Interest in K-12 cyberschool inspires educators

By JANESE HEAVIN of the Tribune's staff
Published Saturday, July 29, 2006

Missouri lawmakers are already calling to see how they can enroll their kids in the state's new virtual school.

"The interest is just profound," Deputy Commissioner of Education Bert Schulte told the state Board of Education on Thursday.

The General Assembly approved a virtual public school this past session and has given the state's Department of Elementary and Secondary Education until July 1 to get the program online.

It's too early to know how students will be selected. That's one of many details yet to be hashed out. State education officials also will need to determine which classes to offer and how the state will accommodate kids who don't have computers or Internet access at home.

But they're excited about the possibilities.

"I'm still learning," said Curt Fuchs, the former Columbia Public Schools technology director who was tapped earlier this month to direct the state's virtual school. "I see the potential out there. Ireally do."

Fuchs is talking to officials from 20-some states that already have virtual school programs to see how they operate. In many cases, he said, the online courses supplement public school credits.

He hopes to have a plan finalized in the next couple of months, with a goal of requesting proposals from potential providers by October. He also hopes to launch a Web site about the school as soon as next month.

Fuchs then wants to spend time educating Missourians about the K-12cyberschool. "It's a new concept," he said. "I plan to spend a lot of time communicating with schools and informing people and parents."

In the school's first year, the equivalent of 500 full-time students would be accepted. A student is considered full time if he takes six online courses, meaning the school can accommodate more than 500 students if some take fewer than six classes. More students would be allowed in subsequent years.

The students should represent the entire state, Schulte said, adding that they might be chosen by lottery.

Many details will be determined once the state chooses providers, Schulte said. It's likely the state will select more than one company to offer different classes. The companies would hire the teachers, who must have Missouri teaching certifications."

More than likely, they will be retired teachers or part-time teachingstaff," Schulte said. "It would be possible to do it as an additional assignment outside their regular school contracts."

Teachers would grade the online coursework, which would flow from the provider to the education department and back to the local school district. Local districts would have to accept those credits toward graduation requirements.

Although the virtual school is public, private school students also can participate without enrolling in the local district. If they choose to enroll, however, the local district would receive 15 percentof the state payments it would receive if the child were a full-time student.The providers would be paid through a separate allocation, and those funds would not affect the state's education formula.

Schulte isn't sure how the state will handle students who need computer and Internet access at home but said the state would likely help offset such costs.

Virtual classes aren't for everyone, Schulte and Fuchs stressed.

"Success in these kinds of courses requires a certain commitment on the part of the student," Schulte said. "Certainly, this will need to fit the learning style of the student. … The greatest impact will be on the student for whom this is an avenue of learning they find fits their personality and style."

Student applicants likely will be asked to fill out a questionnaire to gauge how effective an online program would be for them, Fuchs said.

Student athletes or those who work more rapidly than peers might benefit, he said."They can move through it quickly or take a year to move through a course," Fuchs said. "It's individualized. … The goal is `anyplace, anytime, any pace.' "

Fuchs doesn't expect the program to run glitch-free in its first year."It's an evolution, not a revolution," he said. "My goal is to pick and choose from those models out there right now and make it work for our Missouri students."

Fuchs plans to create a task force soon to help finalize the details, including what to name the program because Missouri State Universityin Springfield already has claim to the name Missouri Virtual School.