La. online program chooses to register

Despite legal questions the state is taking applications for online and other courses that will be offered by private firms and colleges, state Superintendent of Education John White said Monday.

The new program, which is called course choice, was approved last year by the state Legislature.

White said it offers students a chance to take classes often not available at their schools, including advanced placement courses for possible college credit; career and technical education and test preparation classes.

“This gives parents the power to tailor the education that they want for their child as their child pursues a life beyond high school in the 21st century workforce,” he told reporters.

19th Judicial District Court Judge Tim Kelley ruled on Nov. 30 that the law illegally diverts money for public schools to online firms and others.

The state is appealing Kelley’s ruling to the Louisiana Supreme Court, and a hearing is set for March 19.

Asked if the state has a plan in case the law is struck down, White said it is best to wait for details of the decision, which he said are unlikely to be identical to what Kelley ruled.

The classes are free to students who attend schools rated C, D and F by the state.

Those who attend schools rated A or B do not pay any tuition if the course is not offered at their site.

The program is set to begin during the 2013-14 school year.

Among the 42 providers approved by the state are LSU, Southern University and Acadian Ambulance.

Students can register at http://www.LouisianaCourseChoice.net.

White declined to estimate how many students will sign up.

He said about 6,000 families take part in the Louisiana Virtual School, which provides online classes that are difficult for some students to access.

Nearly 5,000 students who formerly attended troubled public schools now go to private and parochial schools using state-financed vouchers, which are also under legal fire.

Louisiana has about 712,000 public school students.

Gov. Bobby Jindal pushed the course choice program last year, and backers call it another option for students trapped in failing schools.

Teacher union leaders and others have branded the change another diversion of sorely-needed state dollars away from public schools.

The average cost of a one credit course is $700, according to the state Department of Education.

Providers are supposed to be paid half the costs initially and the other half if the student finishes the course on time, and slightly less if he does not.

Comments

1) Comment by deutsch29 - 12/03/2013

For some history on John White: http://deutsch29.wordpress.com/2013/03/05/new-orleans-recovery-school-district-the-lie-unveiled/

2) Comment by jwarren - 12/03/2013

I can see it now. Bubba's Discount Kalkulus and Small Engine Repair School. Classes at Joe's Trailer Park under the carport and online at bubbaknowskalkulus.edu via webcam when the internet is up. Sign up now. First 50 enrollees get a free can of WD40 and a slide rule.

3) Comment by mikedeshot - 12/03/2013

I believe the term "failing schools" is very misleading and unfair to many solid schools that happen to be serving a high percentage of at-risk students. The designation of "F" is purely arbitrary & is based only on student scores. It does not tell us anything about the quality of teaching going on in such schools. For example, Louisiana has dozens of alternative schools scattered throughout the state that take a disproportionate number of troubled and low performing students. The State Department of Education rates all of these schools as F even though most of these alternative schools are providing a valuable service to many students who would otherwise be expelled. Many go on to get their GED or industry based training. The teachers who work there are just as dedicated as all others. The same can be said of schools that serve very high poverty communities. There students generally perform at the low end of the testing scale so most of these schools are rated D. Or F by the state. Yet many of their students still go on to college and do just fine. Their teachers often work much harder than the average teacher because their students face greater challenges. Superintendent White is fooling the public by claiming that such students will somehow "escape" to a better school. Statistics collected by the state on voucher schools show that the voucher students generally perform worse in their voucher schools than they were doing in their community schools. White should stop trying to fool the public into believing that the voucher schools and the course choice providers are a panacea. In fact statistics show that at risk students do not perform well at all in a virtual school where they take instruction on a computer. It may seem old fashioned , but such students do better when they are instructed in person by a caring teacher in their local D or F school. White & Jindal have seriously misled the public and are about to waste millions of our tax dollars on these out of state course choice programs. That's what we get for hiring an amateur from New York to run our schools.