Shelby to offer AP classes next year

Students who score high enough on AP tests can earn college credit. Gies said Shelby will likely use part of the grant money to cover the cost of AP tests, which is usually paid for by students who opt to take them.

“At minimum, we will offer at least two AP classes next year — one traditional and one online — which is what the grant requires,” he said.

Gies said the school is still determining what courses it will offer.

The district is still planning how to use a $750,000 state technology grant it received last summer to help integrate 21st-century teaching and learning in the high school.

Shelby will join the Advance Placement Network with its latest grant. The Ohio Department of Education has announced more than $400,000 in federal Race to the Top funds to create the AP Network.

Each network school will receive two four-hour professional development sessions and attend a free half-day workshop focusing on curriculum. They also have the option to receive funding support for expansion of virtual learning options to reach underserved groups of students, as well as priority registration for a summer of AP training for teachers. The grant is intended to increase numbers in underrepresented areas, such as rural and urban.

“Schools were chosen through a competitive application process that required applicants to show their vision of building an AP culture,” said Yolandé Berger, AP network coordinator.

For the rest of the article, go to Shelby to offer AP classes next year

Enrollment increasing at Ohio online schools

AUSTINTOWN, Ohio – More students are enrolling in online K-12 schools across Ohio but is this the right option for your child?

21 News spoke with an expert who says there are multiple factors to consider when making a decision.

“The not having to wake up at 6:00 a.m., 5:30 a.m. to being able to wake up whenever I want and knowing I can still get it all done, everything that needs to be done,” said Anthony Hill, a senior at Austintown Fitch High School’s online program “Falcon Pride Online.”

Last school year, Anthony left the school’s brick and mortar building for the district’s cyber program.

“His grades have improved almost dramatically,” said his dad, Rick Hill.

A research professor at Kent State University warns the online classroom isn’t cut out for everyone.

“The kind of student that succeeds are the students who have good motivation, good time keeping skills, the kind that have good writing skills, computer literacy skills.  Students who don’t have those skills typically don’t succeed in these online courses,” said Rick Ferdig, Ph.D. KSU Research Professor at the Research Center for Educational Technology.

Ferdig said parents also need to look into the type of program.

For the rest of the article, go to Enrollment increasing at Ohio online schools

Terry Ryan: With choice comes accountability

Ohio’s school districts also have a number of choice programs: magnet schools and alternative programs, STEM high schools and early college academies. And some 429 districts allow students from anywhere in the state to attend their schools via open enrollment. (Another 90 allow students from adjacent districts to enroll.) And, thousands of families have moved to different houses or apartments in pursuit of better educational options for their daughters and sons.

Besides these bricks-and-mortar options, Ohio has 27 virtual schools serving 33,000 students. The digital learning sector is set to expand rapidly in coming years, and this growth will likely lead to new forms of hybrids that blend classroom-based and on-line learning, as 24/7 outside-of-school learning opportunities for students. Nationally, more than half of all children now attend some kind of “school of choice” and Ohio’s number is surely higher.

The genie of school choice is out of the bottle and we are likely to see more of it. The question for state policy-makers is how to ensure that this widening of options is matched by improved school quality and ultimate gains in student achievement. It little avails a child to choose a school that’s no more effective than the one he or she is exiting. At the end of the day, improved achievement has to be the state’s foremost education policy goal.

For the rest of the article, go to Terry Ryan: With choice comes accountability

Ohio school bill would bar charter from enrolling student if better traditional school exists

After identifying over 2,300 U.S. low-scoring schools from 2003 to see how well they improved over a five-year period, researchers noted less than one percent posted better performance indicators. Fewer than ten percent made even moderate gains. Charter schools, however, demonstrated a greater drop in the number of failing programs, but only by virtue of shutting down more campuses. Nine percent to 11 percent of neighborhood schools were shuttered; the percentage of schools demonstrating improvement was even between the two categories.

