With contributing authors Dr. Donna Murdoch, Penn GSE VOLT instructor & Cat McManus, Penn GSE Doctoral Candidate
Previously we discussed the landscape of online learning in higher education. The ground is shifting in K-12 education as well, and learning online is now not only an option for many students, but in some states a legislative mandate. In Alabama, Florida, Michigan, Virginia, and Idaho, students must take at least one class online in order to graduate from high school. How did we get here, and most importantly, how do we build a collaborative ecosystem for online learning experiences?
Online & Blended Learning
According to the International Association for K-12 Online Learning (iNACOL), 81 percent of school districts had an online learning program for students in 2014, up from 66 percent in 2012. Additionally, 33 percent of the districts surveyed offered a full time online learning program. Five percent of the total K-12 population takes part in online and blending learning, and 75 percent of all school districts have an online or blended learning option. Many districts do not have full-time online programs, but rather leverage online course options in order to fill specific voids. This might include offering advanced placement (AP) options in subjects less frequently offered (particularly in less affluent districts); dual enrollment opportunities for students to graduate with both a diploma and some credits towards an Associate’s degree; or credit recovery for students who fell behind due to illness, family hardship, a mid-year move overseas, or other life circumstances.
Perhaps an even more widespread trend in K-12 online education is blended learning, a term with many definitions. The Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation describes blended learning as:
“a formal education program in which a student learns at least in part through online learning, with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or pace; at least in part in a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home; and the modalities along each student’s learning path within a course or subject are connected to provide an integrated learning experience. ”
According to Michael Horn and Heather Staker of the Christensen Institute:
“Blended learning holds enormous potential to transform our factory-model education system into a student-centered design that captures the benefits of personalization, equity and access, and cost control.”
For districts with fully online programs, there are two options: school systems can develop their own courses in-house or they can turn to third-party providers, which may include state virtual schools, private providers, or other school districts. Some of these third-party providers include K12, Connections Academy, and Florida Virtual Schools.
Versatile Options for 21st Century Students
There are also specialty providers, such as Apex, Compass Learning, and American Academy, which are specifically focused on providing options for credit recovery. Credit recovery is an ideal application for blended learning. Often these specialty online courses are taken while students are in school, allowing them to catch up with their peers and graduate on time.
What about the student who is ready for (and wants) a challenging course such as AP Latin or AP Physics C, but who attends a school that cannot financially justify holding a face-to-face class unless it has at least 25 students? Apex Learning and Connections Academy offer those as well, allowing students at a wide variety of schools -- from highly rural to hyper-urban, under-funded public schools as well as tiny private schools and beyond -- expanded options for learning that have never been greater, more personalized, or so inclusive.
One significant question that we think doesn’t get asked often enough -- or seriously enough -- is: “What do all these new options mean for teachers who are accustomed to traditional environments?”
Existing Options for Teacher Training in Online/Blended Pedagogy
Much of the training offered by districts needs reform and an innovation mindset to address current pedagogical directions, regardless of whether education takes place face-to-face, blended, or online. The “sage on stage” model is no longer considered best practice. Student-centered, personalized environments are now regarded as preferable regardless of modality. Blended and online learning can help personalize the learning experience for students, but it is not usually something teachers are prepared for in their teacher training courses or even through their required classroom practicums. In fact, people have been writing for years about how online learning isn’t really revolutionizing teaching.
There are many teachers who can and do proactively seek to learn and improve their practice via their personal learning networks (PLNs) and through connections with peers. One excellent example of this is the literally hundreds of Twitter chats that have cropped up to address, among other education topics, Project-Based Learning (#pbl); Blended Learning (#blendchat); and Special Education (#spedchat). There are also formal programs designed to instruct teachers in online pedagogy offered by a wide variety of providers, including professional development specialists Knowledge Delivery Systems; longtime online educational providers Capella University and The American Public University System (APUS); and -- one of the newest additions to the space -- the UPenn Graduate School of Education Virtual Online Teaching (VOLT) Program.
Students Have Versatile Learning Options; Shouldn’t Their Teachers, Too?
Online education for the K-12 community has come so far. Now more than ever we are capable of offering students high-quality opportunities to learn from and with peers from around the world, the chance to explore subjects their schools can’t offer, the chance to pursue other dreams (professional sports, acting, etc.) while still getting an education, or even a second (or third!) chance to graduate! But those same high quality opportunities are fewer and farther between for educators themselves.
The argument for online and blended education is often somewhat backhanded. Online learning is made to sound inevitable -- as if somehow It’s a train that’s coming, so teachers should resign themselves to getting on board -- rather than being framed as an incredible opportunity for the teaching profession and for those who teach the teachers. How might we work toward changing the mental model we have of online learning, making it an opportunity instead of a burden? Online and blended learning are already a reality; let’s all get out in front of this trend and offer high-quality opportunities for all K-12 instructors to get online to learn to teach online!
