Education Forward

The Shift to Personal Digital Learning-Palm Springs Edition

kennysmith — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 21:20:42 +0000

I met with California educators today at CUE12. Like the conversation in Chandler yesterday, we discussed the shift to personal digital learning.

There were two striking comments. The first was about the importance of instructional design. Now that there are more options, it’s more important than every to be intentional about the string of learning experiences we create for students. We discussed a couple models:

Vendor as architect: proprietary vendor platforms with comprehensive curriculum but with little ability to modify
Curriculum Director as architect: what used to be a sequence of district adopted textbooks is replaced by a prescribed sequence of standards-aligned digital materials
Principal as architect: some schools like E.L Haynes (discussed in a LearnZillion post last week) have a coherent teacher-crafted curriculum
Teacher as architect: platforms like Edmodo and open content have made it easier for teachers to mash up a custom curriculum for groups of students.
The explosion of instructional materials requires every school and district to have a conversation about roles and relationships in instructional design.

The shift to competency-based learning (as described in this iNACOL paper) where students move at their own rate requires new school models, and a new level of across-school collaboration, and a new conception of curriculum and instructional design.

The other important conversation today was about the challenging state of affairs in California education. California is low marks on the Digital Learning Now scorecard for inadequate and inefficient funding, barriers to access, seat time requirements, and weak infrastructure. Like most states, California has school improvement vendors collecting a lot of money but not contributing to a coherent blended learning architecture.

The shift to digital learning holds great promise for students but it requires strong state and district leadership. We appreciate David Haglund and his proposed California Student Bill of Rights. California could use more leadership like that in Sacramento.

Read the article at its source: http://gettingsmart.com/blog/2012/03/the-shift…

California Student Bill of Rights: Access for All Students

kennysmith — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 22:09:51 +0000

Every student should have access to a well-taught college prep curriculum. With online learning, access to a rigorous curriculum can be provided cost effectively with high quality anywhere—except where state laws block opportunity.

Some California districts offer some online courses. California has a handful of virtual schools but they are limited by county boundaries. But as many as half of California secondary students lack access to a college prep curriculum (the college required sequence of courses is called A-G in California). But a group of school districts have banded together to change things.

Led by David Haglund, the districts drafted The California Student Bill of Rights. They are a busy gathering signatures to get the initiative on the November ballot. The Initiative removes these barriers.

Provides students access to courses required for admission to the state’s universities
Allows students to take online courses offered by any school district regardless of student residence
Authorizes school districts to contract with public and private providers to deliver online courses taught by credentialed teachers
Authorizes school districts, county ofMices of education and charter schools to claim average daily attendance funding for student participation in approved online courses
Potentially saves local school districts hundreds of millions of dollars annually if schools experience efficiencies and widespread participation in the use of online courses (Source: California Legislative Analyst)

Dr. David Haglund has invested 23 years in the public school setting, teaching in middle school, high school and alternative education settings. In 2007, Dr. Haglund founded one of California’s premier public virtual school programs, which delivers high-quality online learning opportunities to students throughout Southern California.

Given the intent and district leadership, the California Student Bill of Rights is the most exciting policy initiative in the country.

Read Dr. Haglunds blog for more. See the 10 Elements of High Quality Digital Learning from Digital Learning Now for a state policy blueprint for the digital learning future.

Read the article at its source here:gettingsmart.com/blog/2012…

District should explore educational benefits of online learning

kennysmith — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 00:26:20 +0000

In a world of ever-expanding technological opportunities, the school district is falling behind. Across the country, online schooling is an emerging yet controversial feature in the educational world, and the San Francisco Unified School District is doing surprisingly little to embrace it.

One incident of the rising prominence of online education demonstrates the issues. Last year Idaho passed legislation requiring students to take two courses online before graduation, according to the Jan. 3 New York Times article “Teaches resist high-tech push in Idaho Schools” (www.nytimes.com). However, many Idaho teachers are opposed to the requirement, asserting that the state is intruding on their style of teaching and allocating resources away from traditional schooling, according to the article.

Now California is getting on the national bandwagon. The provisions in the California Student Bill of Rights Initiative, a proposal for the November 2012 ballot, aims to provide all California public school students with access to courses needed to satisfy the A-G requirements, partly by making online courses available.

