Florida Virtual School: Difference between revisions

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Florida Virtual School (FLVS) is the only free and widely-known online school created in the 21st Century to assist Floridian students in personalized intruction. Students K-12 of all ages are accepted, but the vast majority of students in FLVS are either homeschooled or high school seniors. This virtual school has over 30,000 activated students every day. FLVS is known for its versatility.

"Any time, any place, any path, any pace"

Florida Virtual School (FLVS) is a nationally recognized e-Learning model. FLVS is an established leader in developing and providing virtual K-12 education solutions to students throughout the country.

FLVS was founded in 1997 as the country’s first state-wide Internet-based public high school. Today, FLVS offers middle and high school students over 80 courses. In 2000, the Florida Legislature established as an independent educational entity with a gubernatorial appointed board. FLVS is the only public school where funding is tied directly to student performance. FLVS provides online solutions for grades 6 to 12, as well as for adults seeking GED alternatives both in FL and out-of-state through their Global Services Division.

By providing a students social security number the person is then entered into a database where they can chose which classes they want to take.

Many schools have over 100 classes, and faculty reaching in the hundreds A typical class can have around 100 students, but can reach anywhere up to 200. Students keep in contact with teachers through email, chat rooms, and a program called the whiteboard, along with phone calls. To help with communication many virtual schools have implemented their own system programs to help build courses and maintain student profiles. One such program is called UCompass Educator, and has been used in the development of the Florida Virtual School and many others. There are also many books and training manuals to aid in the development of such schools and courses.

Virtual Schools now exist all around the world, but are used primarily in the United States. The schools have now been integrated into public schools, where students sit in computer labs and do their work online. In other situations, students can be completely home schooled, or they can take any combination of public/private/home schooling and online classes.

The Basics

Pricing and location

FLVS is free of cost for Florida residents; however, fees as high as $700 are often applicable for out-of-state students. Books and other materials might be purchased by the student within the course. Textbooks are not required but can be used as an aid for coursework.

Grades

Students are scored based on the same system as any public school in the United States.

• A: 90-100%
• B: 80-89%
• C: 70-79%
• D: 60-69%
• F: 0-59%

Progress reports are distributed on the 15th of every month.

Teachers, parents, and counselors have their own accounts within FLVS and are assigned approximately 100 students. They grade assessments.

There are 4 main types of assessments.

Assignments are the most common assessment. Students upload files created using Microsoft Word and saved in the Rich Text Format and other programs from Microsoft Office and Microsoft Powerpoint.

Exams are also common, and can consist of multiple choice, matching, short answer, and other questions. Multiple choice questions are auto graded by the computer, but if a response is needed for any question, the teacher must manually grade that portion of the assignment.

Discussions happen every now and then. They usually have a very small grade value, and usually don't show up in the assignments section of the course, where you submit work and check scores.

Oral Exams are short exams taken over the phone with the teacher.

The final type of assignment is the Final Exam. These assignments usually count for a large part of the student's grade, and are usually taken at the end of modules, or at the mid-term point or final portion of a class.

See also

• Virtual School

External links

• Florida Virtual School