by Bruce Friend
With rare exception, most publically funded supplemental online learning programs exclude home school students from being eligible to enroll in online courses and services. Such policies rightfully raise the philosophical debate as to why home school families, who are tax payers too, are not afforded the opportunity to take online courses through state or district programs.
Granted there are plenty of online learning options to choose from that are not offered through a state or district program; however, participation in such options often requires that tuition be paid by the home school family.
Armed with this information, I recently had the honor of testifying before a state Senate taskforce on online learning. The purpose of my participation was to provide insights on piece of legislation that is being considered that would impact student access to online learning options. In a nutshell, my recommendations to the taskforce members and elected officials can be summarized in the following points:
1. Eliminate barriers to access online education for all students, including home education students.
2. Establish criteria for which districts can receive funding for providing online education options
3. Develop funding models that allow for enrollment growth and be tied to a degree of student performance
4. Allow for choice of online providers for districts AND parents
5. Require that districts promote online options as a choice to all students
Home school supporters are no strangers to the fact that they need to vigilant in keeping watch for education policies that could negatively impact their ability to provide home instruction and to have appropriate access to publically funded service offerings. Access to online learning options is yet another example of where families should let their voices be heard.
If you have questions about the use of online learning and what options may be available to you, feel free to email me at: bruce.friend@sas.com
Bruce Friend is the Director of SAS® Curriculum Pathways®, an award-winning education resource that provides online lessons, engaging tools and activities at no cost to U.S. educators. Bruce has spent the past decade working in the field of online learning. He is a national pioneer in helping to establish the country’s first statewide online program and has been the chief administrator of two state virtual schools.
In 2003 he was honored with the “Most Outstanding Achievement in Distance Education” award by the US Distance Learning Association. Prior to joining SAS, Bruce was the Vice President of the International Association for K12 Online Learning; a non-profit organization that provides support to students, parents, and online learning programs.
With rare exception, most publically funded supplemental online learning programs exclude home school students from being eligible to enroll in online courses and services. Such policies rightfully raise the philosophical debate as to why home school families, who are tax payers too, are not afforded the opportunity to take online courses through state or district programs.
Granted there are plenty of online learning options to choose from that are not offered through a state or district program; however, participation in such options often requires that tuition be paid by the home school family.
Armed with this information, I recently had the honor of testifying before a state Senate taskforce on online learning. The purpose of my participation was to provide insights on piece of legislation that is being considered that would impact student access to online learning options. In a nutshell, my recommendations to the taskforce members and elected officials can be summarized in the following points:
1. Eliminate barriers to access online education for all students, including home education students.
2. Establish criteria for which districts can receive funding for providing online education options
3. Develop funding models that allow for enrollment growth and be tied to a degree of student performance
4. Allow for choice of online providers for districts AND parents
5. Require that districts promote online options as a choice to all students
Home school supporters are no strangers to the fact that they need to vigilant in keeping watch for education policies that could negatively impact their ability to provide home instruction and to have appropriate access to publically funded service offerings. Access to online learning options is yet another example of where families should let their voices be heard.
If you have questions about the use of online learning and what options may be available to you, feel free to email me at: bruce.friend@sas.com
Bruce Friend is the Director of SAS® Curriculum Pathways®, an award-winning education resource that provides online lessons, engaging tools and activities at no cost to U.S. educators. Bruce has spent the past decade working in the field of online learning. He is a national pioneer in helping to establish the country’s first statewide online program and has been the chief administrator of two state virtual schools.
In 2003 he was honored with the “Most Outstanding Achievement in Distance Education” award by the US Distance Learning Association. Prior to joining SAS, Bruce was the Vice President of the International Association for K12 Online Learning; a non-profit organization that provides support to students, parents, and online learning programs.
