Virtual Classrooms

After previously mandating in-person learning, Kentucky lawmakers came to the defense of a growing virtual academy that had low test scores and did not follow state guidelines for class sizes and standardized testing.

The shift to remote learning and 1:1 devices for some districts coincided with problems with student attention and attendance, but it also gave educators practice with tech tools and prepared them for the upheaval of AI.

Campus, a for-profit, officially accredited online community college, has raised $101 million to date. It offers associates degrees and certifications, and covers laptops and wireless hotspots for students who need them.

House Bill 241 would bar new enrollment limits on virtual schooling programs until 2028. Critics say the legislation is another way to devote taxpayer funds to programs other than public schools.

Santa Fe Public Schools announced a shift to remote learning on Thursday for grades K-12 after being notified of potential power shutdowns and Internet outages due to high winds and fire conditions.

The Kentucky Board of Education moved to limit enrollment in virtual schools in light of academic underperformance, but lawmakers blocked the measure and proposed to stop enrollment restrictions on virtual schools until 2028.

The editorial board of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette argues that Pennsylvania's cyber charter schools are failing students while siphoning money from public schools, and they need accountability.

More than $20,000 from the Maryland State Department of Education will go toward gifted and talented education programs, including game-based learning software designed to develop analytical thinking skills.

With a team of teachers and an evidence-based approach, virtual tutoring startup Reading Futures is helping upper elementary, middle and high school students with the lowest reading scores in schools across six states.

North Carolina's largest public school district is reconsidering the possibility of remote learning in lieu of canceling school due to weather, as long as teachers have notice to prepare when a storm is coming.

Blackstone Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School students do virtual learning up to four times a year, sometimes in place of a snow day, because learning to work over Zoom or Teams is part of their education.

The University of Maine, the Maine College of Art & Design, Husson University and the University of New England are expanding their online offerings amid growing demand for flexibility and degree-completion programs.

Opening this fall in Arizona, Unbound Academy will use AI to condense core academic lessons to two hours a day, followed by workshops, mentorship sessions and student-led projects, per the school’s charter application.

Federal COVID-19 relief initially provided the funding source to equip students with Chromebooks and other devices to use at home and school. Absent those dollars, many entities can’t afford their replacement.

Learning opportunities in correctional facilities help prepare inmates to successfully transition back into society. Nucleos and iCEV are working together to make that experience easier and more accessible.

A virtual tutoring program called Brainy Bulls connects grade school students in Western New York with vetted UB undergrads and graduate students to receive help in English, math, science or social studies on Zoom.

Albuquerque Public Schools and Central New Mexico Community College shifted to online courses Thursday in light of a winter storm warning, while the University of New Mexico canceled classes altogether.

Studies have found students at Pennsylvania's cyber charter schools, which are run by unelected boards of nonprofit trustees, don't perform as well as traditional school district students, yet they rarely get shut down.