Barbour, M. K. (2013, October). Promoting failure: Examining policies related to K-12 online schools. A paper presented at the annual World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare and Higher Education, Las Vegas, NV.

1. Promoting Failure:
Examining Policies
Related
to K-12 Online Schools
Michael K. Barbour
Director of Doctoral Studies
Sacred Heart University

4. 2006 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

5. 2007 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

6. 2008 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

7. 2009 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

8. 2010 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

9. 2011 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

10. 2012 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning – http://www.kpk12.com

12. Dominant Narrative
1.
All students are digital learners.
2.
All students have access to high quality digital content and online
courses.
3.
All students can customize their education using digital content
through an approved provider.
4.
Students progress based on demonstrated competency.
5.
Digital content, instructional materials, and online and blended
learning courses are high quality.
6.
Digital instruction and teachers are high quality.
7.
All students have access to high quality providers.
8.
Student learning is the metric for evaluating the quality of content
and instruction.
9.
Funding creates incentives for performance, options and
innovation.
10. Infrastructure supports digital learning.

13. Dominant Narrative
1.
All students are digital learners.
2.
All students have access to high quality digital content and online
courses.
3.
All students can customize their education using digital content
through an approved provider.
4.
Students progress based on demonstrated competency.
5.
Digital content, instructional materials, and online and blended
learning courses are high quality.
6.
Digital instruction and teachers are high quality.
7.
All students have access to high quality providers.
8.
Student learning is the metric for evaluating the quality of content
and instruction.
9.
Funding creates incentives for performance, options and
innovation.
10. Infrastructure supports digital learning.

14. Does The Research Support This Growth?

15. Cyber Charter Student Performance
• “Online student scores in math, reading, and writing
have been lower than scores for students statewide
over the last three years.” (Colorado, 2006)
• “Virtual charter school pupils’ median scores on the
mathematics section of the Wisconsin Knowledge and
Concepts Examination were almost always lower than
statewide medians during the 2005-06 and 2006-07
school years.” (Wisconsin, 2010)
• “Half of the online students wind up leaving within a
year. When they do, they’re often further behind
academically then when they started.” (Colorado, 2011)

16. Cyber Charter Student Performance
• “Compared with all students statewide, full-time
online students had significantly lower proficiency
rates on the math MCA-II but similar proficiency rates
in reading.” (Minnesota, 2011)
• “nearly nine of every 10 students enrolled in at least
one statewide online course, all had graduation rates
and AIMS math passing rates below the state
average” (Arizona, 2011)
• “…students at K12 Inc., the nation’s largest virtual
school company, are falling further behind in reading
and math scores than students in brick-and-mortar
schools.” (Miron & Urschel, 2012)

17. So Is The Growth Justified By The
Research?

18. Cyber Charter Students
Miron, G. & Urschel, J. (2012). Understanding and improving full-time
virtual schools. Denver, CO: National Education Policy Center.
• “K12 Inc. virtual schools enroll approximately the same percentages of
black students but substantially more white students and fewer
Hispanic students relative to public schools in the states in which the
company operates”
• “39.9% of K12 students qualify for free or reduced lunch, compared
with 47.2% for the same-state comparison group.”
• “K12 virtual schools enroll a slightly smaller proportion of students
with disabilities than schools in their states and in the nation as a whole
(9.4% for K12 schools, 11.5% for same-state comparisons, and 13.1% in
the nation).”
• “Students classified as English language learners are significantly
under-represented in K12 schools; on average the K12 schools enroll
0.3% ELL students compared with 13.8% in the same-state comparison
group and 9.6% in the nation.”

19. What Is Driving This Growth?

20. The Last Public Pot To Pilfer!!!

22. Your
Questions
and
Comments

23. Director of Doctoral Studies
Isabelle Farrington College of Education
Sacred Heart University
mkbarbour@gmail.com
http://www.michaelbarbour.com
http://virtualschooling.wordpress.com