Future Now! the is A Guide for Parents and Students

2 About VHS z A non profit collaborative of 200+ high schools offering innovative online courses z Currently in 8th year of online course delivery z $10M and 5 years of R&D effort

3 A note to parents and students Thank you for your interest in Virtual High School. Please take a few minutes to review these slides – we hope you’ll learn enough today to speak with your school administration about participation in VHS. Many of these slides have Notes with additional information. To access Notes: click View (on the top of your screen) and select Notes Page. You will be able to see the slide as well as the accompanying narrative. Or, move your mouse pointer toward the bottom of the slide until it turns into an arrow, then click and hold your mouse and scroll up until you see the white Notes box below the slide. Thanks, Liz Pape, CEO

4 When was Virtual High School developed? zFounded in 1996 yConcord Consortium & Hudson Public Schools, Hudson, Massachusetts yGrant funded : US Dept of Ed.Technology Innovation Challenge Grant zPurpose yDevelop Internet-based online courses for high school students. yResearch and evaluation by SRI (Stanford Research International

5 yBroadened course selection y21 st century and ICT skills yThe opportunity to participate in virtual communities of global learners yLearning with technology, instead of about technology

6 21 st Century and ICT skills zStudents gain skills needed for the workplace: yability to research, filter and assess information yfind the best information possible ydevelop better inquiry skills ydevelop rich multimedia presentation skills yexperience collaborative working groups yextend vision and community beyond the geographic community

7 VHS Net Courses are INTERACTIVE zInteraction ystudent to student ystudent to teacher zThreads ydiscussion group threads yprivate threads yteam threads

8 z A Shakespeare Who-Dun-It: Introduction to Shakespeare z Academic Writing z Access: Database Structure and Application z American Foreign Policy z American History: All History is Local History z American Multiculturalism z American Popular Music VHS Course Sampling

9 More VHS Courses... zPre-AP Calculus zAP Biology zAP Economics zPre-AP English Lit. zAP Statistics zAstronomy: Stars and the Cosmos zPre-veterinary medicine z Constitutional Law z Genes and Disease z Folklore and Literature of Myth, Magic and Ritual z The Holocaust z Introduction to Programming in Visual Basic

10 Role of VHS Site Coordinator yMonitors student progress yEnrolls students in VHS courses yProvides technical support to VHS students and teachers yServes as physical link to VHS teacher for students yServes as teacher presence to parents of VHS students yCourse materials coordinator

11 What about Quality Control? zVHS design and delivery standards yVHS courses are written to National Curriculum standards, and VHS design standards yVHS faculty advisors and professional growth model ensure adherence to VHS course delivery standards

12 Quality Control zHow we achieve it: yStrict adherence to approved curriculum and design standards yOne-to-one mentoring for new instructors yWeekly monitoring for speed, quality and quantity of teacher feedback yAll teachers are certified and “highly qualified” Customer survey results: þ98%+ overwhelmingly satisfied with their VHS membership þ99% say their school board members, parents and community perceive VHS as a positive offering þ95%+ are very satisfied with the quality of VHS courses

13 zAsynchronous yTeachers and students live in different time zones yStudents can access class at any time z25 students or fewer in each class yStudents work on a computer connected to the internet at least three times a week yTeachers and students communicate via a written discussion area located in the Web classroom area

14 Students logon to VHS via the Internet

15 After logging in with a private password, students can access their course and other content.

16 The Course Menu lists the separate areas for students in each course. Lessons Discussions Media Center Announcements Grades Private Threads Teams Classmates Teacher Info Tools

17 The Lessons area lists student assignments and gives the due dates

18 The Discussions area is where students communicate with the teacher or classmates in their VHS course.

19 The Media Center contains resources for the class. Students can learn about their classmates in the Classmates area.

20 How VHS Meets School Needs þInstantly expands curriculums by over 150 courses þScheduling flexibility þExpert instruction and training to VHS teachers and site coordinators at your school þNational & global experiences, locally þContinuous new program offerings

21 VHS Success Rates z90% course completion rates z76% of students taking a VHS course receive a C or better. z79% of students taking a VHS Advanced Placement (AP) course receive a 3 or higher. yNational average pass rate 3+ = 60%

22 Students say: z“I wish that this opportunity were available all throughout my high school years. Now I know how hard I have to work to really compete outside my school.”

23 Contact Information yWendy Papkoff or ySandra Rowe, VHS Director of Membership & Marketing or

24 VHS will help YOU …. 4Expand your curriculum offerings 4Provide flexible scheduling options 4Encourage national and international collaboration among students and teachers 4Participate in high quality professional development 4Adopt cost effective solutions