Tear Down Those Walls: The Revolution Is Underway

“Education is the only business still debating the usefulness of technology. Schools remain unchanged for the most part, despite numerous reforms and increased investments in computers and networks.”

Rod Paige
U.S. Secretary of Education

Walls – both physical and philosophical – have held back new, more creative and more effective uses of the Internet in schools.

Virtually every public school has access to the Internet.⁴⁰ Yet in most schools, it is business as usual. Computers are enclosed in computer rooms rather than being a central part of the learning experience. Internet-savvy students are frustrated, as is well documented in the 2002 report, The Digital Disconnect: The Widening Gap Between Internet-
Savvy Students and Their Schools.⁴¹

The problem is not necessarily lack of funds, but lack of adequate training and lack of understanding of how computers can be used to enrich the learning experience. The good news is that things are changing. States, localities and schools are creatively using existing resources to restructure money within their existing budgets to align technology with improved learning. These examples show the benefits of realizing efficiencies and results through systemic improvement. Creative new teaching models are emerging – frequently in smaller districts – that embrace technology to redesign curricula and organizational structures. As the following examples from across the country demonstrate, the results in educational achievement often have been significant. The restrictive walls of the past are being torn down and a transformation in teaching is underway.

Success Stories From Schools That Are Leading the Way

Alaska

In 1994, the Chugach School District (CSD) in south central Alaska was failing by almost all measures: staff turnover exceeded 50 percent; students scored lowest in the state on California Achievement Tests; business leaders complained that graduates lacked basic skills; and only one student in 26 years had graduated from college.

The school board and district leaders proposed radical changes. The district eliminated grade levels as measures of progress and adopted a standards-based system with levels of mastery that emphasize real-life learning situations. Each student has a learning plan based on his or her learning patterns and needs, and must demonstrate proficiency in 10 areas of performance.

Chugach uses technology to enhance student learning, to improve student technology skills, and to improve the efficiency of its academic and administrative operations. Overall student use of the Internet increased from 5 percent in 1998 to 93 percent in 2001.

Results have been dramatic. On the California Achievement Test reading scores rose from the 28th percentile in 1995 to the 71st percentile in 1999; mathematics scores increased from 54th to 78th; and language arts scores from 26th to 72nd. Fourteen CSD graduates are now attending post-secondary institutions. Annual faculty turnover has dropped from more than 50 percent to 12 percent.

Recently, the Chugach district led the formation of the Alaska Quality Schools Coalition and 12 districts are replicating its model. In 2001, the district was the smallest organization ever to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for performance excellence in education.⁴²

California

In the fall of 2002, Poway Unified School District in the suburbs of San Diego rolled out Total Information Management System (TIM), enabling teachers to log in to view a class and drill down to a student profile. The data warehouse pulls relevant data from the student information system, human resources, special education, student assessment, and delivers up-to-date, on-command information to the teacher. Teachers can filter by period, course or any of the NCLB filters such as ethnicity, gender, or second language learners to compare achievement and identify strengths and weaknesses. The profiles have current and historical data as well as contact information for the student and parents, and e-mail links to other teachers. With this tool, teachers can use the data to drive instructional practices – something that was not possible in the past.

Instructional Technology Specialist Stacey Campo trains teachers throughout the district to make effective use of this information and provides feedback to the information systems division. Charlie Garten, who directs the information systems division, and project leader Tracy Jones involved teachers and students in each stage of development. TIM is helping all teachers apply differentiated instruction to improve learning for all of their students.⁴³

High Tech High (HTH) in San Diego used a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant and funding from the San Diego technology business community to start a charter school from scratch. Since its launch in September 2000, the school has been an innovation leader in using technology and grounding learning in the “real world.” Student internships with area businesses are built into the schedule and students use technology to conduct biotechnology lab experiments, build robots and produce sophisticated school projects. Its 400 students are from diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds and last year 100 percent of HTH seniors were accepted into college. Under Principal and CEO Larry Rosenstock’s leadership, technology and intellectual rigor are central to the educational experience at HTH – a learning experience in an environment which is open to the real world and fosters connections to the community.

