Virtual School News» cost

Online courses often pricier for students

tcnixon — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:02:18 +0000

Fees imposed on college students who take online classes can be more than $1,300 at some schools, according to a new survey claiming that internet-based education is often more costly for students than attending classes on campus.

The one-time registration fees charged to web-based students are not levied on students who take traditional classes, and some online college programs include other charges for course materials and “technology resources and services,” according to a survey of 182 institutions conducted by the Campus Computing Project and Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications (WCET). The report was released Oct. 22.

Online students are paying less than their brick-and-mortar peers at 20 percent of the campuses surveyed, while 31 percent are paying the same price, according to the survey. But nearly half of respondents said their online students are paying more for a college education than traditional students.

Online registration fees ranged from $51 in public master’s colleges to $1,316 in private universities. Online students pay an average of $232 in one-time fees, according to the report.

The higher fees for online courses seem to fly in the face of traditional thinking: that online courses are cheaper for schools to produce.

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Online courses often pricier for students by Dennis Carter

From eSchoolNews.com

Cost a big factor in ranking virtual school providers

tcnixon — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 01:56:45 +0000

Cost was the determining factor in school district staff’s ranking of perspective virtual school providers for the next school year.

The recommendations are to contract with K12 Florida Virtual Academy, a Herndon, Va.-based K12 Inc., for grades K-5 and Arlington, Va.-based Educational Options for grades 6-12. The School Board is scheduled to vote on the recommendations June 16.

Starting with the 2009-10 school year, all 67 Florida school districts have to provide an online school, either using their own staff and curriculum or contracting with an outside company.

In total, five virtual school providers submitted bids for the Alachua County contract – two for grades K-5 and three for grades 6-12. Sandi Anusavice, the district’s director of secondary curriculum, said a staff committee concluded that the providers were evenly qualified when it came to academic curriculum and their teachers’ credentials. So, the staff recommendation came down primarily to money.

For grades K-5, cost quotes from state-run Florida Virtual School were, in one case, nearly $500 more than those submitted by K12 Inc.

Florida Virtual School submitted a per-student price of $4,200 for a student who did not require equipment and $4,950 for a student who would need to be provided equipment such as a computer and printer. The bid from K12 Inc., was $3,995 for a student who does not need equipment and $4,950 for a student needing equipment.

In grades 6-12, the largest discrepancy was nearly $2,000 per student. Advanced Academics, a subsidiary of DeVry Inc., submitted a quote of $3,804 for a student not requiring equipment while Educational Options’ per-student bid was $1,995.

Study: Virtual schools can help cut costs

tcnixon — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:21:49 +0000

New research suggests that more K-12 public school students will take classes online and will have longer school days in the next decade–and academic improvement and cost savings are two big benefits.

Online courses are already commonplace in higher education and are growing in popularity at the K-12 level as well. Orlando-based Florida Virtual School (FLVS) has quickly become the nation’s largest virtual school, serving nearly 65,000 students in the 2007-08 school year.

“Policy makers and educators have proposed expanding learning time in elementary through high school grades as a way to improve students’ academic performance, but online coursework hasn’t been on their radar,” said Catherine Cavanaugh, associate professor at the University of Florida’s College of Education and author of the report, “Getting Students More Learning Time Online: Distance Education in Support of Expanded Learning Time in K-12 Schools.”

For the rest of the article, click here.

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Study: Virtual schools can help cut costs by Laura Devaney

From eSchoolNews.com