual Schools

Think Virtual Schools - A Global Expansion

Even though the majority of information presented here concerns virtual schools in the United States, the major takeaway from this post is that there’s a growing amount information, research, and support concerning the establishment of a virtual school. With an expected annual growth of e-learning in North America and Western Europe being less that 6%, other areas of the world such as Eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America are anticipating an annual increase of over 14% (DoceboE-Learning Market Trends and Forecast, 2014-2016). This relatively rapid expansion of e-learning opportunities beyond those countries that have historically led in virtual school development indicates that an opportunity may exist for the global expansion of virtual schools. 

Made possible by the public availability of the World Wide Web in 1991, the digital facilitation of web-based education was born, giving eventual rise to online learning and virtual schools. Within three years, an education event known as the Virtual Summer School (VSS) for Open University was held and it hosted a web-based undergraduate psychology course. The earliest recognized web-based high school curriculum was made available through CALCampus, which began its operations in 1994-1995. Shortly thereafter the first virtual school, titled Virtual High School, was launched in 1996 and is still in operation today. In 1997, Florida established the first statewide web-based virtual public high school (Florida Virtual School), which recently served an estimated 240,000 students in the 2012-2013 school year (Watson, Murin, Vashaw, Gemin & Rapp, 2013).

Clark (2001) defined a virtual high school as “a state approved and/or regionally accredited school that offers secondary credit courses through distance learning methods that include Internet-based delivery” (p. i). Extending the definition beyond the high school level, United States virtual schools now offer curriculum, programs, and services for all K-12 grades. The operation of these virtual schools does not take place within a traditional “brick and mortar” educational facility, but rather through electronically connected students, teachers, administrators, parents and communities who are separated by geographic location and/or time. Clark (2001) identified six types of virtual schools based upon to the founding organization: university-based, state-sanctioned, consortium, local education agency, charter school, and private school. A seventh type, for-profit providers, has now been added.

Since their debut in the late 1990s, virtual schools have had notable increases in terms of the number of schools and their course enrollments. For example, according to Watson, Murin, Vashaw, Gemin, and Rapp (2013), state-led virtual schools existed in 26 states in the 2012-2013 school year and had 740,000 course enrollments. Based upon Watson, Murin, Vashaw, Gemin, and Rapp’s previous annual course enrollment numbers, this is an increase of over 19% compared to the 2011-2012 school year, over 38% compared to the 2010-2011 school year, over 64% compared to the 2009-2010 school year, and over 131% compared to the 2008-2009 school year. For the 2007-2008 academic year, Picciano and Seaman (2009) estimated over one million K-12 students used an online course, which was a 47% increase over the estimate was made two years prior. Based upon current rates, Mincberg (2010) projects that it is possible by 2020 for 50% of all high school classes to be delivered online.

The need to improve learning outcomes and to address educational standards and policy have been important motivators in the development of virtual schools. An early catalyst for virtual schools was that they offered an array of courses and related services that otherwise would not be available to students or that would not fit into the usual school or student schedule (Patrick, 2007; Russell, 2004). At the national level, the expansion of virtual schools has been encouraged by the advent of two policies, the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and the 2004 National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) (Archambault, Crippen, & Lukemeyer, 2007). Since then other proclamations concerning U.S. education such as the 2010 National Educational Technology Plan and the Common Core State Standards have continued to motivate the growth and acceptance of virtual schools (Watson, Murin, Vashaw, Gemin & Rapp, 2011). Currently, most virtual schools offer courses that supplement traditional school offerings, with learners being accounted for as members of their home school rather than the virtual school.

Globally, each country that is developing or is considering the development of a virtual school will have its own needs, rationale, and standards. Reviewing what’s been done previously in creating virtual schools, both the failures and successes, is a recommended exercise in planning for a virtual school or in improving existing operations. This is a rapidly evolving field that is being impacted by ongoing practice and a growing body of research.

Reflection Point – “Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

References

Archambault, L. & Crippen, K. (2009). K-12 distance educators at work: Who’s teaching online across the United States. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 41, 363–391.

Archambault, L., Crippen, K., & Lukemeyer, A. (2007). The impact of U.S. national and state level policy on the nature and scope of k-12 virtual schooling. Proceedings of World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education 2007, 2185-2193.

Barbour, M. K. (2010). Researching K-12 online learning: What do we know and what should we examine. Distance Learning, 7(2), 6–12.

Clark, T. (2000). Virtual high schools, state of the states: A study of virtual high school planning and operation in the United States.

Mincberg, C. (2010). Is online learning a solution in search of a problem?

Patrick, S. T. (2007). Preface. In J. Watson, A National Primer on K-12 Online Learning (pp. i4-i5).