The school’s innovations include performance-based assessment, daily shared planning time for staff, state-of-the-art technical facilities for project-based learning, internships for all students, and close links to the high-tech workplace.

Florida

The Florida Virtual School, whose motto is “anytime, any place, any path, any pace,” grew out of a $200,000 state-level “Break the Mold” grant. The threefold aim was to relieve the strain of overcrowded schools in the fast-growing Florida districts; to meet the demands for high-needs courses; and to make advanced courses available to students throughout the state’s 32 rural districts.

Founded in 1997, the state-funded institution serves 21,270 student enrollments and employs 150 full-time and part-time teachers. Experienced teachers monitor the progress of all students and are available to students by telephone or e-mail.

Ninety-seven percent of the school’s students take only one or two courses to fill a need not met in their own schools. Minorities make up some 30 percent of enrollment. The students come from public schools (72 percent), home schooling (21 percent), and private or charter schools (7 percent). The majority of students are from Florida, but there are students from many other states and even as far away as Shanghai.

Missouri

Peabody Elementary School in St Louis is situated in an urban neighborhood marked by abandoned buildings and serves almost entirely Title I students from the lowest income families. Principal Myrtle Reed had high expectations and through online assessments and customized instruction over three years achieved remarkable improvement in students’ scores on Missouri Assessment Program (MAP) standardized tests.

Reed selected the eMINTS program — enhancing Missouri’s Instructional Networked Teaching Strategies — which provides 200 hours of professional development, coaching and technical support for teachers as they use multimedia tools to promote critical thinking and problem-solving techniques.

Peabody students take regular online assessments of their progress, allowing teachers to customize instruction to the specific needs of individual students. Teachers assign online reading instruction software and online tutoring programs based on individual student’s level of mastery of the curriculum. Working on desktop computers, students proceed at their own pace.

Using a technology-rich environment, instruction is personalized. Teachers and principals know exactly how students are doing on a daily basis.

The results have been dramatic. In 2001, only 7 percent of Peabody third graders could read at grade level. A year later, the number improved to 25 percent. In 2003, 80 percent of third graders were reading on grade level. Similar stunning results occurred in mathematics, science and social studies.

The success of the program was recognized by an $8.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education that will help create additional eMINTS training and technology in classrooms. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch commented that the turnabout at Peabody would have been remarkable for any school, but was particularly impressive “in a neighborhood where virtually every child is poor, a fact that too often translates into low expectations and rockbottom test scores.” The eMINTS program is now available to schools nationwide.

Virginia

Henrico County, a suburban and rural district with 43,000 students and 3,000 teachers in 64 schools, supplied every high school student their own laptop computer. In Spring 2001, all high school faculty received a laptop computer. In Fall 2002, all middle school students and elementary school teachers received laptops, and in Winter 2002, all middle school teachers received laptops. A primary goal of the initiative was to create an environment of engaged and active learning, rather than the simple didactic approach. Henrico County paid for this laptop program by repurposing existing funds, as well as using lease agreements. Currently, 28,000 laptops are deployed in Henrico County. What makes this effort extraordinary is that they have done this with $500 less than the state average annual per-pupil expenditure and $611 less than the national average.

In 1994, there were significant numbers of elementary schools that did not have a single computer lab, and the total technology deployment in the district was relatively sparse, consisting primarily of one or two computer labs per middle and high school. In 1998, 5 percent of students used the Internet; today all middle and high school students are online.

What is remarkable is what students can do with the technology, curricula and good instruction. They are accessing primary sources, exploring different perspectives on historical events, using geometry simulations in three dimensions to learn mathematics and increasing their interactions with teachers and other students online. Assessments are online and provide instant feedback. Art history courses take virtual field trips to art galleries worldwide.

Henrico offers all students the opportunity to take online courses through their laptops – advanced mathematics and science, foreign languages and other courses – as well as SAT test-prep courses. Individual Education Plans (IEPs) are online and save teachers time and effort while enabling updated information.