SFUSD should prepare itself to successfully transition into offering a variety of online coursework, as it could greatly increase educational opportunities for students, which at this point are restricted.

The only online classes currently available through the district for course credit are offered through Cyber High, which can be used to take certain courses not offered at Lowell, like Writing for College and Sociology, but it is primarily used to make up failed classes at Lowell, according to counselor Jeffrey Yang, who directs Cyber High at the school.

One of the main arguments against online classes is the lack of face-to-face interaction with teachers to direct students and answer questions, a sentiment supported by several in the counseling office, including counselor Tony Lee, assistant principal of student support services Michael Yi and Yang.

Another potential issue is that students could get bored or distracted working alone at a monitor, without the social interaction of a classroom setting. Technology can help improve the quality of online courses, as many allow for synchronous interaction to aid learning, as with video chat, for example.

Another benefit of online courses is the differentiated instruction it provides, allowing students to self-pace and e-mail with teachers when they need help, as well as offering another option for students who struggle in the traditional school environment.

An extensive 2009 study for the US Department of Education showed that students enrolled in online courses in grades K-12 and college performed better than students at traditional, brick-and-mortar schools, according to an Aug. 19 New York Times article titled “Study finds that online education beats the classroom.” The report studied 99 cases of qualitative comparisons in the same course online and in traditional schools over a 12-year timeline.

Online learning can also provide greater course selection availabilities for students. According to a Nov. 23 article by California Watch (CaliforniaWatch.org), titled “Will online education expand in California?” around 27 percent of California public high schools do not offer enough sections of classes for all students to fulfill the A-G requirements during their time in high school.

According to a Jan. 12, 2010 discussion about online classes, published by The Heritage Foundation (www.heritage.org), another benefit of online classes is that teachers are not geographically limited over the Internet, allowing a good teacher can reach many more students, increasing efficiency and lowering costs.

Florida Virtual School provides courses as an online public school in Florida and is offered to students nationwide for tuition. One rationale is that offering courses online is much less expensive than traditional public schooling, over $1,000 less per enrolled student each year in this case, according to a Nov., 2007 study by Florida Tax Watch (www.floridataxwatch.org).

SFUSD should explore options for digital learning to earn graduation credit and offer more online classes with fewer restrictions. The school district should not be constrained by past practices in education and tech-learning should not be limited to iPad apps and YouTube videos.

A version of this article first appeared in the Jan. 27, 2012 print edition of The Lowell.

Read the article at its source here: http://www.thelowell.org/opinion/editorials/4040….

Innovation from within the system: The California student initiative example

kennysmith — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:23:38 +0000

We are generally supportive of education reform efforts, many of which are found in charter schools and other non-traditional schools within the public education system. We also recognize, however, that the role of innovators within the non-charter public education system is critically important. Online schools, charter schools, non-traditional schools, and other efforts that are outside mainstream education are clearly important to the students who attend these schools. But they also have a role that may in fact affect many more students, by creating examples and competitive pressures for other public schools.

These innovators who work within the system are often overlooked. In Keeping Pace and other outlets we have discussed, for example, the importance of state virtual schools as key providers of online courses in many states. These schools are often run by the state education agency, although they sometimes operate as private non-profit organizations. They often are caught between traditional educators and education reformers. The former wonder if the state virtual schools are “taking” revenue, while the latter see the state virtual schools as too closely tied to the education establishment. In our opinion, both views are misguided and state virtual schools are a vital part of the landscape.

Similarly, innovators within districts face a landscape that appears not to know what to think of them. They sometimes draw suspicion from their public sector colleagues, while also not receiving accolades from reform advocates. The middle ground appears to be a lonely place.

It’s in this context that we are cautiously optimistic about the California student bill of rights initiative. Initiative backers note a report from UCLA that one million California students attend schools that do not offer sufficient courses for admission into University of California schools, and suggest that a remedy is a change in policy to make courses—including online –available to students who do not have access to those necessary courses. The lack of equal access to courses necessary for admission to the UC system has been recognized in the past (it was the impetus for the University of California College Prep project, which has lost funding and did not achieve its promise), but has not been solved and has in some ways fallen below the radar in a state besieged by deep budget deficits and deeper political divisions.

