Jason LaFrance

Mapping the Terrain: Educational Leadership Field Experiences in K-12 Virtual Schools

Opportunities for K-12 students to choose virtual and blended learning experiences continue to grow. All 50 states including Washington, D.C., now offer some virtual experience in K-12 education. Of these, 40 states have state virtual schools or state-led online learning initiatives. In addition, federal and state support for this type of learning continues to expand. Field experiences are beginning to be available for virtual school teachers; however, little information is available on field experiences for pre-service administrators in virtual K-12 settings. This study provides a status report on the state of school administrator preparation for K-12 online and blended learning programs in the United States. This research was conducted by surveying initial certification Educational Leadership programs regarding the extent that pre-service administrators are exposed to K-12 online learning environments. Results indicate that very few Educational Leadership programs provide any administrator preparation for leading a K-12 virtual school or teachers of online courses. Important ramifications exist for Educational Leadership programs preparing educators to lead fully online and blended learning programs.

Challenges of Virtual School Leadership.

The purpose of this case study was to examine challenges faced by virtual school leaders in the United States. Through semistructured interviews, the researchers explored challenges faced by eighteen leaders of fully online or blended online programs. Analysis revealed six main challenges: funding, staff, accountability, time, parents, and professional development. The researchers found virtual school leaders face many of the same categorical challenges as leaders in brick-and-mortar schools. The nuances of the challenges, however, are distinct. The researchers concluded that the field of educational leadership must respond to the needs of these leaders through preservice training, in-service professional development, policy reform, and additional research.

Preparing Education Professionals for K-12 Online Learning Programs

This chapter discusses the need for preparing all education professionals, including teachers, school psychologists, school counselors, administrators, school media specialists, and education technologists for virtual schools and other K-12 online learning programs. It provides some base information about what preparatory programs can do to help candidates understand the needs of the growing number of K-12 students who are enrolled in online learning programs, whether they are 100 % online, hybrid, or blended. This chapter serves as a call-to-action for preparatory programs to start thinking critically about what they are doing (or not doing) to prepare their candidates for this new learning environment.

Learner Self-Efficacy in K-12 Online Environments

In this chapter, we examine learner self-efficacy broadly in K-12 face-to-face classrooms, learner efficacy in K-12 online learning, and then specifically issues related to self-efficacy based on the demographic characteristics of the learners. We do this with the understanding that self-efficacy beliefs are context specific [Hodges, Performance Improvement Quarterly, 20(3–4), 7–25, 2008]. From there, we review the literature on the learners’ level of preparation and how self-efficacy can be improved in online contexts.

Online Schooling in the United States: A Response to Saultz and Fusarelli

ABSTRACT In this paper, we discuss some concerns and recommendations of Saultz and Fusarelli (2017), offering nuanced and detailed views of online schooling from a different perspective. This includes addressing challenges regarding online learning such as fluctuating enrollments, financial concerns, quality assurance, and accountability. In addition, we propose recommendations related to funding, better quality data, and oversight and monitoring. We conclude with a short discussion of the need for differentiated research for specific online learning contexts.

Personalization of Learning: Lessons from RTT-D Winners

This article presents a synthesis of personalization of learning strategies as extracted from 16 school district proposals funded in the 2012 Race to the Top (RTT-D) federal grant program. Personalization of learning strategies fell into six overall themes: digital learning materials and courses, data and data systems, curriculum and teaching, repurposed learning facilities, human capital, and professional development. For each theme, the article offers a summary, exemplars from the district proposals, and additional recommended resources.