CLRN. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point. September Prepared for the California Learning Resource Network by:

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1 September 2012 California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point CLRN California Learning Resource Network Prepared for the California Learning Resource Network by: Dr. Kelly Schwirzke Dr. Theresa Rouse Brian Bridges 1100 H Street Modesto, CA Fax: A Statewide Education Technology Service of the California Department of Education Administered by the Stanislaus County Office of Education

2 Executive Summary Today, an estimated 50% of districts are offering some online or blended learning options, and more than 250,000 students attend fully online schools nationally. 1 Despite double-digit growth across the nation, and an increase in legislation mandating reporting in other states, collecting and reporting enrollments and growth in California has been problematic. The lack of current data about the status of online and blended learning enrollments from which an organization s planning efforts could begin or evolve is one of the most significant challenges to implementing and expanding quality online and blended learning opportunities in California. The California Learning Resource Network (CLRN,) a statewide education technology service of the California Department of Education and administered by the Stanislaus County Office of Education, sought to better understand the full-time virtual and blended learning landscape in California. In March 2012, CLRN distributed a survey to 933 California public school districts and 701 direct-funded charters. While 45% of districts and direct-funded charters reported having students participate in online learning, in the majority of districts and direct-funded charters the total number of students was still relatively small, suggesting wide but shallow implementations in California. Of districts and direct-funded charters whose students were not participating, 33% reported they were planning to pilot or implement online learning. Several of the key findings in this study are consistent with the national reports Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning 2 and K-12 Online Learning: A 2008 Follow-up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators 3, as well as the dissertation study Online Learning in California K-12 Schools: Status and Perceptions of Administrators 4, which replicated Picciano and Seaman s national study in California. The similarities support the validity of the findings and suggest the important next steps are to extend quality opportunities to more students across California. 1 Queen, B., and Lewis, L. (2011). Distance education courses for public elementary and secondary school students: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office. 2 Watson, J., Murin, A., Vashaw, L., Gemin, B., Rapp, C. (2011). Keeping pace with online-learning: An annual review of policy and practice Evergreen, CO: Evergreen Education Group. 3 Picciano, A., & Seaman, J. (2009). K-12 online learning: A 2008 follow-up of the survey of U.S. school district administrators. Needham, MA: The Sloan Consortium. 4 Schwirzke, K. (2011). Online learning in California K-12 schools: Status and perceptions of administrators. Retrieved from ProQuest Digital Dissertations. (AAT ) California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 2

3 Introduction Online and blended learning have evolved from referring to the familiar models of online charter schools and state virtual schools to single-district programs and consortium programs. In 1997, only five states had statewide K-12 distance learning programs. As of late 2011, online and blended learning opportunities existed for at least some students in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, but only Florida has a full suite of full-time and supplemental options for students at all grade levels. Today, an estimated 50% of districts are offering some online or blended learning options, and more than 250,000 students attend fully online schools nationally 5. Despite double-digit growth nationally, collecting and reporting enrollments and growth in California has been problematic. The lack of current data about the status of online and blended learning enrollments from which an organization s planning efforts could begin or evolve is one of the most significant challenges to implementing and expanding quality online and blended learning opportunities in California. The California Learning Resource Network (CLRN), a statewide education technology service of the California Department of Education and administered by the Stanislaus County Office of Education, sought to better understand the online and blended learning landscape in California. A survey was distributed in March 2012 to 933 California public school districts and 701 direct-funded charters, which are charter schools that receive their allocation of state funds directly from the state (Survey questions are provided in Appendix A). The survey asked for details about current online and blended learning enrollments, and discussions or plans to implement online learning. This report is a review of the CLRN California elearning Census data collected on the number of K-12 students who took full-time virtual and/or blended courses, both during the school year as well as during summer, Several of the key findings in this study are consistent with the national reports Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning 6 and K-12 Online Learning: A 2008 Follow-up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators 7, as well as the dissertation study Online Learning in California K-12 Schools: Status and Perceptions of Administrators 8, which replicated Picciano and Seaman s national study in California. The similarities support the validity of the census findings. 5 Watson et al., (2011). 6 Watson et al., (2011). 7 Picciano, A., & Seaman, J. (2009). K-12 online learning: A 2008 follow-up of the survey of U.S. school district administrators. Needham, MA: The Sloan Consortium. 8 Schwirzke, K. (2011). Online learning in California K-12 schools: Status and perceptions of administrators. Retrieved from ProQuest Digital Dissertations. (AAT ) California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 3

