What is a "Virtual Charter School"?? [View all]

[Redfairen]

This is a new concept to me and the article that introduced me to the notion doesn't really tell much. From the Portland (Maine) Press-Herald...

http://www.pressherald.com/politics/Lawmakers_to_hear_bill_creating_state-run_virtual_school_.html?pageType=mobile&id=3

AUGUSTA -- A bipartisan group of state lawmakers is backing a bill that would lead to the creation of a state-run virtual charter school.

The bill, L.D. 1736, is sponsored by Sen. Brian Langley, R-Ellsworth, and co-sponsored by several Democrats on the Education Committee. The proposal directs the state Department of Education to establish a virtual charter school that would allow students at public schools to access online courses. The proposal would also freeze the state’s authorization of private virtual charter schools until the state academy is up and running by Aug. 1, 2016.

The LePage administration has been a strong advocate of charter schools and virtual charter schools, saying both are critical to reforming the state’s education system and accommodating different student needs.

While charter schools have their share of critics, the virtual charter schools have come under additional scrutiny, locally and nationally, for performance and governance issues that involve concerns over whether the schools are sufficiently independent from the large national companies that provide curriculum and manage the schools.