District Administration - October 2009 - (Page 3)

AdVeRtiSeMent Hybrid virtual school fuels success of Chicago students At Chicago Virtual Charter School, teachers deliver K12’s engaging curriculum with help from parent coaches hours a day five days a week.” ince it opened in 2006, the the blend of structure and flexibilchicago Virtual charter School has ity in the curriculum allows students to become an educational lifeline for learn at their own pace. At the K-8 level, students who were not thriving in students take the time they need to learn traditional schools. a concept or skill. A teacher provides as By bringing engaging online curriculum much support as necessary when a child along with box loads of traditional classroom is struggling, but students move on only materials into the home environment, stuafter they’ve mastered 80 percent of the dents can learn at their own pace. they benefit material. By the same token, advanced from the monitoring and motivation provided students can move ahead quickly. that by an at-home “learning coach”—usually a has transformed the educational expeparent—and assessment-based, targeted inrience for students who are gifted and struction from highly skilled certified teachthose with learning disabilities. ers. cVcS students have group learning expe“We are a hybrid At the high school level, the at-home riences during the half-day they spend weekly at the school’s learning center, where coaches between brick-and-mortar learning coach acts more as a mentor than as a monitor, while the in-school comalso network and receive training. and virtual instruction, ponent is more of a project-based learn“the two major paradigms for thinking ing internship. “We want to get them about education are brick-and-mortar schools which is totally new.” oriented toward their future,” says Law. and homeschooling,” says dr. Bruce Law, cVcS head of School. “We are a hybrid between brick-and-mortar “What you do now connects to what comes next for you.” While many schools struggle to involve parents in school, parenand virtual instruction, which is totally new.” the first virtual charter school in illinois, cVcS was estab- tal involvement is built into the structure of cVcS. teachers deliver lished with the backing of Arne duncan, then the ceo of chicago the curriculum and assessments, but the parent (or other adult) coach public Schools and now the U.S. Secretary of education. today, plays a critical role supervising students’ work, keeping them focused the school serves about 600 students in grades K through 11—with and helping them work through challenges. in training classes, coaches learn the most effective ways to mo12th grade starting next year. it uses the widely acclaimed curriculum developed by K12 inc., the online education company that tivate students to do schoolwork as well as specific tips for helping with math and reading, Law says. “We provide all the background and also manages the school. “even though we have a lot of cutting edge technology, it would support that learning coaches will need to help them become more efbe incorrect to say this is all online,” Law says. in addition to a fective managers of education in their home.” Since cVcS opened its virtual doors, enrollment has nearly doucomputer and printer, each student receives boxes filled with materials like books, games, paints, microscopes, soil samples and math bled each year—and there is a waiting list. the reason is results, as evidenced by student test scores. the school meets or exceeds the federal manipulatives. Students choose the school for a variety of reasons. For the fam- Adequate Yearly progress standards and the illinois Standard Achieveily whose children have severe peanut allergies, cVcS is a lifesaver. ment tests in reading, math, and science. “if you look at all the predictive factors for an inner-city school,” By studying primarily at home, the children avoided the frequent allergic reactions that landed them in the hospital when they at- says Law, “we beat the predictors because of the strength of the curricutended a traditional school. For another child, enrolling at cVcS lum, the teachers, and the parents or learning coaches.” broke the cycle of behavior problems that were a barrier to academic For more information about the Chicago Virtual Charter School achievement. the jarring transitions and overstimulation common and K12, Inc., please visit www.k12.com/educators. in schools contributed to her problems. “the home environment is much more conducive to what the child needed for learning,” Law says. “She comes to a traditional school once a week to be with her same-age peers, but she doesn’t have to have that experience 5½ S http://www.k12.com/educators http://www.k12.com/educators

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - October 2009

District Administration - October 2009
Contents
From the Editor
News Update
Security
College Prep
Stimulus Monitor
Administrator Profile
Professional Opinion
Crisis Response
Tech Disruptions
Digital Classrooms Take Flight
Measuring Success in Harrisburg
Reaching Graduation with Credit Recovery
Almost There?
Back to School for Retired Baby Boomers
Problem Solution
New Products
Product Focus
How Well Does This Web Site Work?
Understanding the Times

District Administration - October 2009