Barbour, M. K., & Miller, B. (2011, August). Virtual school teaching: Examining the preparation to teach online. A presentation at the Wayne State University New Literacies Conference, Detroit, MI.

1. Michael Barbour
Wayne State University
Beth Miller
Florida Virtual School

2. Students Enrolled in Online Courses
 2001 = 40,000 – 50,000 (Clark, 2001)
 2010 = >2,000,000 K-12 (Watson et al., 2010)
 48 States (plus DC) reporting significant K-12 online
learning activity
 Michigan, New Mexico, Alabama, Florida and New
York all require online learning

5. Virtual School Designer: Course
Development
 design instructional materials
 works in team with teachers and a virtual school
to construct the online course, etc.
Virtual School Teacher: Pedagogy & Class
Management
 presents activities, manages pacing, rigor, etc.
 interacts with students and their facilitators
 undertakes assessment, grading, etc.
Virtual School Site Facilitator: Mentoring
& Advocating
 local mentor and advocate for student(s)
 proctors & records grades, etc.
Davis (2007)

6.  Current higher education training options
 Limited Canadian opportunities focused on K-12
 Growing number of US-based opportunities
 Partnerships with K-12 online learning organizations
 Virtual High School Global Consortium
 Florida Virtual School
 Some open access online resources

7. Memorial University of Newfoundland
 defunct Diploma in TeleLearning and Rural School
Teaching
 undergraduate level (i.e., post-B.Ed.)
 6 required course and 4 electives (from a list of 7
courses)
Queen's University
 course in Teaching and Learning Online
 undergraduate level
 focused on familiarization with and design of K-12
online learning (included a practicum option)
 not offered for past two years

8. Graduate Certificates in Online
Teaching
 Arizona State University
 Boise State University
 Georgia Southern University
 Georgia State University
 University of California-Irvine
 University of Florida
 Valdosta State University
 Wayne State University
 certificate details
 3-4 courses in online course design and
delivery, along with online learning tools
 may or may not include practicum

9. Graduate Certificate in Online
Teaching and Learning
 Endicott College*
 Plymouth State University*
 Framingham State College
 Northwest Nazarene University
 Salem State College
 North Dakota State University
 certificate details:
 5 courses in online teaching, course
design, and Web 2.0 tools
 offered by VHS as PD courses
 pay partner universities to obtain
graduate credit and certificate

10. University of Florida
 Master’s – Instructional Technology
 4 week practicum in a variety of subjects
 Shadow teachers
 Grade student work
 Produce recorded lesson

11. University of South Florida
 Master’s in School Counseling
 Undergraduate in Physical
Education
 Undergraduate in Foreign
Language
 7 week practicum in specified
classroom
 Placement with clinical educator
 FEAPS
 Observations by university
professors

12. University of Central Florida
 Undergraduate in core subject areas
 7 week internships
 14 week internships
 Placement with clinical
educator, FEAPS, & ESOL
considerations
 Total immersion into the
classroom

13. Challenges of Virtual Internships
 Geographically disperse
population
 Background checks
 Intern perceptions
 Observations by university
professors
 FLDOE approval
 Technology 

14. Successes of Virtual Internships
 Geographically disperse
population
 Placement in challenging
subject areas
 Observations by university
professors
 Intern perceptions
 Technology 
 Producing viable teaching candidates for
employers

16. http://ctlt.iastate.edu/~tegivs/TEGIVS/homepage.html

17. http://projects.educ.iastate.edu/~vhs/index.htm

18. http://www.teachertube.com/videoList.php?pg=uservideoli
st&user_id=1790

19. http://itlab2.coe.wayne.edu/it6230/casestudies/

20. http://itlab2.coe.wayne.edu/it6230/michigan/

21. http://virtualschooling.wordpress.com
Tags:
• IT6230
• professional development
• teacher education
• teacher training

24. Beth Miller
Outreach/Partnerships Manager
Florida Virtual School
bmiller@flvs.net
http://www.flvs.net