4 California elearning Landscape Many California K-12 school administrators recognize the need to offer online and blended learning opportunities to students while ensuring a focus on educational goals and positive student outcomes, but they are challenged by barriers including restrictive federal, state or local laws or policies, concerns about course quality and lack of actionable data. 9 Several factors contributed to the scarcity of data and confusion of educators according to Picciano & Seaman in their 2010 report Class Connections: High School Reform and the Role of Online Learning: lack of agreement on definitions and terms such as fully online, blended courses, virtual courses, e-learning, hybrid courses, mixed-mode, asynchronous learning, distributed learning, webfacilitated, and web-enhanced learning; growth in the number of public, private and for-profit online service providers, many of which operate outside the traditional school district structure; and minimal if any requirements in many states to collect data on online and blended learning enrollments, schools, outcomes. 10 Despite concerns about quality and effectiveness, high school administrators in the study reported their schools were moving forward with implementing and expanding online learning programs because the benefits outweigh the concerns. The demand for online and blended learning in California has not occurred without implementation challenges or controversy. The lack of state legislation addressing online learning in California means K-12 districts and direct-funded charters could be implementing online learning without policies and regulations like the ones that protect students in traditional settings. As the use of online and blended learning in K-12 schools accelerated, K-12 administrators were seeking research and resources to guide online and blended learning implementation. Moore and Kearsley 11 contend a framework of management and support systems, policies and guidelines are essential for the delivery of quality distance education programs. In response to the need for guidelines to ensure quality, access, and accountability as the quantity of opportunities grows, the California County Superintendents Educational Services Association (CCSESA) funded the development of the California elearning Framework, a guide for strategic planning, implementation and evaluation of online and blended learning that examines the national landscape and presents the four key components of quality elearning within a California context: content and content evaluation; teaching and professional development; technology support; and operational issues. 12 As of spring 2011, 15 states have a state-level online provider approval process or mandate that districts have one, and 23 states have a state-level online course approval process or mandate that districts have one. The California Learning Resource Network, funded by the California Department of Education, is designed to be a resource for critical information needed for the selection of supplemental electronic learning resources and online courses. CLRN s quality review process and course certification standards can be found in Appendix B. 9 Schwirzke, K. (2011). Online learning in California K-12 schools: Status and perceptions of administrators. Retrieved from ProQuest Digital Dissertations. (AAT ) 10 Picciano, A., & Seaman, J. (2010). Class connections: High school reform and the role of online learning. Needham, MA: The Sloan Consortium. 11 Moore M., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance Education: A systems view of online learning. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. 12 California County Superintendents Educational Services Association. (2011). California elearning framework. Retrieved from California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 4

5 California does not require districts and direct-funded charters to collect data on online and blended learning, and has no state legislated agreed-upon definition of online or blended courses; therefore, any census has to define the metrics, identify the nature and extent of the opportunities, and differentiate the types of enrollments measured for the census. California not counting or reporting students taking online and blended courses in any kind of formal or meaningful way contributes to the difficulty in establishing baseline and growth data to inform programmatic decisions and policy, and resulted in an incomplete California profile in the Keeping Pace 2011 national report of online learning policy and practice. For a complete CA profile see Keeping Pace 2012, which will be published in October and released at the inacol annual Virtual School Symposium. The annual Keeping Pace report has several goals. First, it strives to add to the body of knowledge about online education policy and practice, and make recommendations for advances. Second, it serves as a reference source for information about programs and policies across the country, both for policymakers and practitioners who are new to online education, and for those who have extensive experience in the field. Third, the report attempts to capture new activity annually. California elearning Census In response to elearning s dramatic growth and as an increasing number of districts and direct-funded charters embrace elearning to meet their students needs, CLRN partnered with the Evergreen Education Group, to develop the California elearning Census. CLRNS intended goals were to: 1. Collect accurate virtual and blended learning populations 2. Report the blended models in use 3. Understand the distribution of course publishers in California 4. Inform the California state profile in Keeping Pace 2012 On March 1, 2012, CLRN sent an initial letter to superintendents of K-12 public school districts and direct-funded charters in California (N = 1634) containing the purpose of the census with an invitation to participate. The letter contained a link to the electronic survey site and contact information. Respondents were given until May 1, 2012 to complete the electronic survey. Follow-up s were sent to superintendents every two weeks, and information was shared with the California Educational Technology Professionals Association (CETPA) ed-tech listserv. In addition, the Program Management Committee (PMC) of the California Technology Assistance Project (CTAP) worked to contact districts to urge their participation. There were a total of 481 responses for a 30% response rate. California elearning Census data will be published in the California profile of the 2012 Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning: An Annual Review of Policy and Practice, which will report both elearning trends and student participation from each state, in October California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 5

