Bills address growing field of online learning

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Daniel Clark's blindness doesn't hinder his passion for writing.

But his school's inability to offer specialized courses did make it more difficult to study poetry — until the Washington State School for the Blind tapped into the power of the Internet.

On a recent morning the high-school senior hunched toward his computer keyboard, his hands flying through the key commands he uses to navigate the Web site of his poetry course.

Special speech software reads him a poem written by one of his online classmates.

"I have a creative spirit and I love to write," he said. "This is one of the best things I've done."

No brick-and-mortar school can offer every course its students desire, but online courses can offer a broader range of classes.

That's why educators around the state are keeping close track of legislation that promises to increase Washington students' access to Internet courses.

Bills winding their way through both state houses outline for the first time how the state should pay for online courses taken by public-school students. Under the current rules, most Internet classes aren't eligible for state money.

"It's so important for this to go through," said Dean Stenehjem, superintendent of the school for the blind. "It's one more tool for districts to have to improve the quality of their services."

The state now requires that students have face-to-face contact with teachers and that teachers organize learning plans for schoolwork done away from the school building. But the reality of Internet courses makes those requirements difficult to meet.

"We have programs that want to capitalize on those opportunities, yet the policy is a barrier to that," said Martin Mueller, director of learning and teaching support at the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Redefining "contact"

The Federal Way Internet Academy collided with the state's rules last year. The online school run by Federal Way Public Schools faced losing its funding after a state auditor found its courses didn't meet the policy. The Legislature stepped in, allowing the digital-learning programs to receive money through June of this year.

Rep. Gigi Talcott, R-Tacoma, the House bill's sponsor, said creating rules for digital learning makes the programs accountable to the taxpayers.

The legislation redefines terms such as "teacher contact" to include instant messaging or e-mail, making the programs eligible for state money.

The bill requires school districts to verify that students are doing their own work, regularly review the courses and, in some cases, have the students take state assessment tests.

Schools would receive money for students taking online courses based on the course's activities and the estimated weekly hours the student spends on the class.

Expanded offerings

At the school for the blind, students have taken online courses for almost two years as part of a statewide pilot program called the Digital Learning Commons. With the Internet classes, the school is able to offer 200 more courses than it had before.

In the school's computer lab recently, senior Darrell Borchardt sat with his face inches away from a computer screen. The display showed messages from other students in his folklore course.

Cataracts and glaucoma have limited Borchardt's vision. He uses a large monitor and colored words to make reading easier.

The Internet courses also have a less-obvious perk for students with disabilities.

"Connecting with classmates is easier online," Borchardt said. "You don't have to go by appearances or how you look; you just go by how you write."

Judy Margrath-Huge, chief executive officer at the Digital Learning Commons, said students list scheduling problems and unavailable courses as the main reasons they take Internet courses.

One small, rural Eastern Washington school lost its math teacher. The school couldn't find a replacement, so the students took their math class online.

Footnote

The digital-learning bills are House Bill 1633 and Senate Bill 5828.