Running Head: VIRTUAL SCHOOL MODEL

Virtual School Model: XYZ District

Muneebah Qureshi

University of Maryland Global Campus

EDTC650

Professor Allen Grant

Spring 2021
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Link to presentation: https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/crjf1kVjezE

Introduction

The contents of this report represents a summary and analysis of virtual schools in the

United States to provide a proposed model for the XYZ District. The report opens with a

summary of the status of virtual schools followed by the recommended model for the district.

The report delves into the proposed mission for the virtual school (VS), policies, administration,

and course development. The report explains criteria needed for a sound virtual school model,

type of course design for the VS, how to overcome hurdles, and implementation plan. The report

concludes with an insight into the future of the proposed virtual school model.

Summary of virtual school status in the United States

From full-time schools to supplemental programs to hybrid schools, virtual schools have

experienced varied forms of success and failures in comparison to traditional schools. Molnar et

al. (2017) states that, as a whole, virtual schools underperform academically. However, one

cannot discount the rapid pace at which virtual schools are growing with increases in overall

enrollment and the number of virtual schools (Molnar et al., 2017). Additionally, virtual schools

can give affordances to different student populations. Some marginalized student populations,

such as low-performing students or those in poor/rural schools can be hindered by less access to

resources and less-qualified teachers, requiring remediation. Students with special needs, such as

those who have healthcare needs, have Individualized Education Plans, or those who are gifted,

can benefit from different models of virtual schools. They may need extra support, self-pacing,

accelerated classes, or cannot attend a school physically (Fernandez et al., 2016).

In considering a virtual school model, education leaders must consider various elements

of school models. The “comprehensiveness” of virtual schools distinguishes full-time virtual

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school versus supplemental online program (Wicks & Associates, 2010). Additionally “reach” is

the geographic reach of the VS within a school district, across multiple districts, state-wide, or

nationally (Wicks & Associates, 2010). Virtual schools must also consider the “delivery”

method, whether asynchronous, synchronous, or combination, which impacts course design and

teacher & student roles (Wicks & Associates, 2010). These considerations and others will form

the basis of the recommended virtual model for the XYZ District.

Recommended Model

The proposed model for XYZ District VS represents a full-time, online virtual school

separate from a student’s locally assigned school. The virtual school (VS) should start at the high

school level before opening for middle school. To promote socialization and student

engagement, the VS should provide online synchronous clubs, and students should be able to

participate in their locally schools’ clubs

Virtual School Model

Foundation

The XYZ District’s virtual school will be a full-time virtual school. The VS will provide

an alternate but equal form of education for grades 6th-12th with an emphasis on curiosity,

problem-solving, and critical thinking. Most classes and coursework will be asynchronous with

weekly deadlines for pacing of course materials and assignments. However, certain courses may

require synchronous group work or scheduled live classes depending on the subject and level of

support needed. The VS will also include the following elements:

 Follow traditional school calendar: start/end date & holidays

 6-hour expected school day

 24/7 access to LMS

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 Daily office hours

 8-hour access to counselors, admin, and support

 24/7 tech support

 Certified teachers and specialists

 Accredited high school graduation pathway

 Live after-school clubs

 Sports

Policies

Attendance & Absences: Required attendance and excused absences follows XYZ’s

current policy for schools. Students will log their attendance no later than 3pm on each school

day. The LMS will track hours and time spent. Students should spend at least 30 hours each

week (6 hours per day). For excused absences, parents must contact administrators that day. For

extended absences, parents must alert the admin and teachers to arrange for make-up work.

Disciplinary Action: Teachers, admin, and students must report breaches in integrity

(cheating, plagiarizing, bullying, harassment, destruction/tampering of school hardware and

software). Misconduct will be addressed according to severity based on XYZ’s current policies.

Grade Requirements & Graduation Plan: Sequencing of required courses in alignment

with the district. Incoming 8th graders will be required to meet with a counselor to create a plan

for graduation requirements, meeting at the end of each year to revisit the plan. Incoming 10th

graders must meet yearly with the counselor to discuss post-graduation plans.

Technology Requirements & Acceptable Use Policy: Students will be issued a laptop and

headset for school use to be connected to the VS server. Acceptable use entails appropriate

handling of the device, following guidelines of responsibility, conduct, security, & privacy, and
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adherence to website restrictions. Emphasis must be placed on all parties engaging in digital

citizenship.

Progress Reports: In addition to district-issued report cards, reports will be sent

weekly/monthly, depending on the course sequence, to provide students and parents with an

update on student progress and engagement with activities. Each teacher will send reports as an

alert for any needed support or accommodation.

Teacher Evaluation & Training: District-aligned with elements required of an online

instructor. A template from SREB’s (2006) Online Teaching Evaluation for State Virtual

Schools can be used as a model evaluation rubric. Mid-year and final evaluations will form the

basis of any follow-up training, PD, or actions to address concerns or need for reassignment.

Teacher & Student Surveys: Mid-year and final touchpoints as a reflection of

engagement, teaching & learning, and support to see if needs are being met. Results used for

ongoing adjustments of the VS model.

