Daley unveils plan for online summer school :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: City Hall

Daley unveils plan for online summer school :: CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: City Hall

Daley unveils plan for online summer school

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June 10, 2010

BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter

Chicago Public School students required to attend summer school — and high-achievers who want to get ahead — will be able to fill their needs online this summer.
Amid opposition from the Chicago Teachers Union, Mayor Daley today unveiled a dramatic expansion in so-called “virtual summer school,” bankrolled by $940,000 in federal stimulus funds.
It will allow the Chicago Public Schools to serve an unlimited number of students — some working from home, libraries or parent’s office — at a fraction of the cost.
Instead of having live teachers in every classroom, students will take online courses taught by “certified instructors” and work at their own pace.
Only those high school students who have failed courses and must take them again for credit will be required to show up in person. But, they will have 30 high schools to chose from, some open until 7 p.m. to accommodate those with summer jobs.
In addition to high school students seeking to wipe out F’s, the program will have three other tracks:
• 7th- and 8th- graders who need remedial work in pre-algebra and composition to prepare them high school.
• Students who want to knock off core courses to free their fall schedule for more advanced courses.
• High school juniors interested in doing independent study in partnership with the Shedd Aquarium, the Art Institute and Broadway in Chicago.
At a news conference at the Chicago Military Academy, 3519 S. Giles, Daley portrayed the online program as yet another example of his handpicked school team “thinking outside the box.”