In this week’s Saturday Seminar, experts discuss possible regulation of cyber charter schools to better serve students. Cyber charter schools, which act as local education agencies, must adopt the rules and policies of state education agencies to meet IDEA requirements. Department of Education issued a letter to emphasize the legal obligation of cyber charter schools to provide a free, appropriate education to students with disabilities pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA). Some state legislatures have remained silent on cyber charters but permit them, and other states ban cyber charters completely.Īt the federal level, regulators target special education through accountability measures. These regulations include location requirements, caps on enrollment and growth, and performance accountability measures. State-level education codes contain cyber charter school regulations, which vary by state. In one study, scholars found that students enrolled in cyber charter schools scored lower than their peers enrolled in traditional public schools by 16 and 11 percentile points in math and English language arts respectively. Scholars are concerned, however, about the efficacy and equity of cyber charter schools under current regulations. Some parents champion cyber charters because they “offer a more flexible, at-your-own-pace education” for students who do not enjoy the traditional classroom or face attendance barriers, such as familial responsibilities, jobs, or disabilities. And in Virginia, enrollment in a cyber charter school organization, K12 Inc., grew by 40 percent from 2019 to 2020. For example, in Oklahoma, Epic Charter Schools’ enrollment rose to almost 60,000 students by the fall of 2020, making it larger than any school district in the state. Are cyber charter schools a good option for families who want an alternative learning model, or do they endanger educational progress and equity and waste taxpayer dollars?Įnrollment increased dramatically at online charter schools, often called “cyber charters,” over the last school year as parents searched for safe education options for their children during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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