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November 30, 2011 By Leave a Comment

There are a growing number of students in the U.S.  who’s “going to school” now means logging into computers anywhere they are located.

Virtual schools are now entrusted with the education of children as young as kindergarten as an estimated 1.5 million students participate in online education today. Florida, as well as many other states, has started to follow along with this trend.

Starting with the 2011-2012 school year, ninth graders will need to take an online class to be able to graduate. This new law comes after years of planning. In 1997, the state created Florida Virtual School as an Internet-based public high school. Now it is a state-wide school district, and offers classes from K-12. The Digital Learning Now Law was created to prepare children for a technology-based future, freeing them from classrooms.

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Lee revamps school choice policy; extends preference to students within 5 miles of school

November 23, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Scott served in this position for one year. Fischer previously served as the vice chairman.

Jeanne Dozier was elected as the new vice chairwoman. Dozier has been a board member since 2004.

■ The board approved the superintendent’s recommendation to deny two Lee County charter school applications.

Both were intended to be virtual schools. Burke and the board cited violations and unfulfilled requests, such as failing to align with the district’s mission policy, as reasons for denying the applications.

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Kaplan K12 Learning Services and K12 Partner to Maximize College Preparation

November 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN), a technology-based education company, is the largest provider of proprietary curriculum and online education programs for students in kindergarten through high school in the U.S. K12 provides its curriculum and academic services to public and private online schools, traditional classrooms, blended school programs, and directly to families. K12 has provided over 2 million courses – core subjects, AP(R), world languages, credit recovery, and electives – to more than 200,000 students worldwide. Over 90 percent of parents surveyed are satisfied with the K12 program and agree that their children have benefited academically with K12. Students graduating from K12 (R) virtual schools have been accepted to hundreds of higher education institutions including many of the nation’s top-ranked colleges and universities. K12 is accredited through AdvancED, the world’s largest education community. More information about K12’s solutions for schools and districts can be found at www.k12.com/educators.

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More parents choosing charter schools for innovative education

October 30, 2011 By Leave a Comment

This fall, Hillsborough administrators are reviewing 27 charter school applications, up from 25 last year. Some are for expansions of existing charter schools; two are for single-gender schools and two for virtual schools.

Most applicants won’t make it through the district’s rigorous approval process, said Hodgens, the charter school supervisor.

Since 1997, Hillsborough has approved 66 school charters, or contracts. The district shut down 13 of those schools based on academic, financial or safety concerns, records show. Officials at five charter schools chose to close their doors, and backers of six chose never to open.

Before making the leap from traditional to charter school, parents should do their homework, said Cheri Shannon, president of the Florida Charter School Alliance in Miami, where 35,000 children attend charter schools.

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Ralph Arza: A window into the revolving door of legislator to charter school lobbyist

September 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll’s schedule for Wednesday includes a visit from former Hialeah Republican State Rep. Ralph Arza, now the director of governmental affairs for the Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools.

Arza’s arrival also offers us a glimpse at the legislative revolving door. The former high school teacher and coach was a point-man on education issues while former Gov. Jeb Bush was governor and helped draft the legislation that opened the doors to the profileration of charter schools in Florida. Now, Arza’s gone to work for the non-profit association that advocates for and promotes charter schools. One issue that is likely to be on the charter group’s horizon was hinted at by Bush in a letter that surfaced between the former governor and Gov. Rick Scott.

Bush suggested that the state could save money by privatizing its virtual schools program, which teaches student via online classes. He said in the January e-mail, “You could use the proceeds to fund a technology initiative that would lead the nation.”

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EduJax: Teachers unions need to take lead; virtual schools see value in classrooms

August 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Meanwhile, virtual schools are moving into the spotlight this year as a Florida law requiring high school students to take at least one virtual class before graduation kicked in. The Miami Herald took an in-depth look at the issue in a story on Sunday. But as Florida goes all in on online learning, Harvard University’s education site points out in a recent article that many virtual schools are moving some classes into brick-and-mortar buildings. Why? Because they are finding some kids don’t do as well taking online only classes.

A testing company that Florida officials criticized last year for being late with FCAT scores is now being chided by Oklahoma school districts for the same problems. And reports continue to filter in of slow traffic times around some schools, especially during the afternoon pickup times.

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Virtually Worlds Apart

June 29, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The bad news for Massachusetts is that states like Florida, Colorado, Michigan, Arizona and so many others are pushing forward with digital learning much faster than the Bay State is. In fact, the education bureaucracy is putting some of the strictest limits in the country on expanding digital learning. That may seem odd in a state better known than most for developing and leveraging technology.

In last year’s education reform law, several legislative leaders wanted to leverage technology more effectively after seeing the results in other states such as Florida, where students are getting more time on task and access to AP and other specialized courses digitally. It’s hard not to be impressed by what Florida has accomplished in this field, with funds being expended only when a student successfully completes a specific course.

After the passage of the 2010 ed reform law, the state Department of Education, bowing to pressure from school superintendents and other groups who feared competition on yet another front, decided to promulgate restrictive regulations for digital schools. These include limits on the number of students who can participate in a virtual school (500) and geographical limitations on who can access the programming (25+ percent have to come from within the district; no more than 2 percent of kids can come from any sending district).

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Gov. Scott Pushes Charter, Virtual School Expansion

June 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Gov. Rick Scott embarked on a bill-signing tour of the state Monday, visiting schools in Ocoee, St. Petersburg and Fort Lauderdale in order to highlight the signing of a spate of bills expanding charter and virtual schools.

Scott touted the bills as a way to buttress his efforts to bring jobs to Florida by creating a highly-skilled and highly-educated work force.

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Rick Scott: Educated children key to Florida’s economy

June 27, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Today I am visiting Orlando to highlight five education bills that passed during this year’s legislative session: S.B. 1546, Charter Schools; H.B. 7197, Virtual Education; H.B. 1331, Opportunity Scholarships; H.B. 1329, McKay Scholarships; and H.B. 965, Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program.

With these pieces of legislation, we open doors of opportunity for students with disabilities, create stronger charter and virtual schools, and strengthen parents’ right to choose the best education for their children.

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Virginia secretary of education gets Florida schools post

June 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Virginia’s secretary of education, Gerard Robinson, has been tapped as Florida’s next education commissioner, overseeing a system of 2.6 million public school students in 67 districts.

Robinson has been an enthusiastic advocate for Gov. Bob McDonnell’s education initiatives, including expanded access to public charter schools, virtual schools and college laboratory schools, since McDonnell appointed him in January 2010.

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