Downey Unified Online Learning

Transcription

1 Nezzer, Chris NezzerC_EdT-10_Artifact Downey Unified Online Learning Executive Summary The superintendent has asked that I identify an online course to allow thirty members of the football team to take Algebra 2 next year. In order to make an informed decision, we will need to bring together a diverse team from Instruction, Curriculum and Technology. The superintendent recommended three online programs: Brigham Young University, Stanford University Virtual High School and Pearson Gradpoint. I researched these programs using the programs website, the UC Doorways A-G status and the California Learning Resource Network standards. In addition, I identified computer access at home, availability of high-speed Internet at home, and equitable access to the program as potential issues we need to address. My recommendation is to select Brigham Young University program pending UC approval of their Algebra 2 course. Introduction The superintendent has called the play for online learning. The driving factor behind his decision is the need for the football team to complete Algebra 2 in fall of Scheduling conflicts will not allow them to attend the sections offered next year. Just like our traditional Algebra 2 classes, this class must meet the A-G requirements. To meet the needs of the students we need to identify stakeholders, select a vendor and then identify other issues that we need to address. This paper will cover what we need to do for a successful implementation. Stakeholders The first step for a successful project is to identify the stakeholders. The Director of Technology will be the project coordinator, keep the superintendent updated and present the findings of this report. Since this begins a substantial shift in curriculum delivery, the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services is critical to success. The Director of Secondary Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment will be directly involved with implementing the plan

2 along with their program administrator responsible for curriculum development and approval. We will need to engage math teachers with Algebra 2 experience for course evaluation and as possible candidate teachers. We will also need to work with Downey Education Association to determine how online classes fit within our current bargaining agreement. To insure successful use of technology we will also include one Network Administrators and our Technology Teacher Coaches. We will also seek parent and student input during the plan development. With this team, we can address all areas needed to implement a successful online learning program. Vendor Selection The next step is to find suitable vendors that can provide the online components of the class. This step consists of two phases. The first phase is to determine that the course meets the technical and curricular requirements. The Director of Technology will complete this phase and present his findings to the team for evaluation of course content. The superintendent has recommended three providers of online courses to begin our search. The vendors are Brigham Young University, Stanford University Virtual High School and Pearson Gradpoint. In the first phase these programs will be evaluated based on the information from the UC Doorways website and the California Learning Resource Network, CLRN, website. In order to meet the needs of our students, we need to find quality online courses that meet the A-G requirements. The UC-Doorways website is the official site that lists courses that meet the A-G requirements for admission into University of California and California State Universities. We will use this site to verify courses meet the A-G requirement needed for our program. The CLRN website evaluates online courses against content standards and a comprehensive rubric based on the International Association of K-12 Online Learning, inacol, standards for quality online courses. To receive the CLRN Certified designation an online course must address at least eighty percent of the course s content standards and eighty percent of the inacol standards. In addition, for certification a course must meet all fifteen power standards that are critical to a successful online course. A course must be CLRN Certified to be eligible for A-G approval. Selecting a vendor who offers a wide range of courses that are CLRN Certified shows that they provide a rigorous curriculum that meets the California content

3 standards and uses industry best practices to ensure student success. The CLRN certification saves the District curriculum department the work of having to verify the course meets the content standards for California. Any standards not addressed or only partially addressed are easily available so that we can supplement the curriculum if needed. These two resources provide all the information necessary to determine if a course will meet our requirements as we evaluate each program. BYU Independent Study is a department within Brigham Young University s Division of Continuing Education. They offer CLRN Certified courses in History, English, Mathematics and Languages other than English. Their Algebra 2 course is CLRN certified meeting eighty eight percent of content standards and ninety-eight percent of online standards. Their Algebra 2 offering is not A-G approved for the school year. The approval was through the 2014 school year and has expired. BYU may be in the process of seeking UC approval for this course as the course only recently received its CLRN certification in late February. However, we must assume that the course will not be A-G approved until it shows on the Doorways website. Stanford University Online High School is an online three-year high school founded in Their website states that they are UC approved since They offer an Honors Intermediate Algebra course that meets the Algebra 2 requirements. However; most of their course content was only certified through the 2014 school year. They currently do not have any CLRN Certified courses listed on the CLRN website. While it is possible that their courses will be A-G approved by fall, the lack of CLRN certification for any courses at this time indicates they have multiple levels of certification to complete by then. We must assume that the course will not be A-G approved until it is listed on the Doorways website. GradPoint is a digital learning solution for grades 6-12 offered by Pearson, which is an educational solutions company. GradPoint has wide range of CLRN Certified courses in multiple subjects including Algebra 2. Their Algebra 2 course meets eighty percent of content standards and ninety two percent of online standards. Since they have only been offering A-G approved courses this academic year, there is no evidence to suggest if this course will be approved for next year.

4 Potential Issues The final step in determining the feasibility of an online learning program is to address any issues that may prevent success. My concerns at this time are ensuring access to the needed technology, Internet Access for students at home, and ensuring equitable access to the online learning program. In order for students to attend online courses, they will require access to a computer outside of school with high-speed Internet access. Based on our latest student survey approximately thirty percent of our students do not have access to a computer and highspeed Internet. We would need to provide these items while maintaining various compliances that would raise program costs. We can offset some of these costs using funding we have allocated for piloting an online high school. This funding would cover the cost of providing Internet filtering and possibly Internet access. We would have to allocate funding to provide computers to those students who do not have access to one. This would address equitable access to the program from a financial standpoint, but we also need to address the equity from the educational standpoint. While the program would definitely benefit our football players, we also have other students that would benefit from this program. A number of students would like to enroll in Project Lead The Way classes all four years of high school, but because of scheduling conflicts can not also meet the full A-G requirements. Completing four years of Project Lead the Way affords these students advantages when applying to certain college programs. This is just as important to these students as it is to our football players. None of these issues are insurmountable. With careful consideration, we can build a program to meet the needs of all our students. Recommendation My recommendation is to select the Algebra 2 course offered by BYU Independent Study. The BYU program course is CLRN certified well above the eighty percent minimum. In Addition, they have many certified courses that are above the minimum showing a strong commitment to rigorous online curriculum and a well-developed program. Based on the information from the Doorways website and the CLRN website it is highly likely that the Algebra 2 course will be A-G certified by fall of The course was previously A-G approved through

5 the school year. In addition, the recent CLRN certification of the course suggests they will be submitting the course for UC approval. Before selection we need to contact BYU and inquire about whether the course has been, or will be, submitted for A-G approval. Once we have this confirmation, our stakeholder group can become the required adoption committee to review the course materials, compare the course to our current Algebra 2 offerings and determine the overall fit of the program for our District. The committee will prepare the final recommendation for adoption by the Board of Education.