Virtual learning oversight: ‘Riding a donkey into the space age’
Earlier this month, I met with three administrators at the Oklahoma State Department of Education who have been wrestling with accountability issues for virtual and blended schools, especially for-profit charters like Epic Charter Schools.
As spokesperson Steffie Corcoran told me, devising oversight systems for these schools is complex because “there is a physical world and a virtual world.”
The OSDE has earned a reputation for professionalism, but changes in education models are outpacing legislation and policy. In terms of monitoring a rapidly emerging landscape of online instruction, Deputy Superintendent Monty Guthrie said, “We’re riding a donkey into the space age.”
Oklahoma’s approach to public school oversight has long stressed local control by the districts’ governing boards. There has often been a tension between the desire for school choice and flexibility and the need for regulations to protect students and taxpayers. Any attempt to hold schools like Epic more accountable in the future would have to acknowledge that history.
The dubious nature of attendance metrics
As bizarre as it sounds, the U.S. has rushed down the path toward online instruction without conducting adequate research or thoroughly contemplating the downsides of virtual schooling. Believe it or not, Oklahoma is more engaged than most states in discussions over virtual school accountability.
One of the most complicated questions involves how to define and implement attendance CONTINUE READING: Virtual learning oversight: 'Riding a donkey into the space age'
