In South Carolina, much focus was applied to the End of Course Examinations Program, or EOCEP. The EOCEP was used to measure mastery of academic standards in gateway courses. School effectiveness and student proficiency were two areas measured by individual student outcomes. All public schools were subject to EOCEP testing in South Carolina.…

Over the last decade there was constant growth of online schools over the last decade, and this is expected to continue. Noting the previous research of the importance of school leadership on student achievement and the expected growth of virtual schools, leaders of these schools need to possess and demonstrate new knowledge and skills beyond…

The charter school sector has expanded beyond brick-and-mortar schools to cyber schools, where enrollment grew almost tenfold between 2015 and 2020. While a large literature documents the effects of charter schools on test scores, fewer studies explore impacts on attainment or postsecondary outcomes and there is almost no work exploring the…

Parents and students have a number of growing options to choose from when it comes to their educational settings in most states. One growing educational option is online education (Hasler-Waters et al., 2014). With distance learning growing in recent years, more research is needed involving this educational platform (Hasler-Waters, et. al. 2014).…

The COVID-19 pandemic changed schools' reality and posed a wide range of challenges for school leaders, such as a re-examination of principals' and teachers' authority and leadership in the schools' virtual spaces. Teaching methods and social-emotional aspects of learning were challenged as well. The school faculty had to redesign their…

Principal Wilson is a first-year leader of a virtual high school. Following four years as an assistant principal in the brick-and-mortar school, she encounters unanticipated leadership challenges and policy dilemmas. Although discipline issues are nearly nonexistent, remote testing presents an ethical challenge. Moreover, she discovers that…

Every child deserves the right to attend a school that can best meet his or her individual learning needs. Where the child lives should not be a limiting factor, and no one school is the best fit for every child who just happens to live nearby. Education-choice policies have the potential to expand education options for students in rural areas.…

The number of students leaving traditional face-to-face public schools and moving to online school environments continues to grow. The National Center for Educational Statistics reported that almost 300,000 K12 students were served in a fully online environment for the 2019-2020 school year (US Department of Education, n.d.). This study…

Educators are underprepared to respond to crises related to school safety. This lack of preparation leaves school leaders, teachers, and students vulnerable to harm. Importantly, the recent global health pandemic increased the utilization of online and hybrid learning modes increasing the need for school safety planning specific to these online…

The focus of this research is adult students enrolled in seven online allied health programs offered by a postsecondary healthcare career institution. The problem under investigation is the retention and timely graduation of adult students in an online learning environment. The question is the extent to which student support services influence…

As technology increases, so does the integration of technology in educational settings. That integration also extends to school counseling and the field of counseling in its entirety. The purpose of this study is to compare the role and functions of an online and traditional setting school counselor. Due to virtual/online school counseling still…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of auxiliary support systems in improving learner outcomes through a case study of one virtual school in a midwestern state. Mentor and teaching practices were researched and analyzed using the Community of Inquiry (CoI) theoretical framework. The research design was an evaluative case study…

The Kansas Graduate and Dropout Handbook provides a comprehensive overview of how the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE) calculates and reports the Adjusted Cohort Graduation and Annual Dropout Rates. Sections include: (1) Introduction; (2) Terminology; (3) Data Sources; (4) Graduation Calculations; (5) Dropout Calculation; and (6)…

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is required to submit this report to the Legislature regarding the status of existing charter schools, the number of petitions for new charter schools, and the action taken by school boards and DPI on petitions for new charter schools (see Wis. Stat. §115.28 (49)). This report offers the results…

The gender gap in mathematics achievement has been shown to cause a discrepancy for women in higher-earning mathematics and science-related professions. This study aimed to determine the relationship between high school students' perceptions of teacher support in their mathematics classes, gender, and academic success. A self-report instrument…