The success of this initiative would not have been possible without direct teacher training and support. Demonstrating their commitment to life-long learning, Henrico County Public Schools provides a $1,000 per year tuition reimbursement for eligible employees. Additional institutes were scheduled and taught by master teachers to ensure that the faculty received the training needed to successfully use technology as an instructional tool.

Among the numerous awards Henrico has received: The U.S. Senate Award for Continuing Excellence and nine U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon School awards.⁴⁴

State Initiatives⁴⁵

Virginia

Virginia is one of the leading states in developing a model and implementing a statewide initiative for integrating data systems with statewide online assessments – a partnership between the Virginia legislature, the Virginia Department of Education and the Governor’s office. The state created Virginia’s Web-based Standards of Learning Initiative with the goal that all Virginia school divisions would use Web-based systems to improve the Standards of Learning instructional, remedial and testing capabilities of high, middle and elementary schools by 2009. Online delivery of results will be provided to state and local administrators for evaluation and planning. To date, Virginia has delivered 400,000 assessments online. Specific objectives of the initiative are to:

• Provide student access to computers at a ratio of one computer for every five students.
• Create Internet-ready local area network capability in every school.
• Assure adequate high-speed, high-bandwidth capability for instructional, remedial and testing needs.
• Establish a statewide Web-based Standards of Learning test delivery system.
• Deliver ongoing training to teachers and administrators.

New Mexico

Two years ago in New Mexico, the then state education technology director was interested in using handheld devices for assessment. He approached the directors of the Reading First program and the assessment program and convinced them to enter into a reading initiative that allowed teachers across the state to assess their students’ reading progress, to answer to the accountability required by the Reading First program and to provide a low-cost, highly motivating system for doing all of this. The results were many – technology was infused throughout New Mexico’s schools, Reading First funding was shared with the office of education technology and data were available in a timely manner, allowing teachers to hone in on the skills that need reinforcement.

Louisiana

Louisiana’s On-Line Professional Development is designed to provide professional development for teachers, administrators, and school personnel in K-12 school districts. The program includes graduate-level online courses, community of learners networks, and workshops for specific educational needs. Through a variety of experiences, it provides learning opportunities and resources to support all teachers in their efforts to improve student learning and achievement.

The impetus for the program was the need to provide professional development for educators that better suited their learning styles and their schedules. Initial efforts involved individuals from across different divisions of the state department of education (including professional development, curriculum, teacher standards, instructional technology and school nutrition) and outside experts.

Idaho

The Idaho Student Information Management System or ISIMS Project creates a statewide, student information management system designed to provide new resources for parents, teachers, students and all stakeholders of education in Idaho. The ISIMS project is a partnership of the Governor and Legislature, State Board of Education, State Department of Education, J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation and all school districts in Idaho.

In the 2003 legislative session, the Idaho legislature passed legislation requiring all school districts in Idaho to use the ISIMS system to the full extent of its availability. The J.A. & Kathryn Albertson Foundation dedicated $35 million to the development and implementation of the ISIMS system. The plan expands a $3.5 million pilot program now in place in 13 districts that allows the districts to collect, maintain and share student information among their schools. The project will build a centralized, uniform system that includes a host of web-based resources and tools for education stakeholders.

West Virginia

The West Virginia Virtual School (WVVS) was created by state senate legislation that became effective on July 1, 2000. It was created to offer high quality educational courses to students through Internet technology, regardless of school location or size. The West Virginia legislature passed the bill based on the following findings about virtual learning:

• West Virginia schools have improved and expanded Internet access, which enables schools to offer courses through the Internet, and other new and developing technologies.
• Current technology is available to provide students with more resources for learning, and new and developing technologies offer even more promise for expanded opportunities.
• A number of other states and other jurisdictions have developed Internet-based instruction which is available currently and which is being used by schools in the state.
• To better educate the students of West Virginia, more course and class offerings can be made available through technology, especially to students who are geographically disadvantaged.