6 Definitions While CLRN partnered with the Evergreen Education Group to create the census question set, Michael Horn and Heather Staker participated by sharing their updated blended learning definitions prior to publication. Full-Time Virtual School- Students take all their courses online away from school. Students do not visit a physical campus, except on a limited basis. Blended Online learning- Online learning that typically takes place at school. Rotation model-students rotate, on a fixed schedule in a course, between learning online and learning from a face-to-face teacher. To count use of supplemental and/or Internet resources as blended, students must rotate between them and a classroom on a fixed schedule within an individual course. Flex model-students take a majority of their courses online at school and on-site teachers or paraprofessionals provide support. Self-Blend model-students choose to take one or more online courses to supplement their schedules. Hybrid Virtual School-Independent study students take all their online courses at home but visit a physical campus to meet with a teacher. What is not virtual or blended learning-participation in supplemental electronic activities or technology-rich activities that don t fit the previous definitions. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 6

7 Findings Schools in California are currently not required to report any data to California Department of Education indicating they use online or blended learning, and there have been no large-scale efforts to determine the enrollments in online and blended learning. CLRN conducted the California elearning census to discover the enrollments in online and blended learning in K-12 public school districts and direct-funded charters during the school year and Summer A total of 481 districts and direct-funded charters responded. Of these 45% indicated students were learning online (see Figure 1). Additionally, 33% of districts and directed funded charters who responded students were not learning online in indicated they were discussing or planning to implement online learning. N=481 responses Yes No Are you a direct-funded charter? 33% 67% Do students in your district or direct-funded charter school learn online? 45% 55% Do you operate an on-campus virtual school (students take all of their courses online at a physical campus)? 14% 86% Is your charter or district currently discussing or planning to implement online learning? 33% 67% Figure 1: Select questions from California elearning Census, Note: Not all respondents answered all questions so the % may not exactly be a % of N. Grade levels An important goal of the census was to estimate the number of California K-12 students participating in online and blended learning. Figure 2 is a summary of districts and direct-funded charters who said they have students learning online. Not surprisingly, the data show that much higher percentages of students are enrolled in online and blended learning in the upper levels with the majority at the high school level. What might be surprising is the number of middle school students participating. Of districts and directfunded charters: 83% indicated high school students in grades 9-12 participate; 48% indicated middle school students in grades 6-8 participate; 27% indicated elementary students in grades K-5 participate. Figure 2: Grade levels of students participating in online and blended learning SY California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 7

8 Overall numbers of students participating in elearning Based on the California elearning census data the school year from 481 districts and directfunded charters, the total number of students participating in fully-virtual and blended learning in California was 106,077 students. The median number of students participating in fully-virtual learning was 56, and was 80 students in blended learning. An additional 23,087 students participated in either fully-virtual and/or blended learning during the summer of School Year Virtual: 19,820 Blended 86,257 Total 106,077 Summer ,087' The census data reflects the total number of students enrolled in full-time virtual learning was 19,820 and the total number of students participating in blended learning was 86, 257, for a grand total of 106,077 students. Based on a formula used by Picciano and Seaman in their 2007 and 2009 national studies of public school administrators, an extrapolation of the census figures estimates that approximately 210,000 students, out of 6,200,000 California public school students, were participating in online and blended learning during the school year, representing 3.4% of the K-12 student population. The National Center for Education Statistics stated in the report Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary and Secondary School Statistics , over 50% of districts reported 30 enrollments or fewer in distance education courses. 13 Census enrollment totals reflect lower percentages but similar trends: over half the districts and direct-funded charters reported less than 100 students participated in full-time virtual (60%) and/or blended learning (57%), and 23 districts reported fewer than 10 students participating in fully-virtual or blended learning. Figure 3: Full-time virtual and Blended Enrollments Note: Riverside Unified reported 22,700 students in grades K-12 participated in blended learning, representing 26% of all students who participated in blended learning, and California Virtual Academies reported 13,745 students participated in fulltime virtual learning, which represented 70% of all students who participated in full-time virtual learning. 13 Queen, B., and Lewis, L. (2011). Distance education courses for public elementary and secondary school students: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 8