What’s perhaps most notable about the initiative is its source: it comes from a group of educators who are mostly from the “innovative from within” category. Dave Haglund, who is responsible for non-traditional schools as director of educational options for the Riverside Unified School District, is among the leaders involved. Others who contributed to the drafting of the initiative included district and county superintendents, faculty from higher education (including public, private, and for profit colleges), and business executives. These leaders recognize the scale of the problem, realize that the California legislature has not been able to change the policy landscape in any meaningful way, and understand that changes implemented by the legislature, in a state with the gridlock of California, are likely to be incremental.

It’s not clear to us what all of the implications of the initiative would be if it passed. We know of pockets of innovation across California—in San Diego, Orange County, and elsewhere in addition to Riverside—but it is also clear that millions of students in California don’t have access to the same opportunities that more fortunate students have. We hope that the initiative gains the signatures it needs to be placed on the ballot in November. One thing is for sure – the initiative has definitely changed the conversation in California.

For more information:

The initiative URL: http://educationforward.org

Michael Horn’s view on the initiative: http://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelhorn/2012/01/03/california-initiative-brings-breath-of-fresh-air/

See the article at its source here: kpk12.com/blog/2012/02….

Thanks!

kennysmith — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:08:38 +0000

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Online courses level the playing field for rural high schools

kennysmith — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:39:49 +0000

When Chad Zoller of Princeton graduates from high school in June, he will have one more advanced placement class under his belt than his brother Justin had when he graduated in 2009.

It’s not because Zoller is smarter or more dedicated to his studies than his older brother, who is now in college, but that he has opportunities few students anywhere had in the past.

Zoller is one of several Princeton High School students who share the same classroom and teacher at the exact same time as four or five other students taking a completely different advanced placement math subjects.

The two subjects — calculus and trigonometry — are online courses accessed through the computer.

“It’s different,” said Zoller, while doing a calculus assignment online. “It’s definitely going to help me get ahead for college.”

Online courses are taking schools by storm, viewed as an important part of the future in education circles.

“This has become a national and international movement,” said Susan Domenighini, principal of a charter school in Glenn County. “Online courses give all students the same opportunity to receive a quality education.”

With advances in “cyber education,” combined with the proper funding and training for teachers, students in Colusa may soon be taking an AP French class along with students in Willows, and students in Arbuckle may soon take the same music theory or Latin courses as students in Orland.

More importantly, students in small, rural schools, like Princeton, Maxwell, Williams and Elk Creek, may soon have unrestricted access to the same online learning opportunities, digital devices and materials as the finest private and public school students in San Francisco or Los Angeles.

“For smaller schools, online learning offers us a great deal of flexibility,” said Princeton math teacher Matt Harvey. “It’s more efficient and puts students on a level playing field when it comes to preparing for college.”

Harvey, who teaches the two advanced placement math subjects at the same time, said he doesn’t see cyber high schools as a replacement for good educators, but a way to blend online and face-to-face learning so students get the best instruction possible.

Technology-savvy Ashley McMartin, a junior at Princeton High, said having some online classes — which provide materials, tutoring and tests — works to her advantage.

“I don’t have to carry the textbooks, so it takes about 50 pounds off my backpack,” McMartin joked. “It’s nice that everything is right at my fingertips.”

McMartin, who plans to become a veterinarian, takes her online calculus class seriously, and knows that students working at their own speed require a great deal of self-motivation.

“You don’t want to be cramming at the last minute to finish the course,” she said. “So it can hurt us or help us to work at our own pace.”

McMartin said she is most grateful that blended-education allows her to still have a teacher available to help her through the bumps and hurdles of a difficult subject.

“It’s nice when you need to ask questions,” McMartin said. “Mr. Harvey can put into words what the computer doesn’t understand.”

To keep pace with online learning, states are now striving to put legislation in place to help school puts online policy and practice into place, and make sure they have the funding to move forward.

In fact, when California voters head to the polls this fall, they will likely be asked to vote on an initiative intended to break down the barriers between students and the educational options available to them — in the classroom and online.

