District Administration - March 2007 - (Page 48)

Warning : session_start : The session id contains invalid characters, valid characters are only a-z, A-Z and 0-9 in /mnt/data/www.nxtbook.com/fx/config_1.3/global.php on line 9 Warning : session_start : Cannot send session cache limiter - headers already sent output started at /mnt/data/www.nxtbook.com/fx/config_1.3/global.php:9 in /mnt/data/www.nxtbook.com/fx/config_1.3/global.php on line 9 Warning : Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by output started at /mnt/data/www.nxtbook.com/fx/config_1.3/global.php:9 in /mnt/data/www.nxtbook.com/fx/config_1.3/global.php on line 10 DISTANCE EDUCATION FROM A STUDENT’S VIEW Here’s a typical scenario of how an online course works, according to North American Council for Online Learning’s president Susan Patrick. After exploring options with the counselor and parents, a student enrolls in an online course via a secure Web site, receives a personal user ID and password, and clicks on her courses. After enrollment, the student can review the instructor’s Web page, which includes the instructor’s background, expectations for the course, office and contact hours, and instant messaging account. The student can also download the course syllabus, review the assignment schedule, check out the course calendar, and see the necessary collaborative tools, like interactive whiteboards, homework help and online tutoring. When the course starts, the teacher tracks the student’s work by the assignments she completes, and measures her progress against a pacing chart. Interactions between students and teachers, as well as students and peers, are managed through an administrative data system. Grades and assignments can be accessed with a few clicks from any location. The student may e-mail her instructor with questions about assignments or enter a chat room to see if other students and the teacher are online for discussions. And, just like in a traditional classroom, the student will take a final test or complete a final project to gauge her knowledge and skill. While it’s true that some students log on at midnight, about 90 percent of those enrolled through a district go online during an open period at school. VIRTUA L HELP A mother helps her daughter with virtual Connections Academy lessons. course. A mentor then becomes the fi rst help line should a teacher who is off-site not hear from a student in several days. And mentors ensure any textbooks used in the course are available in the room. If students are failing, mentors can advise them on time management or arrange additional interactive whiteboard sessions with the online teacher. Training must cover: • roles and responsibilities among virtual school mentors/instructors; • protocols for communication • the online course environment; • student learning contexts; • accommodations for students who are at risk as online learners; • building relationships that recognize the mentor’s special role in assisting at-risk, online students. This system helped bring about an 82 percent pass rate last school year among the 318 students taking online courses at 50 schools. It’s great news for the mentors, who receive a stipend based on student success. “You just have to observe what’s going on, what works and what doesn’t,” Jackson says. “I used it in the education program at a juvenile detention center. They had a 100 percent pass rate. I say if this works in a jail, it will work anywhere.” Accountability Young believes in feedback. Her performance management system, born 10 years ago as a simple Lotus database and now a state-of-the-art Internet application, spits out the numbers she requires to monitor, analyze and evaluate teachers’ work. Such feedback taught her, for example, to require that teachers make a monthly call to students and parents to discuss progress, even if a student is doing well. Morse reviews chat sessions, peeks at group projects online, and listens in on fi nals in foreign languages given via telephone. And he expects instructors to prepare individual student reports that review quizzes, homework and tests every week. They must also offer a thoughtful narrative about how a student is doing. “If the teacher writes that little Johnny is fi ne, that little Johnny is fi ne every week, we’re going to say, ‘What is going on here?’” Morse says. “That teacher ought to be picking out things Johnny can improve.” DA Julie Sturgeon is a contributing editor to DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION. 48 March 2007 District Administration virtual.inddJH.indd 8 2/13/07 11:35:07 AM Warning : Unknown : The session id contains invalid characters, valid characters are only a-z, A-Z and 0-9 in Unknown on line 0 Warning : Unknown : Failed to write session data files . Please verify that the current setting of session.save_path is correct /var/lib/php/session in Unknown on line 0

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - March 2007

Contents
Editor's Letter
Update
Inside the Law
Curriculum Update
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Friday Night Fever
Creating an Effective Virtual School Program
Hunting for Talent
Multimedia Man
Do These Web Sites Work?
Finding Funds for Student Laptops
Curriculum Crassifieds
Gearing Up for Science Assessments
New Products
Computer Literature
Speaking Out
Principal Opinion
The Online Edge
Calendar of Events
Problem/Solution
Research Corner

District Administration - March 2007

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