More recently, a high-profile analysis (PDF) of Pennsylvania charter schools found that online charter programs lag significantly behind campus-based education facilities. The study also found student performance improves the longer he or she is enrolled at a charter school, and for brick and mortar campuses, charter schools were statistically even with neighborhood schools.

Other national- and state-specific studies show a picture of charter schools mostly training neighborhood schools in outcomes. A report from The Center for Research and Outcomes (CREDO) at Stanford University conducted the nation’s first comprehensive comparison of charter and neighborhood schools, finding that for every 17 charters that perform better, 37 perform worse. The remaining schools were indistinguishable from their virtual public school twins. Fifteen states and Washington D.C., were scrutinized in the study (PDF).

The report did find charters with similar demographics to district schools performed better at the elementary and middle school level; a study in association with The National Charter School Research Project found (PDF) similar results.

For the rest of the article, go to Ohio school bill would bar charter from enrolling student if better traditional school exists

B.G. youth induces swoons as he impersonates Bieber

He is enrolled in the Ohio Virtual Academy, taking online classes for his senior year. He’s not sure what he wants to do after high school, although he loves writing music, singing, rapping, making films, and acting. He recently modeled for Toys R Us, holding a toy gun for a photo on the box.

“My goal is not to become really famous,” he said. “I want to be a part of music or film or even modeling. I want to be part of things that inspire people even if I have to be the guy holding the camera or even if I played really small roles.”

Ms. Garcia-Tio, who drives her youngest son to New York for auditions and appointments, said she thought acting might be a passing phase for Anthony, but she realizes now it has staying power.

“For anyone we love in our life, I think our job is to try to help make their dreams come true, and I think that’s why I did this, because I want his dreams to come true and I would do it for any one of my kids,” she said.

The Justin Bieber lookalike said he likes the singer’s music.

“I do, and I respect him a lot because, even though he has a lot of people who really, really dislike him and question his talents, he’s definitely done a lot,” Anthony said.

“He’s inspired a lot of people. He’s brought hope to a lot of people, and he’s been responsible in giving with his money.”

He doesn’t mind getting ribbed about his current acting role, and he sees the resemblance too.

“Except for the mole on my face, we’re pretty similar,” he said.

Anthony’s parents are Cuban-Americans; Bieber is Canadian.

“Apparently I look Canadian,” Anthony joked.

He added that his impersonation career might be cut short since Justin Bieber ditched his trademark hairstyle for a shorter cut.

“I am very disappointed in him, and I’m thinking about writing him an angry letter about the fact that he cut his hair because I could easily lose my job if he doesn’t grow it back,” he said with a laugh.

For the rest of the article, go to B.G. youth induces swoons as he impersonates Bieber

Officials respond to changes in No Child Left Behind

WOOSTER DISTRICT — David Estrop was startled to receive an ultimatum from the Ohio Department of Education.

In his third year as superintendent of Springfield City Schools, Estrop is a former Wooster City Schools’ superintendent.

The news he made in Springfield about just what academic improvement means took him all the way to the White House, where he personally heard about modifications being made to federal No Child Left Behind requirements — not to relax them, but to make them more responsive to schools showing progress.

Estrop and the Springfield district had celebrated “all 15 of our schools improving on one state metric or another,” he said, and moving as a district from continuous improvement to a ranking of Effective.

The district’s value-added measurement put it in the top three percent of all of the districts in the state.

“We were feeling pretty good about our progress,” Estrop said.

But under federal law, because the district was missing the mark for adequate yearly progress for all but one of its elementary schools, the district’s 4,400 elementary school students gained the right to attend Snowhill Elementary, the only district making AYP, or to attend neighboring districts or virtual schools, according to Estrop.

Just four or five weeks into the 2011-12 school year, the Springfield district had two weeks to comply with the provisions of NCLB, Estrop said, which also included the option of building new schools or sending children to Snowhill in shifts.

Along with the letter required to be sent out to elementary school parents, Estrop attached one asking them to forego alternative education options.

