The Virtual Evidence Base for Virtual Education and the Implications for Policy

• In Event: Beyond the Rhetoric: Examining the Economic Rationales and the Evidence-Based Support for Current Reform Strategies

Abstract

Over the past decade, virtual education has become a focal point among policy makers interested in expanding education choice options and improving the efficiency of public education. In particular, full-time virtual schools, also known as online schools or cyber schools, have attracted a great deal of attention. Proponents argue that the individually tailored nature of online curriculum has the potential to promote greater student achievement in comparison to traditional brick-and-mortar schools. Further, lower costs – primarily in the areas of instructional personnel and facilities – make virtual schools appealing from a fiscal resource perspective. Assumptions about the cost-effectiveness of virtual schools, coupled with their alignment with policies to expand school choice and the market incentives they present to for-profit companies, have fueled a fast-growing movement of virtual school expansion in the U.S. To date, 30 states and the District of Columbia allow full-time virtual schools to operate (Watson, et al. 2011) and estimates of student enrollment in virtual schools nationwide range between 200,000 to more than 250,000 (Molnar, et al. 2013). The majority of these students are enrolled in a small number of large for-profit EMOs.

This presentation will critically examine the extant evidence base for virtual education, and will discuss a number of key policy measures that should be considered as this education reform movement continues to unfold. While many states have adopted legislation that permits full-time virtual schools and increasing numbers of parents and students are choosing these options, little is known about the effectiveness of this approach to education. Existing evidence on the effectiveness of virtual education is mixed, and a recent U.S. Department of Education meta-analysis found that “few rigorous research studies of the effectiveness of online learning for K-12 students have been published” (Means, 2010, xiv).
Given the insufficient evidence to support online initiatives in elementary and secondary schools, scaling up virtual school reform presents significant implementation and accountability challenges (Molnar, et al. 2013). A continuing challenge for states will be to reconcile traditional funding mechanisms, governance structures, and accountability demands with the unique organiza¬tional models and instructional methods found in virtual schools. Drawing on recent reports and our own research on virtual charter schools, we consider relevant policy issues in the areas of finance and governance, instructional program quality, and high quality teachers. For each topic, we present the critical issues, common assumptions, and unanswered empirical questions. We conclude with a set of policy recommendations.

Barbara Means, et. al. (2010). Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning: A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Learning Studies, U.S. Department of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development.

Molnar, A. (Ed.); Miron, G., Huerta, L., Cuban, L., Horvitz, B., Gulosino, C., Rice, J.K., & Shafer, S.R. (2013). Virtual Schools in the U.S. 2013:Politics, Performance, Policy, and Research Evidence. Boulder, CO: National Education Policy Center.

Watson, J., Murin, A., Vashaw, L., Gemin, B., & Rapp, C. (2011). Keeping pace with K-12 online learning: A review of state-level policy and practice. Evergreen, CO: Evergreen Education Group.

Authors

• Jennifer K. Rice, University of Maryland

• Luis Alberto Huerta, Teachers College, Columbia University