9 A caution needs to be mentioned regarding the enrollment totals in Figure 3, which are based on data collected from districts and direct-funded charters only. Private school students and home-schooled students were not included in the sample. This would indicate that the numbers of students who participated in fully-virtual or blended learning may be higher but determining to what extent is beyond the scope of this study. Blended learning instructional models Districts and direct-funded charters identified which model(s) of online and blended learning their students participated in (See Figure 4). Census data reflects 31% of districts and direct-funded charters reported they are utilizing more than one blended learning model. Figure 4: Models of blended learning in use during SY Open-ended questions provided an opportunity for respondents to make additional comments. A sampling of comments provides further insight into the quantitative data collected by the census, which reflect the varied program options offered to students: Hybrid Virtual School Students complete most of their learning (75%) online at home or on campus (choice) and come to campus for purposeful learning activities (wet labs, workshops, group projects, tutoring). Self-Blend Students are required to be on campus on a fixed schedule for face-to-face time with their onsite teacher for academic seminars in their core courses. All labs and VAPA courses are onsite with an online curriculum as support. Credit Recovery After School Online Credit Recovery Strictly for credit recovery mostly on campus, some few exceptions at home. All history is taught by a distance teacher with proctor support in the classroom Independent Study Primarily Independent Study, some credit recovery online All students are home-based Independent Study students but have the choice of completing some or all classes via online classes offered by our HQTs California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 9

10 Planning for elearning Of the districts and direct-funded charters that indicated students were not learning online during , 33% responded they were discussing or planning to implement online learning. This compares to a study on the nature and extent of online and blended learning in California public school districts in which 28% of superintendents, who did not have students enrolled in a blended course, planned to have at least one student take a blended course within the subsequent 3 years. 14 District and direct-funded charters who responded they were currently discussing or planning to implement online learning were asked to share any programs or models they are planning to pilot or implement. The comments below provide further insight into the quantitative data collected by the census and specific examples of initial research and plans to pilot or implement. Initial Research We are still in the research stage. We are using the tool set designed by inacol to help guide us in the process. We are in the information gathering phase looking for info on how to implement and what pitfalls/advantages are out there. We are only at the beginning discussion stage. We do not have any specific programs or models that we are planning to pilot. Examining options for independent study and other alternative programs We are looking for Mandarin language adaptive software We are considering offering an online program for middle school students only. We are exploring the option of starting a charter in our district and using K12 online learning. We are just beginning to entertain the notion of a virtual learning program. Possible AP Online Courses at high school Models Planned to Pilot or Implement We are planning a blended learning program for 9-12 through a new mountain sports academy. We are an independent study model school. We will be offering our students online courses using Google sites and supplemental websites to enhance learning. Course recovery in a blended environment Teacher support through online software in regular classes Option for upper classmen to take online college courses We are looking at implementing online learning for our Independent Study program. We have used online courses as a 4-week remediation unit for 8th graders. We'd like to implement a blended-learning model where kids would work at home but then come for 1 or 2 days/week to work with other students and the teacher. We are currently piloting a hybrid model in some court and community school classrooms. Blended online learning classes created/modified by a classroom teacher. For the school year, our district will be opening a 6-12 independent study/blended charter to serve grades Khan Academy as supplemental coursework. We are open to other possibilities as well, but as a seat based charter we haven't found what works for us yet. We are also remotely located and have difficulty finding affordable internet capable of supporting student online learning. Court and Community Schools for credit recovery and to expand course offerings Our ROP department will be putting NCOE created curriculum online for certain programs. We are examining a possible pilot using "Flipped Classroom" strategies and the use of sites such as the Khan Academy for part of the instructional model. 14 Schwirzke, K. (2011). Online learning in California K-12 schools: Status and perceptions of administrators. Retrieved from ProQuest Digital Dissertations. (AAT ) California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 10