Administration

A strong school must include certain individuals to operate as a team with the interests of

the students in mind. The board should include school officials, district officials, virtual teachers,

and parent representatives. Board meetings should focus on assessing, evaluating, reevaluating,

and surveying stakeholders to gain an understanding of the successes and weaknesses of the

program to make continuous improvements based on XYZ’s mission for the VS. The school

must have an administrative team to handle tasks related to day-to-day school management:

 Principal: qualified individual capable of leading a team of instructors, administrators,

and specialists to uphold the mission

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 Assistant-Principal: qualified individual capable of supporting, evaluating, and training

instructors for an online environment

 Curriculum-Coordinators: qualified subject experts who understand pedagogy

 Special-Educators: qualified specialist knowledgeable about learning disabilities and

other circumstances with an IEP or 504 plan; can communicate with families and

teachers about student needs and steps to provide support

 Technology-Coordinator: qualified individual knowledgeable about software, hardware,

and ISTE standards to support teachers, students, and admin

 Counselor-Team (mental, college, disciplinary): team of qualified individuals who will

provide counseling support to students for social-emotional, graduation, & discipline

 Administrative-Head: in charge of day-to-day maintenance of the school, including

attendance, staffing, scheduling, parent communication, etc.

Course Development

In this VS model, courses must be developed with a team of educators and instructional

technology specialists before launch. The curriculum coordinator for each discipline must lead a

team of subject teachers, working together to develop each subject course. An assigned

instructional technology specialist must work with the team for creating materials to be stored on

the LMS in either static form (readings, videos, syllabus, assignment descriptions, etc.) or in

dynamic form (links to Web 2.0 instructional tools, embedded program, interactive LMS

activities, etc.). In alignment with traditional school’s curriculum and expected learning

outcomes, the team must develop course materials, activities, assessments, schedules, grade &

performance measures, teacher roles, and plan for support systems (office hours, tutor, TA, etc.)

for courses in a virtual environment.

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Program Implementation

Implementation of the VS model entails a staged approach starting with surveys, training,

trial runs, stepped launch starting with high school, and ongoing analysis of results. See the

proposed implementation plan below for a timeline of steps and strategies.

Criteria & Justification for Establishing a Sound Virtual School Model

In order to establish a sound VS model, certain criteria must be present, along with other

supporting elements. Six criteria necessary include:

1. Delivery method

2. Course development

3. Instructors

4. Platform

5. Accessibility

6. Support

The delivery method and course development must work in conjunction with one

another. The focus on asynchronous learning with synchronous elements will allow course

developers to determine the appropriate balance of asynchronous-synchronous work based on

expected learning outcomes and skills. The age of students must be considered in determining

how much autonomy, support, and scaffolds should be given to students, who need to learn skills

such as time management and organization, alongside essential skills such as written & oral

communication, collaboration, and critical thinking. Synchronous class meetings for most

subjects should be less than one session per week, and collaborative student work should be

scheduled amongst group members. Elective courses, such as music, drama, art, public speaking,

etc. may have more synchronous meetings as required, but they can also utilize screen-recording
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and video software. All synchronous sessions must be noted on the course calendar ahead of time

and cannot be changed. Sessions should be recorded for student and teacher reference.

Qualified instructors must be state-certified and trained for online teaching and learning.

The XYZ District should pair with a university to train teachers for online learning. Ongoing

professional development is necessary to stay abreast of research regarding pedagogy, child

development, and innovations in online learning. XYZ needs a strong team of instructors who

not know the content, can teach online, and can support students in developing skills necessary

for online learning. Without it students will be lost in the LMS activities. Students still require

scaffolded and support guidance from an experienced adult, even as they work individually.

The learning management system (LMS) is critical for the model as it represents the

virtual school “building.” It houses important course information, materials, and activities;

embeds critical software necessary for instruction; and provides a platform for communication

and collaboration that is asynchronous (email, instant-messaging, & discussion boards) and

synchronous (live chat & video conferencing). All school-related documents, syllabi, contact

information, and policies should be housed here to provide students and their families with

information up front. Frequent updates to the software and a strong cloud-based server will allow

for ease of use for students, teachers, and admin.

Accessibility needs must be addressed based on the elements of universal design for

learning (UDL). This includes ensuring the LMS is user-friendly, easily navigable, &

understandable, supports text readers, and has elements in place to allow for use of assistive

technology, extended-time assignments, and language barriers (UA Little Rock, n.d.). Videos

and graphics should be captioned & transcribed, and course materials (syllabus, schedule,

weekly action list) should be standardized with a template (UA Little Rock, n.d.). Teaching and
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learning activities should keep in mind UDL in the design phase to support all types of learners

by providing multiple means of engagement, representation, and action & expression to ensure

all students are able to achieve and succeed. This will help expand access to all students within

the district regardless of type of learning, disability, or other obstacles.

Support systems must exist in the VS model in a different form than traditional schools.

Counselors should be available for 8 hours to support students before, during, or after classes.

These include social-emotional, course sequencing, and academic support. Virtual office hours

should be set up with video-conferencing, where students can sign up for time-slots at any point

during the 8-hour counseling day. If needed, students can schedule short regular check-in

meetings. If a teacher or parent notices anything in the student’s assignments, work habits, etc.,

they should have the student visit counseling services. These supports are crucial because

students may feel isolated when learning from home, feel burned out from the amount of

individually-paced work, and could be dealing with other issues.

