School districts plan to roll out virtual academies
Local school districts are beginning to release plans for how they’ll teach students in the midst of a global health pandemic this fall and many of them are including virtual academies in that lineup.
Waterford School District, Huron Valley Schools and West Bloomfield School District are three of those districts which are planning to launch online schooling in September. It’s something that school administrators have been preparing for since the first wave of COVID-19 began, according to Lisa Eldredge, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning services at Waterford Schools.
Waterford will be expanding its use of a program called Edgenuity to create its virtual academy. It’s been primarily used in the district to supplement in person classes, academic intervention and for continued learning at home. It’s an adaptive program, said Eldredge, meaning the learning modules are adjusted for each individual child from elementary to high school.
“If you have a sixth grade student taking a math class, and they’re struggling with a problem, the program will take them back and re-teach what the student got wrong,” Eldredge said. “Teachers can see how many times the student was taken back in the program, so they can monitor and understand what the student still needs help with.”
Because Edgenuity’s high school modules are National Collegiate Athletic Association certified, the district uses them as-is. At the middle and elementary levels, there’s more room for teachers to add or tweak content for students. One-on-one teaching sessions and small group instruction will be available for online students through Google Classroom.
Families and students are being asked to make a one semester commitment to enrolling either online or for in-person classes. Scott Lindberg, superintendent, said there’s still a lot of uncertainty surrounding who will stay home and who will come to class.
“If you would have asked me two weeks ago, I could have given you a lower
number estimate on who will be staying home. But what we do know is that we have to provide our parents options with a personal touch,” he said. “We’re seeing how things change by the day.”
In West Bloomfield, the district is launching a new Lakers Online remote learning program for kindergarten students through 12th grade. Students will have until July 27 to enroll for in person classes, with 140-seats available throughout the district for school of choice students.
The district will host a webinar about Lakers Online at 7 p.m. on July 14. A link to the meeting can be found at wbsd.org/lakersonline. Huron Valley Schools is also launching a new program, the Huron Valley Virtual Academy. A recent district-wide survey showed 30% of families were interested in participating in online schooling.
“It’s important to recognize that the academic experience provided by the virtual academy will be significantly different from the district’s phase three learning plan implemented over the past several weeks,” Dr. Paul Salah, superintendent of Huron Valley Schools, said. “My main message for families is HVS will have an option for you, regardless of the educational experience you’re seeking for your child.”