11 Course Publishers Online course publishers are increasingly offering services that combine elements of delivery and management systems; content and instructions; and professional development. Many school districts and direct-funded charters are using multiple providers and are not relying exclusively on one provider for course curriculum, 23% indicated they rely on two or more licensed course providers. Figure 5 reflects the commercial content/courses that districts and direct-funded charters are utilizing in their school(s). Figure 5: Commercial content/courses utilized during SY Open Educational Resources (OER) OER resources, digital materials available for free or a very low cost from sources including Khan Academy and the National Repository of Online Courses (NROC), are helping districts add a digital component without investing in developing or acquiring content. Districts and direct-funded charters also indicated they are utilizing supplemental software/internet resources or open source materials for online and blended learning in addition to or instead of licensed courses; 14% indicated they utilize two or more OER providers. Figure 6: Open Educational Resources utilized during SY California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 11

12 Future of elearning The California elearning Census found that public school districts and direct-funded charter schools are quickly adopting online and/or blended learning ranging from offering individual courses to students, such as AP Calculus, to full-time virtual courses. Census data reflects 45% of districts and direct-funded charters who participated in the census reported students participated in online and/or blended learning in 579 schools, affecting a critical mass of districts and charters. The data, though, shows that while implementation is fairly wide, it is currently a relatively shallow pool, affecting just 2% of the total California student population. A significant number of districts and direct-funded charters (33%) had less than 30 students participating in full-time virtual learning, and 30% had less than 30 students participating in blended learning. This is to be expected with any disruptive innovation. While Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns predicted that online learning would reach a tipping point in , and with elearning growing up to 30% each year, census data seems to indicate that this revolution is either trending towards or may have already passed a tipping point, particularly when accounting for the large number of census respondents (33%) that indicated they were in the planning stages to implement virtual or blended learning. Single district programs are the fastest growing segment of online and blended learning. Growth within single district programs is outpacing all other segments. Most district programs are blended, instead of fully online. Online and blended learning programs created by a single district, primarily for students in that district, appear to be the fastest-growing, and perhaps largest, category of online and blended learning in In the California elearning Census data only 34% of direct-funded charters, but 66% of districts reported operating a full-time virtual school. Though there is no commonly accepted definition of blended learning nationally, and in most instances no required reporting of blended learning schools or students, the pace of growth of online and blended learning has grown at an average of over 30% each year for the past 10 years across the United States. 16 Adding to the projected population of California students who will be participating in full-time virtual learning and blended learning, is the 33% of districts and direct-funded charters who reported they are planning to pilot or implement online learning with their students. Planning for Quality Based on census data, data projections, and their partnership with the University of California, CLRN has prepared for, and has already received, an influx of online course submissions for the 2012/2013 review year. In addition to the five subjects currently reviewed (English-language arts, history-social science, math, science, and visual and performing arts), CLRN will add world language course reviews this winter. Next spring, CLRN will begin work to add the Next Generation Science Standards as well as course descriptions for mathematics Common Core State Standards. Because nearly half of all middle schools reported some participation in online or blended learning, CLRN expects to begin reviewing grade six to eight courses during 2013/14. As districts and charters begin the planning process to provide online and blended learning options to their students, we believe an increasing number educators will look for guidance about both the 15 Christensen, C., Horn, M. and Johnson, C. (2008). Disrupting class: How disruptive innovation will change the way the world learns. New York: McGraw-Hill. 16 Barbour, M., Brown, R., Hasler Waters, L., Hoey, R., Hunt, J., Kennedy, K., Ounsworth, C., & Trimm, T. Online and blended learning: A Survey of policy and practice from K-12 schools around the world. Vienna, VA: International Association for Online Learning. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 12

