getting started with a virtual school program featuring cobb county school district

Monday June 28, 2010Ryan Fuller, Online Learning Specialist, Cobb County School District

Becky Nunnally, Supervisor, Cobb Virtual Academy, CCSD

Cheryl Rowley, Cobb Virtual Academy Administrator, CCSD

Mike Lange, Solutions Engineer, Blackboard K-12

Getting Started with a Virtual School Program featuring Cobb County School District

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Born from education

in 1997

20 million users

1,000+ of us, working with 5,200+ of you

Extended by 2,500

developers and partners

9 global offices across 4 continents

+

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• Close the gap between the way students live and the way they learn

• Deliver a 21st Century educational experience that is engaging, individualized and effective

Our Vision:

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• An open, web-based teaching and learning platform for engaging and assessing learners in and beyond the classroom

• 3,000+ clients, 15+ million estimated active users, at all levels of learning

• Local or hosted deploymentEngaging and assessing learners at all levels

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Client Community

COBB COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

Blackboard Client Spotlight

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www.cobbvirtualacademy.orgSlide number 7

Getting Started with a Virtual School Program

Becky Nunnally

Cheryl Rowley

Ryan Fuller

www.cobbvirtualacademy.org8

Cobb County School District

• Located in metropolitan Atlanta, GA

• 106,000 students in 120 schools

• 2nd largest school system in Georgia

• 26th largest school system in the U.S.

• Socioeconomically diverse


Cobb Virtual Academy• Administers:

– Whole course instruction for high-school credit

– Blended learning opportunities

• Over 9,000 high school students have participated in courses for credit since 2001

• Year-round course offerings

• 22 core courses offered for block and traditional


Program Beginnings

Virtual HS eHigh Cobb

Consortium School Virtual

(1998) (2000) Academy

(2009)


Program Beginnings

Why did we start?

• Mass public education vs. individualized instruction

• Increased student mobility

• Increased technology awareness


Launching the Program

• Small group of online advocates

• Funding– Seed money– Tuition funding

• Partnered with Professional Learning

• Select stable, reliable LMS

• Developed Courses


Lessons Learned:

Getting Started

• Everything takes longer than you realize

• Time should be focused on students, teachers, curriculum… NOT the Learning Management System

• Know your Learning Management System

• Establish district-level eLearning protocols


Growing & Sustaining

• Develop champions of program within District

• Establish guidelines, policies, and procedures

• Core Team Focus

• Teacher Identification and Development

• Quality courses

• Marketing

• Creative funding


Lessons Learned:

Growing and Sustaining• Don’t bite off more than you can chew: Learning

Management System (1998), Content System (2003), Community (2008)

• Quality takes resources

• Don’t try to do it on your own but evolve quickly

• Focus on graduation requirements

• Network with other programs via conferences & national/state/local organizations


Course Creation:

Develop In-House

Pro

• Control

– Standards Alignment

– Course Organization

• Familiarity

• Involve multiple people in District

• Cost

Con

• Internal talent for digital curriculum development

• Project management


Course Creation:

Share with Other Organizations

Pro

• Cost

• Interactive Resources already developed

• Can keep only the best parts

Con

• LMS Portability

• Time to Reorganize

• Lack of familiarity

• Hidden Costs


Course Creation:

Purchase a whole course

Pro

• Quality digital content

• Time

Con

• Cost

• Standards gaps

• LMS portability

• Reorganization


Lessons Learned:

Course Creation• Good Teachers may not equal good developers

• Hidden costs – time, people money

• Infuse quality in all aspects

• Minimize gap between administration and deploying a successful course

• Continuous course development process

• Nothing completely ready out-of-the-box

• Minimize technical requirements for students


Math I

Aligned by State Standards


Math I

Lessons and Assignments


Math I

Lessons created in SoftChalk


Math I

Assignments built in Bb Test


Blended Learning

• Started in 2007

• Today, over 5000 students and 500 teachers

• Helps prepare students for post-secondary

• Promotes online learning for students

• Blackboard licensing

• Builds online learning evangelists


Next Steps

• Build courses to meet multiple needs (credit recovery, standards mastery, remediation for state-mandated tests)

• Build an online environment to move students from teacher-directed to student-directed learning

• Continue to search for alternative funding sources

BlackboardCase Study

Innovative and Digital Learning in New Mexico: IDEAL-NM

• State wide online learning system

• 500,000 students

• New Mexico

Challenge: State-Wide Online Learning Opportunities

Connect teaching, learning, and training forthe state’s K-20, adult education, and government communities.

Blackboard Solution: Anytime, Anywhere Access to Learning

The IDEAL-NM initiative partnered with Blackboard to replace 22 different technology systems with a statewide integrated implementation of Blackboard Learn.• NM is the first state in the nation to deploy

such a comprehensive, highly-connected, and scalable K20 and adult education system that facilitates life-long learning

• Expanding professional development and training for state agencies

Blackboard

Case Study

Deer Valley United School District

• 36,500+ students

• 36 schools

• Arizona

Challenge: Expanding Access while Decreasing CostsIncrease enrollments and reduce costs for their summer school program.

Blackboard Solution: Anytime Anywhere Access to Learning

Deer Valley switched from face-to-face to online summer school by leveraging Blackboard Learn.

• Increased enrollments from 250 to 1,500 during the first online summer offering

• Decreased operating expenses by 80% and still charges the same affordable tuition

• More than 4 times as many classes are now available to students during the summer

Thank you! Questions?

Ryan Fuller, Online Learning Specialist

Becky Nunnally, Supervisor, Cobb Virtual Academy

Cheryl Rowley, Cobb Virtual Academy Administrator

[email protected]

cobbvirtualacademy.org

www.blackboard.com/k12/learn

(866) 424-9299 ext. 2427

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getting started with a virtual school program featuring cobb county school district

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