A new study by the Boulder-based National Education Policy Center is raising more questions about the quality and oversight of online K-12 schools across the country.
The report, , looks at everything from the quality of a full-time online education to the actual price of virtual K-12 instruction.
Gene Glass,a senior researcher at the University of Colorado, says educators are also raising questions about student cheating in online courses.
鈥淭here are just too many abuses out there of kids getting credit for courses that they virtually never take,鈥� he says.
Proponents of online education cite the flexibility and the wide variety of coursework available online. The report suggests how states can curb student cheating and evaluate actual costs of virtual schooling. The recommendations include:
路&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫; Financial audits of cyber schools: Determining actual per-student expenses so states can determine appropriate reimbursement.
路&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫; Authentication of student work: Online instructors have no way to verify whether work submitted via computer was actually performed by the enrolled student.Organizations should administer in-person exams, as is currently the practice at a few virtual schools.
路&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫; Accreditation: To avoid abuses that have been found in other proprietary schools 鈥� such as truck driving and cosmetology academies 鈥� traditional high school accrediting agencies and state and federal departments of education should work together to develop a rigorous approach to accreditation of both part-time and full-time cyber schools.
The study comes after reports by radio and other media outlets about poor student performance and lack of online school oversight in Colorado.