13 instructional models they may utilize and adapt as well as how they can identify, select, or create highquality courses for their students. CLRN s course review project, built with both California and national stakeholder groups, ensures that online and blended courses are aligned to inacol s Standards for Quality Online Courses, California s original standards and to the Common Core State Standards. See Appendix B for more information about CLRN s online course review process, CLRN-Certification, and their partnership with the University of California. California must enact operations for data tracking, transparency, and accountability measures to ensure that full-time virtual and blended learning provide positive outcomes. Data on students participating in full-time virtual schools and blended learning must be disaggregated from overall state numbers. Currently, enrollment numbers cannot be collected, analyzed or reported in a meaningful way because the data are encompassed within district-wide numbers that are not disaggregated. Effective oversight requires that enrollment data from full-time virtual schools and students participating in blended learning be readily available. Conclusion Findings in this study are consistent the national reports Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning and K- 12 Online Learning: A 2008 follow-up of the Survey of U.S. School District Administrators, as well as the dissertation study Online Learning in California K-12 schools: Status and perceptions of administrators, which replicated Picciano and Seaman s national study in California. The similarities support the validity of the findings and suggest the important next steps are to extend these opportunities to more students across California. The California elearning Census was created by CLRN as part of its mission to inform K12 educators about high-quality, CLRN-Certified online courses; highlight elearning s steady growth, trends and resources; and understand districts needs so that we can continue to provide relevant services to our customers. Online and blended learning, while not new, have continued to grow consistently as districts and charters seek new ways to serve their students. With this revolution trending towards, or surpassing, the tipping point, elearning enters its adolescence. Like all teenagers, continued guidance will be necessary to ensure it becomes a responsible adult. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 13

14 Appendix A: California elearning Census Introduction The California elearning Census is being conducted by the California Learning Resource Network (CLRN) in collaboration with the Evergreen Education Group. Census data will be published in the October, 2012 Keeping Pace, which will report both elearning trends and student participation from each state. This survey will ask for the number of students who are taking full-time virtual and/or blended courses, both during the school year as well as during summer, Census information, including FAQs, a downloadable PDF of the question set, and a link to the online census may be found at: Survey Terms Full-time Virtual School Students take all their courses online away from school. Students do not visit a physical campus, except on a limited basis. Blended Online Learning Online learning that typically takes place at school. Rotation: Students rotate, on a fixed schedule in a course, between learning online and learning from a face-to-face teacher. To count use of supplemental and/or Internet resources as blended, students must rotate between them and a classroom on a fixed schedule within an individual course. Flex: Students take a majority of their courses online at school and on-site teachers or paraprofessionals provide support. Self-Blend: Students choose to take one or more online courses to supplement their schedules. Hybrid Virtual School: Independent study students take all their online courses at home but visit a physical campus to meet with a teacher. What is not virtual or blended learning: Participation in supplemental electronic activities or technology-rich activities that don t fit the definitions above. FAQs may be found at Survey deadline May 1, 2012 *Required 1. Person'Completing'This'Survey'*' 2. Position'*' 3. 'Address'*' 4. County'name' 5. District'name'or'DirectBFunded'Charter'Name' 6. Are'you'a'directBfunded'charter?' a. Yes' b. No' 7. Do'students'in'your'district'or'directBfunded'charter'school'learn'online?' a. Yes'(go'to'question'8)' b. No'' c. If'No,'Is'your'district'currently'discussing'or'planning'to'implement'online'learning?'' California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 14

