Education Commons^™

Introduction (Online Learning December 2015 Special Issue), Anissa Lokey-Vega, Michael K. Barbour

Education Faculty Publications

While at an admittedly slower rate than the growth in enrollments, research in K-12 online learning has been picking up pace in the past decade and a foundation in best practice is now being laid.

A special K-12 issue of Online Learning is an ideal avenue for an academic dialogue. The focus of this special issue of Online Learning is to present rigorous research specific to the context of K-12 education including systematic inquiry into promising practices, various schooling models, measures of quality, and parent and teacher experience. All authors have provided explanations of K-12-specific terminology to support readers new …

The Disconnect Between Policy And Research: Examining The Research Into Full-Time K-12 Online Learning, Michael K. Barbour

Education Faculty Publications

While there has been some improvement in what is known about supplemental K-12 online learning, there continues to be a lack of evidence to guide the practice of full-time K-12 online learning. This paper concludes that despite considerable enthusiasm for full-time virtual education in some quarters, there is little high quality research to support the practice or call for expanding this form of virtual schools.