Educational Technology

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The Texas Education Agencys Electronic Course
Pilot and Distance Learning Update

• Educational Technology
• Curriculum Division
• Texas Education Agency
• January 2005

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In the beginning

• There were correspondence courses
• And it was good.

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Then there were distance learning courses

• instructional television,
• satellite,
• two-way videoconferencing,
• Internet
• and blended technologies
• And it was even better!

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TAC 74.23

• Correspondence Courses
• and Distance Learning
• Credit toward state
• graduation requirements
• may be granted under the
• following conditions

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TAC 74.23

• Correspondence Courses-
• The institution offering correspondence courses
  must be The University of Texas at Austin, Texas
  Tech University, or another public institution of
  higher
• education approved by the
• commissioner of education

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TAC 74.23

• Distance Learning-
• Students may earn course credit through distance
  learning technologies, such as, but not limited
  to, satellite, Internet, two-way
  videoconferencing, and
• instructional television

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TAC 74.23

• The correspondence courses and distance learning
  courses must include the essential knowledge and
  skills as specified in Ch. 74.1 (relating to the
  Essential Knowledge and Skills) for such a course.

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State Policy- Summary

• Correspondence Courses-
• Must be through
• UT, Austin or
• Texas Tech

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State Policy- Summary

• Distance Learning Courses-
• Schools may grant state credit toward graduation
  as long as they have determined, to their
  satisfaction, that a course meets or exceeds the
  Texas Essential Knowledge
• and Skills.

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Providers and Resources

• Course Providers
• School districts
• Education Service Centers
• Higher Education
• Non-Profits
• For-profit vendors

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PEIMS

• Its VERY IMPORTANT to
• Code all correspondence courses and
• distance learning courses
• in PEIMS.

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PEIMS Distance Learning Codes

• Satellite
• Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS)
• Videoconferencing
• Internet
• Variety of above in
• combination with Internet

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PEIMS Distance Learning Indicator Code

• PEIMS Data Standards- Code Table C167
• www.tea.state.tx.us/peims/standards

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• Be sure your PEIMS coordinator
• knows that all distance
• learning courses must be
• coded in PEIMS!!!

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Statewide online learning pilot programs

• Virtual School Pilot (VSP)
• Investigating the Quality of Online Courses (IQ)
  Pilot

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Virtual Schools Pilot (VSP)

• Established by SB 975
• Implemented 2001-2003, ending Aug. 31, 2003
• Focused on restrictions impacting schools
  offering electronic courses to middle and high
  school
• Included students who were
• not physically present for all
• or part of these courses.

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VSP

• Allowed TEA to
• Examine electronic courses as viable educational
  alternative
• Study methods of tracking/verifying student
  participation in online courses
• Test three funding models other than current
  attendance accounting
• model based on seat time in
• a traditional classroom

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Investigating the Quality of Online Courses (IQ)
Pilot

• IQ Pilot
• Established quality of service guidelines for
  online courses to provide assurance to the state
  and to schools that courses meeting the
  guidelines will be of the highest quality and be
• aligned with state
• curriculum standards.

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What weve learned so far

• Online courses meet various needs of
  diverse student populations
• Courses not offered locally
• Shortage of certified teachers in content area
• Very few students need to take a specific course
• Additional courses for
• schedule flexibility

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What weve learned so far

• Option for students with different family, work
  and learning needs
• Accelerated study
• Credit Recovery
• Alternative opportunity
• Allows schools to offer courses required for
  Recommended High
• School Graduation Plan

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What weve learned so far

• Increased parental involvement
• Increased interaction with students in some cases
  
• Students underestimated work required in online
  courses
• Schools overestimated enrollment
• and ease of establishing
• online programs

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What weve learned so far

• Online teachers need specialized training
• Schools need time to plan and implement virtual
  programs

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What weve learned so far

• Requests for online courses continue to increase
• Online courses not readily available to all
  students
• Online courses not for all students
• Online courses not for all teachers

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Online Course Evaluation Matrix

• As a result of the IQ Pilot-
• Online course evaluation tool for school
  administrators, teachers, parents and course
  providers to use for reviewing courses delivered
  over the Internet
• the Quality of Service
• Online Course
• Evaluation Matrix

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Quality of Service Guidelines for Online Courses

• I. Course Components
• Course Design
• Course Content
• Instructional strategies and activities
• Learning community
• Student assessments
• Technology integration
• Course effectiveness

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Quality of Service Guidelines for Online Courses

• II. Support
• Technical support
• Student/parent services
• Administrative reports
• Professional development

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Quality of Service Guidelines for Online Courses

• III. Financial Components
• Economics
• Company background
• Intellectual property
• Marketing

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• Quality of Service Guidelines for Online Courses
  www.iqstandards.info
• 2002 report to Legislature Electronic Courses and
  Virtual Learning Programs
• www.tea.state.tx.us/.

