K–12 Online Education: Tracing Developments in Policy and Adoption in Ohio

• In Event: 72.062 - Understanding the Digital Evolution in K–12 Education: Policy and Practice Perspectives

Abstract

K-12 school districts are increasingly adopting online learning and education leaders are turning toward online learning as a potential vehicle to improve K-12 education. Numerous reports from think tanks and literature from advocacy groups highlight the growing importance of online education in the K-12 sector (Watson et al., 2012). There are many hopes for its potential (Finn & Fairchild, 2012), and fears about negative impacts on public education (Molnar, 2013). It can be difficult to make sense of the online evolution taking place in K-12 education and separate the rhetoric from reasoned analyses of data. Much of the difficulty stems from the lack of empirical research that can inform the effectiveness of online education for K-12 students, when and how it occurs, and under what conditions online learning can benefit children across different developmental stages (Means, Toyama, Murphy, Bakia, & Jones, 2010).

In this paper we seek to deepen understanding of how online education is adopted in K-12 school systems and its repercussions throughout an entire system. We present an analysis of the policy landscape and history in Ohio, as the state has enabled online or virtual schools over the past decade. In addition, we analyze an extensive, student-level dataset encompassing the entire 1.8 million student population in the state, and ranging between the years of 2010-2013. We explore several questions regarding the adoption and consequences of online learning in the K-12 system:

1. How many students are adopting online courses in the state and what are their characteristics in terms of demographic background, prior achievement, and other indicators?

2. What are the enrollment patterns that have emerged over this 4 year period; what courses and subject areas see the most enrollment and what types of courses are students taking?

3. What are the characteristics of the “home” schools and districts where students who take online options come from?

4. How do patterns of online learning adoption relate to student achievement outcomes including standardized test score measures and outcomes such as graduation?

Our analyses show how state-level policies enable an ecosystem of online course providers, virtual schools, and curricular options for students. In addition, we highlight the intricacies involved in which students take up the online option and its relationship to social inequalities, access, and student achievement. Taken together, we provide insight into how the proliferation of online learning in the K-12 education system of Ohio can have broad consequences in adoption, implementation, and student outcomes across an entire state. We conclude the presentation with suggestions for policy and future analyses of state, student-level data that can shed deeper understanding of the impact of online education in K-12 systems.

Authors

• June Ahn, University of Maryland - College Park

• Andrew McEachin, RAND Corporation