15 i. Yes' ii. No'(survey'is'complete)' iii. If'you'answered'yes,'please'list'any'programs'of'models'you'are'planning'to'pilot'or' implement.'' 8. Do'you'operate'an'onBcampus'virtual'school?'(Students'take'all'of'their'courses'online'AT'a'physical' campus.)'count'these'students'as'blended'using'the'flex'model.' a. Yes' b. No'' 9. Which'blended'learning'models'are'being'utilized'in'your'charter'or'district?'(Check'all'that'apply)' a. Rotation:''Students'rotate,'on'a'fixed'schedule'in'a'course,'between'learning'online'and' learning'from'a'facebtobface'teacher.'to'count'use'of'supplemental'and/or'internet'resources' as'blended,'students'must'rotate' b. Flex:''Students'take'all'or'a'majority'of'their'courses'online'(at'school)'and'onBsite'teachers' or'paraprofessionals'provide'support.' c. SelfBBlend:''Students'take'one'or'more'courses'entirely'online'(at'home'or'at'school)'to' supplement'their'traditional'schedule.' d. Hybrid'Virtual'School:''Independent'census'or'other'students,'who'take'all'or'most'of'their' courses'online,'at'home,'but'visit'a'physical'campus.' e. Don t'know' f. Other'(fill'in)' 10. How'many'schools'are'currently'implementing'online'courses'or'blended'learning?' 11. Students'in'which'grade'levels'participate'in'virtual'or'blended'learning?'(Check'all'that'apply)' a. Grades'KB5' b. Grades'6B8' c. Grades'9B12' 12. How'many'students'are'participating'in'fullBtime'virtual'learning'during'the'2011B2012'school'year?' (Students'take'all'their'courses'online'away'from'school)' 13. How'many'students'are'participating'in'blended'learning'during'the'2011B2012'school'year?' Blended'learning'students'are'those'who'take'one'or'more'classes'online'AT'school'or'who'rotate' between'online'learning'and'a'facebtobface'teacher.'use'of'supplemental'software'or'internet' resources,'only&if'students'regularly'rotate'between'computer'and'facebtobface'learning'for'an' individual'course,'is'classified'blended'learning.''' 14. How'many'students'took'virtual'or'blended'courses'during'the'summer'of'2011?' 15. If'you'are'acquiring'commercial'content/courses'for'your'school(s),'from'which'companies'are'you' purchasing'content?'(check'all'that'apply)' a. Accelerate'Education' b. Advanced'Academics' c. Apex'Learning' d. Aventa'(K12.com)' e. Class.com' f. Connections'Learning'(Pearson)' g. Cyber'High' h. Education'2020' i. Florida'Virtual'School'(Pearson)' j. K12.com' k. Odysseyware' l. Plato'Learning' m. Other'(fill'in)'' 16. If'utilizing'online'or'blended'learning'with'supplemental'software/internet'resources'or'with'open' source'materials,'which'resources'are'involved?'(check'all'that'apply) a. itunes University d. National Repository of Online Courses (NROC) b. Khan Academy e. UC College Prep (UCCP) c. MIT Open Courseware Other Comments: Please provide any comments here. If you're a Charter Management Organization, please provide your company name. Thank you for participating in California's elearning Census. Survey results will be shared with the California Department of Education, county offices, CTAP regions, and the Evergreen Education Group for publication in October's Keeping Pace. California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 15

16 Appendix B: California Learning Resource Network (CLRN) In 2010 the California Learning Resource Network (CLRN) launched an online course review project to provide K-12 educators, students, and parents with detailed information about online courses. Online Course Reviews (OCR), was Phase Four of the Digital Textbook Initiative, and combined CLRN s existing content standard review process with the inacol National Quality Standards for Online Courses. inacol is a nonprofit organization, comprised of a cross-section of educators and corporate entities, whose mission is collaboration, advocacy, and research to enhance quality K-12 online teaching and learning. The quality standards are designed to provide states, districts, online programs, and other organizations with a set of quality guidelines for online courses. In 2011, CLRN co-chaired an inacol a committee of experts to update the inacol National Standards for Quality Online Courses. The 52 standards are organized in five areas: content, instructional design, student assessment, technology, and course evaluation and support. Each CLRN online course review includes complete information about the course's alignment to either the Common Core State Standards or California's original content standards. CLRN also applies national standards of quality for online courses that look at rigor, active engagement, higher order thinking skills, student-teacher interaction, and professional development. Besides a comprehensive review of each course's curriculum and its alignment to online course standards, CLRN's customers may participate through two separate user feedback surveys, one for educators and one for students. Each group is asked three questions which are summarized within the course review: Do you recommend the course?; Rate the degree to which the course met your overall expectations; and Rate the degree to which the course engaged and maintained your interest. Additional questions for each group are aligned with the quality course standards and are reported within each review. CLRN-Certified To earn CLRN-Certified status, online courses must address at least 80% of the course's content standards and 80% of inacol's Standards for Quality Online Courses. 15 online "Power Standards" must be among those verified by CLRN. These Power Standards include: Content: A3, A9, & A13; Instructional Design: B3, B4, B5, & B10; Student Assessment: C2, C3, & C4; Technology: D4, D10, & D11; and Course Evaluation and Support: E3, and E10. Course Certification is effective for three years from the review's posting date, after which courses must be re-submitted for review. Course publishers may utilize the CLRN Certified term and badge in association with their certified products. UC A-G Subject Requirements With the August 2012 partnership agreement between CLRN and the University of California, CLRNCertified courses are eligible for approval by the University of California as fulfilling the "A-G" subject requirements for freshman admission. Currently, science and visual and performing arts online courses are excluded from UC A-G approval. They may, though, be CLRN-Certified if they meet the criteria. For more information about CLRN Certification and the University of California Policy for A-G Review of Online Courses. CLRN/UC Partnership: California elearning Census: Trending Past the Tipping Point Page 16