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Current Status

• Growing interest in online courses
• Most students take one or two at a time
• State needs to explore alternative funding
  mechanisms for public school students taking
  online course while not on campus and to look at
  ways
• to allow virtual and traditional
• classes to be combined for
• state funding.

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Whats new?

• Electronic Course Pilot (eCP)
• Established by Senate Bill 1108
• Builds on the lessons learned through two
  previous pilot programs
• The Virtual Schools Pilot (VSP)
• The Investigating the Quality of
• Online Courses (IQ) Pilot

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Electronic Course Pilot

• Calls for Commissioner to establish a new program
  to
• examine state policies, requirements and
  restrictions impacting school districts that
  offer students enrolled in the district an
  electronic educational program or course that
  includes use of the Internet or other electronic
  media in which the
• student and a teacher are in
• different locations for a
• majority of the students
• instructional period.

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Pilot must result in information and
recommendations that address these three critical
questions

• 1. Does online delivery of courses work
  educationally?
• 2. What is the appropriate level of state funding
  for online courses?
• 3. How can the state sufficiently monitor online
  courses? (Audit financially,
  collect/track PEIMS data, assure
  student assessment is appropriate,
  reliable and administered correctly)

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Funding

• No funding provided through SB 1108 to implement
  the program
• Commissioner given authority to charge districts
  a fee
• eCP is not a grant program!
• State may fund participating districts up to but
  not to exceed the full
• equivalent funding that would have
• been received in regular classroom
• attendance

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Electronic Course Pilot

• eCP Terms of Participation
• and application released
• Dec. 6, 2004 via TEA website
• 15-20 applicants to be selected for participation
  
• Applicants to propose funding
• model and method to equate
• funding model to current method
• of funding via ADA

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Funding Models

• Applicants will propose one or more
• funding models.
• Each model must include a detailed, observable
  and measurable method describing
• how student participation and progress will be
  monitored and verified and
• How student participation
• will translate (equate) to
• states current system of ADA

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Electronic Course Pilot

• This equated funding method will serve
• as the students attendance for purposes of
  calculating state funding

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Electronic Course Pilot

• Public school districts and charter schools are
  eligible to apply to participate
• Participating districts to be eligible for
• ADA funding up to 100 ADA
• Selected participants may begin their programs
  this spring through
• Aug. 31, 2005

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Electronic Course Pilot

• School districts and open enrollment charters may
  include in the eCP
• Grades 3-12 Texas public school students who are
• enrolled in their school and
• reside within their district boundaries
• or the existing open-enrollment
• charter geographic service
• area boundaries, and

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Electronic Course Pilot

• whom they are already authorized to serve
  according to state law
• unless there is a written agreement with the
  students home district (ISD of residence)

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Benefits of participation in eCP

• Potential to earn additional state funding for
  public school students not currently earning ADA
  or earning less than full ADA
• Add to knowledge about online learning
• Impact policy and the future
• of online learning in Texas

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For more information
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• If your school is currently offering electronic
  courses or prepared to begin offering courses
• Or, if you are interested in participating next
  year

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eCP Application

• Visit our website at www.tea.state.tx.us.
• Hot Topics Electronic Course Pilot
• Letter to Administrator
  Addressed
• Attachments at bottom of letter link to
• eCP Terms of Participation
• eCP Application forms and directions
• DEADLINE 500 p.m. CST
• February 14, 2005

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Questions or Comments

• Send questions or comments to eCP mailbox at
• ecp_at_tea.state.tx.us

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Future of online learning in Texas?

• TEA to make recommendations to Legislature based
  on eCP
• Dec. 2006
• New legislation this session
• ???

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Survey

• Ask you to complete the survey today
• Request your input on virtual learning programs
  at your school
• Need your feedback to inform policy and increase
  support for high-quality online learning in
  Texas.

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Now available on the TEA website

• Progress Report on the
• Long-Range Plan for Technology
• www.tea.state.tx.us