Planes, Trains & Automobiles

All three are exactly alike really. They are merely different modes of transportation, designed to take people and/or products from one place to another -- from Point A to Point B.

Yet, they each have a niche and those who serve their niche well thrive.

Done properly they can complement each other and the overall economy is the better for it.

The same is true in education. Virtual, blended and traditional. Public, private and charter. Choose any three you like. Alternative, home-based, homeschool. The words are interchangeable. Each is merely a different mode of educating the young. Each has a niche to serve.

Those who understand their niche, cater to it, design for it, market to it, and serve it properly will thrive. Imagine though if each mode of education complemented each other rather than competed against one another.

What would learning look like then?

houston@figment-consulting.com

K12 responds to the report from the charter school advocacy group

The National Alliance for Public Charter Schools recently released a report that calls for stronger oversight of virtual charter schools. Albeit a little weird that the charter school alliance would call out a segment of its own, it is quite telling as to what is going on.

The Alliance's main points are:

* Rethink the ways in which virtual charter schools are governed

* Move quickly to close virtual charter schools that perform poorly

* Remove virtual charter schools from the charter designation

K12, the leader in virtual schools, issued a response to the report. (I imagine Connections will also respond soon)

Their main points are:

* The report issued was not collaborative because virtual charter schools were not consulted

* The report relied on analysis of old data and did not account for recent data

* Most troubling was the report's call for "criteria for admission" essentially removing the ability for the parents to decide on enrollment

* The recommendations from the report to improve virtual charter schools should be applied to all charter schools

We have now entered a very strange season where the charter school movement is trying to distance itself from one of its subsets -- virtual charter schools.

While I have written extensively on the problems and potential solutions associated with mainly K12-managed virtual schools, I do happen to agree with a few points made by K12 in their response:

1. "Criteria admission" would essentially negate the whole idea of school choice associated with virtual schools While I do believe virtual schools should do a much better job of helping families make the best decision for them (being more authentic about the workload, responsibilities, daily requirements, etc.), at the end of the day, it is up to the parent to decide if they are willing to commit to it or not. In reality, it is parent choice, not school choice, meaning the parents choose.

2. The K12 curriculum for grades K - 8 is, in my opinion and experience, one of the best out there. Granted, it has not helped much within the virtual charter school arena in terms of academic achievement and test scores it still remains a gold standard in terms of quality across the board. I happen to believe the academic issues associated with the virtual charter schools have less to do with the curriculum and more to do with the time commitment, workload investment, etc.

At the same time, I do agree with the idea behind the report that BOLD steps must be taken in order to right the virtual charter school ship. Actually, I say burn this ship, and let's build a different one entirely - but that's for another blog post.

The fact of the matter is, everyone agrees that virtual learning works for only some. Those it works for are willing to put in the hard work, and are self-motivated with a strong family unit for support.

However, those who tend to enroll in virtual schools are enrolling to get away from something. They are not enrolling in order to get to something.

houston@figment-consulting.com

Crafting a Virtual School Marketing Plan Webinar (Updated)

THIS EVENT IS NOW FULL. Email me if you want to attend a future webinar on this topic at houston@figment-consulting.com.

Yesterday I shared details on my upcoming 90-minute webinar Crafting a Virtual School Marketing Plan, and the initial response has been better than I anticipated.

There are still a few spaces remaining though for the webinar. So, if you want to register, simply go to my web site Figment-Consulting.com and fill in the information. The event is scheduled for Monday, March 28, at 11:00 a.m. ET. A link will be provided to all registrants prior to the event.

During the webinar we will cover a variety of topics, strategies, and messaging to help virtual schools create a more effective and efficient plan to reach better-fit students, capture more of them, and retain them.

We will cover topics such as:

Positioning -- how do you differentiate yourself from other virtual schools?

Price -- if it is tuition-free why is price so important?

Public relations -- how do you get your message out in a toxic environment toward virtual schools?

Place -- what does it feel like to be with you? When people visit your web site, your event, your office, what does that do to them and for them?

Other topics will carry us down the path toward a cohesive approach to marketing that is applicable in whichever state you operate in.

So, I invite you to join me for this webinar. It is guaranteed to generate a great ROI for you.

houston@figment-consulting.com

The edge

The edge can be a scary place.

It's lonely out there.

You feel exposed out there.

You are just not sure it can support you out there.

But, the edge is also the place where remarkable happens.

The edge is also the place where real change occurs.

The edge is also the place where virtual schools need to go.

Embrace the edge and you can impact the world.


houston@figment-consulting.com

Cyber Schools Are Failing, So Why Are They Expanding? I have an answer.

neaToday published an article, Cyber Schools Are Failing, So Why Are They Expanding?, that discusses recent findings from a study conducted by the National Education Policy Center.

The study laments the ongoing performance of cyber, or virtual, schools across the country, and singles out K12, Inc. and Connections Academy. The graph shown in the article though demonstrates the rapid growth in enrollment at these virtual schools (now over 250,000) since their inception in spite of all of this evidence.

This takes us back to the title of the article: Cyber Schools Are Failing, So Why Are They Expanding?

The answer: Parents are unhappy, and the last time I checked happiness was not an empirical concept but an emotional one.

Perhaps we should spend as much time in the educational experience of students/families as we do in the empirical evidence world.

houston@figment-consulting.com