Course Design

In conjunction with the aforementioned course development process, care must be taken

in the design of each virtual course. This includes delivery method, online & offline materials,

and asynchronous & synchronous elements, as well as student access, pacing, and submission.

The type of course design for the VS represents a fully online environment with a blend of

asynchronous and synchronous activities. All materials and activities will be housed in the

learning management system (LMS) with an embedded video conferencing software for

synchronous class meetings and office hours.

The team of educators and instructional technology specialists is key to a course design

appropriate for the level of the course, age of students, and in alignment with learning outcomes.
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The design of each course must meet accessibility standards related to ease of use and access for

all elements in the LMS. The course should be designed with Universal Design for Learning

(UDL) to meet the needs of all types of learners and to address special needs proactively. Trying

to make accommodations in a virtual environment after the infrastructure is already in place will

prove to be harder than anticipating and addressing these concerns during development.

Addressing Hurdles

The XYZ District must proactively anticipate hurdles. XYZ must look at districts who

have virtual schools to identify strengths & weaknesses in adopting/adapting policies. All

stakeholders—parents, students, and teachers—must be involved using surveys. With teacher

surveys, the district can develop and design the VS model, considering staffing and training

needs. Teachers must be trained for online teaching and know the ins-and-outs of the platform,

instructional software, and technological tools. A technical team, consisting of software

engineers, IT support, and instructional technology specialists, is necessary to address hardware

and software needs for administrators, teachers, and students. Student engagement, involvement,

and socialization represents a major hurdle. This can be proactively addressed with opportunities

for extracurricular activities during & after the school day, online & with local schools. There

will be more hurdles in the development stage; however, creating an implementation plan will

help identify any hurdles.

Implementation Plan

The XYZ District must enact an implementation plan to execute the VS model. The

following represents a proposed plan and timeline starting in the spring of the current academic

year (noted as Year 0).

Action Timeline
Initial Survey  parent interest Spring Year-0
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Tech Team Spring Year-0 thru Fall Year-1

 Assemble tech team
 Select/create LMS
 Create templates for all LMS elements
Teacher Recruitment & Training Summer Year-0 & Fall Year-1
Course Development with Assessment Criteria Fall & Spring Year-1
 Curriculum: course outcomes, learning objectives,
instructional materials, activities
 Formative & summative assessments with rubric
 Midterms & Finals with rubric
Trial Program Fall & Spring Year-2
 High schoolers in core subjects
 Small cohort class for each grade
Post Survey  all stakeholders (parents, students, teachers, Spring Year-2
administration)
 Survey on outcomes of trial
Launch Full-Time VS  high school Fall Year-3
Assess Outcomes & Adjust Summer Year-3
 Assessment data
 Student-parent satisfaction, engagement, involvement
 Teacher evaluation & survey
 Assess need for teacher/admin training
Repeat steps for middle school launch Spring & Summer Year-3
 Initial Survey (parent & student preferences) Launch Fall Year-4
 Teacher Recruitment & Training
 Course Development
 Launch
 Assess Outcomes & Adjust
Assess & Adjust Ongoing

It is crucial to refine and develop policies, course design, and other elements throughout the

process before launching the full VS for high school. After the high school launches, revisiting

elements after surveying stakeholders and analyzing data will be crucial for improving the

program for middle school launch.

Conclusion

The XYZ District should launch a full-time virtual school for middle and high school

completely housed in an online platform with a focus on asynchronous learning blended with
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some synchronous opportunities. The VS model includes critical elements, policies, elements,

and stakeholders based on justification, anticipated obstacles, and an implementation plan. The

staged approach of starting with a trial program, high school launch, and then middle school

launch allows for adequate preparation before, during, and after launch to make necessary

adjustments to fully support student learning, success, and well-being.

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References

Molnar, A., Miron, G., Gulosino, C., Shank, C., Davidson, C., Barbour, M.K., Huerta, L.,

Shafter, S.R., Rice, J.K., & Nitkin, D. (2017). Virtual Schools in the US 2017. National

Education Policy Center. Retrieved from http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/virtual-

schoolsannual-2017

Southern Regional Education Board. (2006). Online teaching evaluation for state virtual schools.

Retrieved from https://learn.umgc.edu/content/enforced/545270-022072-01-2212-GO1-

9040/06t04_online_teaching_evaluation_checklist.pdf?

_&d2lSessionVal=6aE9W9B0cmDuMKSr4JdurHclo&ou=249101&_&d2lSessionVal=R

aRNXoe8t1vtaZw0lQXFaMmEb&ou=545270

UA Little Rock. (n.d). Ten steps towards universal design of online courses. Retrieved from

https://ualr.edu/disability/online-education/

Wicks, M. & Associates. (2010). National Primer on K-12 Online Learning. Washington DC:

iNacol. Retrieved from http://www.inacol.org/resource/a-national-primer-on-k-12-online-

learning-2nd-edition/
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Rubric for Assignment Four