Virtual Schools in the United States 2014: Politics, Performance, Policy, and Research Evidence

Session Type: Symposium

Abstract

In the past decade, virtual education has moved quickly to the top of the K-12 public education reform agenda. Though little is known about the efficacy of online education generally or about individual approaches specifically, states are moving quickly to expand taxpayer-funded virtual education programs. The main purpose of this session is to understand the specificities of today's virtual school movement as it moves from novelty to mainstream. Drawing from a rich array of theoretical perspectives and content disciplines, we will examine the performance of full-time, publicly funded K-12 virtual schools, describe the policy issues raised by the available evidence, assess the research evidence that bears on K-12 virtual teaching and learning, and offer research-based recommendations to help guide policymaking.

Sub Unit

• Division L - Educational Policies and Politics / Section 4: School Choice and Other Reforms

Chair

• Chad Joseph D'Entremont, Teachers College, Columbia University

Papers

• Full-Time Virtual Schools: Enrollment, Student Characteristics, and Performance - Gary J. Miron, Western Michigan University; Brian Horvitz, Western Michigan University; Charisse Atibagos Gulosino, University of Memphis

• Key Policy Issues in Virtual Schools: Finance, Instructional Quality, and Teacher Quality - Luis Alberto Huerta, Teachers College, Columbia University

• What Do We Actually Know? Examining the Research Into Virtual Schools for Useful Models - Michael Kristopher Barbour, Sacred Heart University

• Examining Variation in Achievement Impacts Across California’s Full-Time Virtual Schools - Charisse Atibagos Gulosino, University of Memphis; Jonah Liebert, Teachers College, Columbia University