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)…

Parents are increasingly choosing to enroll their students in online schools rather than traditional brick-and-mortar schools. Despite the growth of online schooling, however, there is extremely limited research on such schooling and the role parents play in the educational outcomes of students enrolled in online schools. The current quantitative,…

This PACER brief provides RFA's updated analysis of data on students experiencing homelessness in Pennsylvania, highlighting prevalence, challenges with identification, disparities in educational opportunities, and impact on academic outcomes. Our main findings include that: (1) Roughly 2% of students in Pennsylvania were identified as…

This study was used to investigate the differences in asynchronous, bisynchronous, and hybrid learning environments in student achievement in online schools. Utilizing quantitative data analysis, the research examines student growth data, chronic absenteeism, graduation rates, and ACT scores across these modalities. The research holds significant…

Has in-person learning and virtual learning produced equivalent results when it comes to student achievement? How can a district be flexible with learning options but also strategic with how to best achieve student learning gains? This case-study examines how one district leveraged virtual learning and flexible learning options during COVID-19 and…

Pregnant and parenting teenagers in the United States face academic, social, and emotional hardships (Baney et al., 2022; Kinser & Masho, 2015; Masterson et al., 2021). Schools, programs, and policies can aid pregnant and parenting students by alleviating burdens or improving schooling outcomes (Brouwer et al., 2019; Modesto, 2018; Zief et…

Students' social and emotional development matters to their educational success. Ubiquitous digital use in schooling creates new contexts for development, raising the question of the nature of the relationships under these new conditions. Ratings of 9 to 13 year old students' (n = 296) social skills and self-regulation and their writing…

Pennsylvania has "the highest cyber charter school enrollment in the country" with student enrollment soaring in 2020-21 due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. School districts paid over $1 billion in tuition for students enrolled in Pennsylvania's 14 cyber charter schools in 2020-21, a $335 million increase over the prior…

Given the rapid growth of K-12 online learning, research is needed in the effective identification of at-risk students so that administrators and teachers can develop appropriate supports and interventions. The purpose of this research was to determine if student success in an online course could be predicted for English Learners (EL) using…

Intrinsic motivation is a crucial factor for students' learning and academic achievement and the initial drive for capturing students' interest in learning and engagement in a particular subject. There is a relationship between motivation and learning in traditional schools (Brophy, 2010; Schunk et al., 2014); however, despite the fact that…

The purpose of this study was to analyze online physical education (OLPE) teachers' pedagogical practices. The three primary research questions guiding the study were: (1) What are the pedagogical practices of experienced OLPE teachers? (2) How are the pedagogical practices implemented in OLPE courses? (3) Why do experienced OLPE teachers use…

Senate Bill 19-129, concerning the regulation of online schools, calls for the Colorado Department of Education's Office of Online and Blended Learning to produce an annual report on the number of students who withdraw from Colorado K-12 online schools after the pupil enrollment count date. This report is required to include the dates on which…

This exploratory research addresses the state of student self-regulation (SR) in an online secondary school. Students are more likely to be successful, especially in online schools, when they are self-regulated. Understanding these students' current SR abilities can facilitate targeted interventions. Data for this study was gathered from a student…

Existing research on facilitators in K-12 schools has focused on supplemental online programs where on-site personnel work with online students in a local brick-and-mortar school. While some insightful research exists focused on online facilitators at full-time cyber schools, additional research is needed to examine facilitators using synchronous…

While spring of 2020 introduced virtual instruction to all public schools, virtual schooling had already been growing in most states. We focus on pre-COVID-19 changes to full-time virtual school enrollment in public schools, and provide evidence on the relationship between virtual school enrollment, internet speed, community demographics, and…