“We have made good progress,” Estrop said he told them, adding, “We have fought the good fight; we are fighting it.”

“I’m pleased to tell you only 12 students moved into Snowhill; no one selected the digital academy; all the rest stayed where they were.”

Estrop’s story came to the attention of the U.

For the rest of the article, go to Officials respond to changes in No Child Left Behind.

Maynard-based virtual school collaborative adds more members

“Many schools facing budget cuts have had to cancel low enrollment courses over the last few years,” said Liz Pape, president and CEO of Virtual High School. “By partnering with VHS, they are now able to continue to provide the courses that students need and want while equipping them with critical skills that will be invaluable in their next level of education or careers.”
The nonprofit has 770 member schools in total across the globe.

Forthe rest of the article, go to Maynard-based virtual school collaborative adds more members.

21 students apply to transfer to Snowhill

Estrop spoke out last week, telling parents that all the schools were making progress and students wouldn’t be better served by overcrowding Snowhill or attending a virtual school recommended by the Ohio Department of Education.

“Twenty-one (students) will not put a significant burden on Snowhill,” Estrop said Monday. “We likely will see an increase in some classes but it won’t be substantial.”

Meanwhile, Estrop says he will continue to advocate for a change in NCLB.

“This is not a Springfield problem and as the federal standards for the next two years move up to 100 percent of the students, including students with disabilities, being 100 percent proficient 100 percent of the time then there’s going to be many, many, many more schools and school districts in the same position we are,” said Estrop.

Kristi Shaw, who has one child in kindergarten at Snowhill, echoed Estrop’s sentiments about No Child Left Behind.

“It feels like the law is broken,” she said. “It seems like there could be a better way to fix it. It seems like it’s going to hurt everyone in the long run.”

Another parent, Tom Heaphey, said he would keep his first-grader at Snowhill but if the school became overcrowded, he would look at the other Springfield elementary schools.

“Maybe if it got really crowded, I’d transfer her to one of the other (Springfield) schools,” he said.

In addition to speaking to parents and local media, Estrop has written letters to politicians representing Springfield in Congress and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who has been critical of No Child Left Behind in the past.

For the rest of the article, go to 21 students apply to transfer to Snowhill

Leading Virtual School, Connections Academy, Launches Blog

Connections Academy, a leading national operator of K-12 virtual public schools, announced today the launch of a new blog geared toward families interested in K-12 virtual education and school from home. The blog is called Virtual Learning Connections and will offer insightful commentary about virtual school and learning from home, helpful tips for parents, celebrity guest bloggers, and more. Connections Academy presently operates fifteen public virtual schools in fourteen states as well as a national private virtual school.

For the rest of the article, go to Leading Virtual School, Connections Academy, Launches Blog

Ohio Virtual Academy Earns an EFFECTIVE School Rating

MAUMEE, Ohio, Aug. 25, 2011 Strong student performance helped propel the Ohio Virtual Academy (OHVA), a statewide online public charter school, to an Effective school ranking on its 2010-2011 annual report card.
The Effective ranking was the result of a number of academic achievements by the school, including attaining the state’s highest Value Added Rating and improving its Performance Index Score.
OHVA is one of the largest public schools in the state. Last year the school served over 10,000 students in kindergarten through high school.
Kristin Stewart, OHVA Head of School said, “We’re extremely proud to be distinguished as an Effective school. This is a credit to the dedicated OHVA teachers, parents, and students who worked tirelessly to achieve this level of success.”
OHVA achieved an “Above” Value Added Rating – the highest level – indicating the school made better than expected academic gains for students. While an achievement test can only demonstrate a student’s level of proficiency at a single point in time, the value added rating measures students’ academic growth or improvement over a period of time. This determines the academic progress – the “value added” – by a student during that time period in the school.

For the rest of the article, go to Ohio Virtual Academy Earns an EFFECTIVE School Rating.