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DECEMBER 2003

Distance Learning Profile:
Houston Independent School District's Virtual School
by Mitchell Levine

The Houston Independent School District may be in fact the geographically largest of Texas' brick-and-mortar school systems, but that didn't stop it from developing a virtual education portal that's not just a clearinghouse for curricula delivery, but, as Project Manager and Program Director Jo Beth Harris describes it, an "interactive learning resource for parents, teachers and students."

"Originally, the courseware was developed for the middle school program in April of 2000, with the Texas state standards as our model. Texas is known for the rigor of its standards, and we actually customized the program specifically to meet the challenge points of the TAKS exams (Texas Assessment of Learning and Knowledge)." The state assessment program-created with the intent to both measure and promote higher level thinking skills and abstract reasoning -was used as a baseline for the school's lesson plans, an initiative known as Project Clear. As Harris says, "Project Clear's developers cross-referenced it by the standards, and added detail to enhance the content and organize it as a modular series of lesson plans for grades 6-8," including language arts, science, social studies, and mathematics.

Using the very popular Blackboard enterprise system for Internet delivery, the Virtual School has expanded the program's scope to include individual classes for high school students in grades 9 ®¢12, with not only the standard general studies sequences but classes in study skills, test preparation for the SAT, PSAT, and ACT exams, and a fourteen Advanced Placement classes for possible college credit as well.

Harris points out that the Virtual School, beyond simply welcoming out-of-town students, offers state-certified teachers to offer additional support and online assessment to their distance learners, all with a 24 hour turn-around time. Although the program is primarily designed to provide individual courses for secondary learners, it is possible to earn a certification diploma, under a contract with student's local school district.

When asked for a brief summary of the program's philosophy, Ms. Harris quickly replied, "The Virtual School was intended to make available for all students interactive learning anytime, anywhere!" For more information visit the school's site at www.virtualschool.houstonisd.org.

 

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