The measure, called the California Student Bill of Rights Act, is intended to give all students, regardless of the district in which they live, unrestricted access to online learning opportunities.

Such legislation could be especially helpful to students in rural communities, where districts lack the courses required for entrance to the state’s universities and colleges, said Shirley Diaz, assistant superintendent of educational services at the Glenn County Office of Education.

The proposal not only authorizes school districts to contract with public and private providers to deliver online courses taught by credentialed teachers, it provides the funding to do it based on average daily attendance.

“This would not only give students more choice, but it would give credit to the districts that provide the courses,” Diaz said.

The initiative is similar to Assembly Bill 802 (Blumenfield and Cook) which would also allow school districts, county offices of education and charter schools that offer online education to claim funding on the basis of a pupil’s attendance in an online course.

Unlike A.B. 802, however, the California Student Bill of Rights Act, if approved by the voters, not only provides students access to courses required for admission to state universities, it establishes the California Diploma, which demonstrates completion of courses required for University of California and California State University admission.

“This part of the measure has really piqued our interest,” said Glenn County Superintendent of Schools Tracey Quarne, who added he and other local educators plan to investigate that portion of the measure before offering further opinion.

Although online courses are offered in many districts, the Bill of Rights Act would lift some Education Code constraints, making online courses more accessible to students everywhere, Quarne said.

And the fiscal impacts are staggering.

According to the state legislative analyst and director of finance, long-term savings to the local school districts are potentially in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, if the schools experience the efficiencies they expect, and have widespread participation in the use of online courses.

The savings would be offset somewhat by administrative costs to implement the measure, officials said, including local costs for developing online curriculum, contracting with online providers and ensuring students access to online courses.

There will also be associated state costs for changing the existing school payment system and issuing California Diplomas to qualifying students.

Proponents of the measure, which entered circulation last week, must collect 504,760 signatures of registered voters by June 1 to qualify for the Nov. 6 ballot.

Read this article at its source here:http://www.willows-journal.com/news/high…

Ballot initiative would expand role of online classes in K-12 system

kennysmith — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:27:52 +0000

A statewide ballot initiative that would expand the role of online courses in the K-12 educational system has entered circulation, prompting support from local education leaders.
Proponents of the measure, called “The California Student Bill of Rights Act,” must gather 504,760 signatures from registered voters by June 1 for the initiative to qualify for the November ballot. It entered circulation last week.

Online courses are offered in many districts, but the proposed initiative would lift some constraints, making such courses more accessible to students, said Bill Fowler, a board member with Education Forward, the initiative’s sponsor.

“What we’re proposing in the initiative is that students have the ability to make choices…so they can have a better shot at qualifying for college education,” said Fowler, of Newport Beach.

More than a million students in the state do not have access in their home school districts to courses that are required for entry in the University of California and California State University systems, Fowler said.

Required courses would be more accessible if the initiative passes, allowing students to enroll in online courses in any district in the state – not only their home district, Fowler said.

The measure also creates an incentive for districts to offer attractive online courses. Per-pupil state funding to districts would be calculated based on online enrollment, not just traditional enrollment, Fowler said.

The measure has been endorsed by several high-profile superintendents, including those from the Santa Clara County Office of Education, the San Diego County Office of Education and the San Francisco Unified School District, Fowler said.

Local educators also expressed support for the measure. Gary Rapkin, superintendent of the Bonita Unified School District, said online courses are viewed as an important part of the future in education circles.

“I think key to it would be the monitoring of the courses so the rigor of the courses is equal to the rigor that one would have if they were in a classroom setting,” Rapkin said.

There’s one caveat, he said, adding that the measure needs to be well-structured with proper oversight.

“I think offering this as an option to students is one more gateway for students to meet their educational desires, to meet educational requirements,” Rapkin continued. “As an educator I would certainly support (this) as long as it is well thought through, and as I said, well monitored.”

Gil Navarro, a board member with the San Bernardino County Office of Education, also expressed support.

“I think it’s great,” Navarro said. “I’ve been supporting online classes for a number of years, and let me tell you why: Because we have some intelligent students who aren’t getting the proper education in the classroom by some incompetent teachers.”

