NAIS Task Force

I would flip-flop the opening two paragraphs, and encourage you to start with the positives of online learning, before getting bogged down by the difficulties.  You want to reach people with the possibilities before talking about the impediments.

This looks really, really good. The format really inspires focused commenting, yet maintains document originality/integrity.

Thanks, Demetri, for setting this up.

This is a great document. I think school leaders need to really understand how to promote online learning as an important part of the school without undermining the “bricks & mortar” part/mission of their school. The whole question of if we offer online courses then why would anyone want to pay to come to our school?

Thanks again for setting this document up!

I wonder if the question’s last word might need to be “control” rather than “purview”, since purview implies competence, scope, comprehension or experience, which we do have — as well as power or control, which is often limited with online courses.  Often we are not in control of the objectives, content, delivery, or assessment of other institutions’ online offerings.  So we exercise our control through selection — i.e., in the courses we will accept (e.g., from known institutions, from schools accredited by reputable organizations, etc.) and the mix of online and in-house course we allow.  In our case, because we want to retain control over the meaning and value of a diploma from our school, we limit the number (i.e., balance) of courses that we will accept for credit (1 per semester in our case). 

At some point in here , you may want to address blended learning in these questions… and perhaps in the opening paragraphs.  As blended learning is often the gateway to online learning, it could help to cut down on the sense of being overwhelmed by the field that you mention in the first paragraph.

Are the school leaders who are making decisions in this area personally familiar with online learning? Are they sincerely convinced that online options will transform teaching and learning?

From the NESA Virtual Project experience, we learned that a lot of p.d. might be required to bring teachers up to speed re: online teaching.  It is a definitely a horse of a different color … if done correctly.  Teaching online can be very time consuming!

I would rephrase, as not all consortium providers charge extra tuition or salaries, and not all schools will be working with a consortium online school… there are many different models that one could engage with.

Moreover, I would argue that this really is part of question 5 above– “sustainable financial model.”  We may not want to consider these “extra” salaries or tuitions, but instead roll them into new models.

It is not clear to me what this question is getting after?  

Is it: “How does school leadership need to adapt when introducing and creating online material?”  Or  ”Does a school need a Director for Online Learning?” Or something else?

One of the tremendous benefits of an independent education is the knowledge that faculty bring to the table.  As such, we are able to provide students with opportunity for in-depth study of subject areas.  Whereas many of the online providers present the equivalent of survey or intro courses to subjects, independent schools can develop and implement courses that delve into topics in a deeper and more critical manner.  For example, in place of Intro to Government, we can provide an in-depth analysis of US-China Foreign Policy.