In the planning stages, educators from all 55 counties participated in a “Going the Distance-1999” week-long conference to identify and study the issues associated with Virtual Schools. The educators were charged to take online classes during the summer. This planning group then re-assembled and discussion centered on best practices to inform planning of the project. The legislation was drafted using the input from this process.

Arkansas

The state’s Environmental and Spatial Technology Initiative (EAST) includes strong relationships between business, government and education. These relationships provide awareness and access to resources normally not available to educators. The EAST philosophy includes:

• Educational experiences that are relevant, challenging, purposeful, and student centered.
• An educational environment that includes state of the art, realworld tools and reflects a work-like setting.
• Educators that serve as resource guides, managers, and learner facilitators.
• Learning that is self-directed as much as possible and oriented towards real-world projects that engage students in independent as well as interdependent roles.
• High expectations for all students.

The EAST model has been recognized nationally as an innovative, relevant, and successful approach to education.

Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) has a regional technology program (eSPARC) that focuses on increasing in-home access to computers and the Internet, particularly for high-need families, in an effort to bridge the digital divide. Pennsylvania received a $1.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to study the impact of computers on student achievement. The study will examine the benefits of home access for student learning and parental involvement. The evaluation will explore a wide range of research questions that focus on whether and how in-home computer and Internet access impact students and parents, allowing for the promotion of “what works”. In addition, PDE will produce and disseminate resultant research methodologies and tools that will assist in measuring the impact of technology initiatives across program areas, strengthening local, state and national evaluative capabilities.

 

The Explosion in E-Learning and Virtual Schools

Over the past five years there has been an explosive growth in online and multimedia instruction (e-learning) and “virtual schools.” At least 15 states now provide some form of virtual schooling to supplement regular classes or provide for special needs.⁴⁶ Hundreds of thousands of students are taking advantage of e-learning this school year.⁴⁷ About 25 percent of all K-12 public schools now offer some form of e-learning or virtual school instruction.⁴⁸ Within the next decade every state and most schools will be doing so.

E-learning and virtual schooling are essentially the same product: they provide individual online instruction. They are the 21st century version of distance-learning through correspondence courses by mail. But through today’s technology they are more immediate and, for students, far more enriching. E-learning offers flexibility in the time, place, and pace of instruction. It provides teachers the opportunity to create an instructional environment that adapts to students wherever and however they need to learn, at home or in school. It gives parents a significant choice of providers and educators an alternative means of meeting their student’s academic needs. In higher education, some 90 percent of four-year public institutions and more than half of four-year private institutions offer some form of online education.⁴⁹

Virtual Schools are complete educational organizations that deliver courses primarily online. They may be run by state agencies (Florida, Illinois, West Virginia), regional agencies and consortia (Virtual High School in Massachusetts), universities (University of California), local public school districts (Houston Virtual School), and more than 80 schools (cyber-charter schools) that received a charter from a local district, state board or other sponsor.⁵⁰

A good example of the impact of virtual schooling is the Florida Virtual School. Founded in 1997, the FLVS is a national leader in providing online, distance education solutions for K-12 students. Most of its 13,000 students in the 2003-2004 school year enrolled for only 1 or 2 courses for a total of 21,270 course enrollments. In addition to designing and monitoring the online instruction, FLVS teachers communicate with students and parents on a regular basis by phone, e-mail, online chats, instant messaging and discussion forums. A full 90 percent of its enrollees complete and pass FLVS classes.

For most students, FLVS courses add to what is available in their local schools. An online GED preparation course, developed by FLVS, is available to working adults through The Florida Adult and Technical Distance Education Consortium.

FLVS’s 150 certified instructors teach more than 80 courses delivered over the Internet to students from Florida, more than 30 other states and even foreign countries. Partnering with FLVS, rural or smaller school districts can offer a selection of Advanced Placement courses or language study for which they would not otherwise have the resources. As one teacher from a small, rural Florida district has noted: “Online learning ‘evens the playing field’ for rural students.”

With more choices available, traditional schools are turning to distance education to expand offerings for students and increase professional development opportunities for teachers.