Picciano, A. G., & Seaman, J. (2009). K-12 online learning: A 2008 follow-up of the survey of U.S. school district administrators.
Russell, G. (2004). Virtual schools: A critical view. In C. Cavanaugh (Ed.), Development and management of virtual schools: Issues and trends (pp. 1-25). Hershey, PA. IGI Global.

           Saba, F. (2005). Critical issues in distance education: A report from the United States. Distance Education 2, 255-272.

Searson, M. Jones, W. M., & Wold, K. (2011). Editorial: Reimagining schools: The potential of virtual education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 42, 363-371.

Watson, J., Murin, A., Vashaw, L., Gemin, B., & Rapp, C. (2011). Keeping pace with K-12 online learning: An annual review of policy and practice.

Watson, J., Murin, A., Vashaw, L., Gemin, B., & Rapp, C. (2013). Keeping pace with K-12 online & blended learning: An annual review of policy and practice.

Online Groups for Change

Online Group Organizer - Why Use One for e-Learning?

Internationally, inconsistencies can be found in terms of educational content, methods of delivery, and quality. Such differences are created by factors such as education policy, geo-location, cultural traditions, and socioeconomic conditions. Over the past decade, governments have realized that in this digital age and competitive global marketplace, one of their greatest natural resources is human intellectual capital. Many top-down education initiatives are being implemented to strengthen this resource, but much of the initiative buy-in and educational evolution will need to occur at the grassroots level. This is where online group organizers come into action. These web-based tools enable local educators, leaders, and self-motivated individuals to create communities of changing that attract education advocates, volunteers, and other like-minded people. Through these systems, participants are typically organized and managed online, but they meet, interact, plan, and facilitate change in-person. Organizing and administering one of these groups and associated events is an excellent way to establish and support efforts that advocate positive change in education.

Online Group Options

There are several players in this field, but I find GroupSpaces, BigTent, and Meetup to be the most appealing. GroupSpaces offers free and paid plans, BigTent is free, and Meetup is paid only.

These providers and others present a range of basic services such as calendars, file sharing, forums, group emails, and public-facing webpages. Other options where many providers start to differ, and that you may want to consider as decision points, would be photo sharing, event specific services, social media links, subgroups, and file storage.

Setting Up Your Group

Even though each service is slightly different, here are some general points to consider in setting up your group:

1. Select your area of interest and then do your research to find out what type of individuals might be interested in your group and what topics would attract them.
2. Have a few photos ready, at least one of you and one that represents your group.
3. Sign up with your service of choice and create a personal profile.
4. Search around and see what type of activity is already happening within your area of interest. Search for keywords that relate to your field. Don’t let competing groups control your ambitions. Pursue your interests and be good at it.
5. Consider that keywords or tags that describe what your group is about or hoping to accomplish.
6. Craft a clear brief description that explains exactly your group’s purpose, giving potential members a clear idea of who should join and what to expect. If done well, the description will enable people to understand what type of community and conversations you hope to develop.
7. Create the group, providing the location, name, description, etc.
8. Select the pricing plan (if available).

Grow Membership

To get more members to join, and if you think you’re ready, schedule your first meeting. Don’t immediately host this event, but rather plan for it to occur about a month after you start your group. Contact friends, associates, and organizations that you think might have an interest in the group. Announce it through your social media and networks.

The First Meeting

This means knowing when and where it will be. Usually this is at an open public space such as a coffee shop, park, or other local gathering place. Keep the first event simple, serving mainly for introductions and open conversation. Pay close attention, both analyzing the audience and learning individual interests. Make the members feel as a part of the process.

Meeting Format

The members typically meet, network and talk over drinks and light snacks. In certain locations these can be provided through the group or in others they can be purchased onsite by the individual attendees. Often there is an invited guest speaker or a panel discussion to stimulate interest and attendance.

Meeting Venue

The place to meet will depend upon the size of the group. The key is to find someplace free. Most establishments that sell food and beverages will be open to hosting a group of people, but be sure they can provide a dedicated space. Based upon available capacity, set a limit to the number of people who say they will attend and then create a waiting list. In more widespread rural settings, select a place that is most convenient for the group members.

For the Meeting

The day of the meeting, if you are meeting at a business establishment, contact them to confirm that they're prepared. Bring an attendance list, sign-in sheets, blank name tags and markers. Have people put their name, interest, and specialization on the name tags.

Ongoing Social Media Connections

In addition to maintaining communication through the online group service, other social media channels can be used to maintain community, networking, and conversations. The choice will depend upon the type of group, whether casual, professional, or somewhere in-between.

Funds

Usually these groups operate very well with no group cost. If there are costs associated with meetings and other operational expenses, these can be paid by the organizer, sponsors, membership dues, or event fees.

Sponsors

Getting sponsors is a way to help fund meetings and to make them more professional at times. Sponsors can come from within the membership, a local industry or a business.

Reflection Point - Individual commitment to a group effort - that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work. ~ Vince Lombardi