He said an expansion of online courses would allow students to choose between traditional courses and online courses.

An open question is whether the measure, if it qualifies for the ballot, will be opposed by teachers unions, which tend to spend heavily against measures they believe put teaching jobs in jeopardy.

Fowler said initiative proponents have spoken to representatives from the California Teachers Association but haven’t received word of support or opposition.

He said he believes the measure is worthy of union support. As new online courses are created by districts there will be a demand for additional credentialed teachers, Fowler said.

The state Legislative Analyst’s Office reported last month that the measure could save school districts hundreds of millions of dollars long-term, “If schools experience efficiencies and widespread participation in the use of online courses.”

The measure could produce additional savings by reducing the need for construction of new facilities, Fowler said.

“This allows a better use of facilities, (and) takes some of the burden and pressure off to build new facilities,” Fowler said.

Read the article at its source here:http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci…

Ballot Measure Would Lower California’s Online Learning Barriers

kennysmith — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:03:31 +0000

A proposed ballot initiative would give California high school students the right to access classes required for admission to state universities, regardless of where they live.

The Student Bill of Rights initiative removes state barriers to online and blended learning, which could expand drastically if the measure passes.

A 2009 University of California study generated the initiative by revealing nearly half of California’s 2007 high school class received diplomas without meeting basic admission requirements to two major state-funded universities, UC and California State University.

“Parents are realizing that the best education their kids can get is not necessarily the closest to them,” said Education Forward chair David Haglund, whose organization is sponsoring the initiative.

State regulations severely curtail the classes students can take off-site– whether offered online, at community college, or in another school district, he noted.

Lack of Access
The college admission standards, called A-G requirements, are fairly simple: two years of qualifying classes in history or social science, four years of English, tree years of math, two years of lab science, two years of a non-English language, one year of visual and performing arts, and one year of college preparatory electives.

But rural or inner-city schools often lack qualified teachers or too many students need remedial classes, Haglund said. One million students are enrolled in schools that don’t offer the courses necessary to gain UC or CSU admission, according to Education Forward.

While some students can enroll in online classes, they’re limited to programs located in their county, district, or a contiguous county.

Expanding Options
Under the new regulations, students and districts would have several options to meet the required courses:

The school or district can contract with an online provider to offer their own online program.

The student can take classes at any classroom-based, blended learning, or online program at any other publicly-funded school, college, or university.

The student can enroll in a blended learning or online course offered by an accredited online school “in which the student, instructor and resources are in different locations and interact through the use of information and communications technologies.”

The initiative would also establish the “California diploma,” which would require students to pass A-G classes to graduate.

Expanding online learning will offer students the ability to learn at their own pace, said Michael Horn, executive director of education at the Innosight Institute. Traditional school can create “holes in your learning,” he said, but with online learning, “I’ll only move on when I’ve truly mastered the concept.”

Advanced students could also benefit because they’ll be able to enroll in advanced placement or college classes, said Bill Lucia, president of Edvoice, an advocacy organization in Sacramento. Lucia’s five children are currently enrolled in an online learning program. He said he has seen it work firsthand.

Reworking School Funding
While similar proposals have been presented in the legislature, they’ve met opposition because expanding student access to courses outside their district would require “substantial reworking” of the educational finance system, Horn said.

California determines a school’s funding based on Average Daily Attendance , or the number of days students spend at their physical school. Under the proposed initiative, funding will follow the student. If a student takes 25 percent of her courses online, and 75 percent at her public school, then the student’s funding will divide between them accordingly.

“If districts are providing 100 percent of the education, they should get 100 percent of the [funds],” Haglund said. “But if they’re not providing 100 percent of the education, should they keep 100 percent of the funding?”

Haglund said he hopes the fractional funding model will open the door for appropriating funding by student learning outcomes.

“Once we pull the issue and put it in the people’s hands, the legislature will be more responsive to the issue.”

For the initiative to qualify for the Nov. 7 ballot, Education Forward must collect 504,760 signatures of registered voters by June 1.

Read more here:http://news.hearland.org/newspaper…

Thank You

kennysmith — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 23:17:17 +0000

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kennysmith — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 01:21:05 +0000

Help spread the word

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