South Carolina Proficiency-based System Edgenuity s Response to Questions Section I Assurances Section 1. The local school board will annually approve the district s Proficiency-based System. The documentation for submission to the local school board should include, but not be limited to, the following criteria. Documentation of the local board approval will be housed at the district level and available for review. An explanation of how the needs assessment conducted substantiates the need for each proficiency course. A description of the subject area course procedures for each high school proficiency-based credit the school will implement. A complete syllabus for each course, including instructional methodologies used (i. e. online program, direct instruction, computer-assisted instruction, etc.). Syllabi for Edgenuity courses are located at www.edgenuity.com/scproficiency. Documentation that demonstrates that each course and all proficiency assessments are aligned to the State adopted subject area academic standards for the current year. All content is aligned to the Common Core and South Carolina State Standards. Detailed alignment documentation can be found at www.edgenuity.com/scproficiency. The criteria that will be used for selecting students for each course, including prerequisite courses. The proposed assessment methodologies to be used to determine proficiency for each course. Edgenuity offers four different types of assessments to measure student learning: Diagnostic Assessment occurs at the beginning of each course and assesses student s prior knowledge of content and establishes a customized learning path over the specific content. Administrators can also enable pretesting. When students begin a new lesson, they are presented with a 10-question objective-based assessment. If the student passes a predetermined threshold, s/he will move on to the next pretest. If the student does not meet mastery, they will have an opportunity to proceed through the lesson at their own pace. Page 1 Edgenuity Inc.
Formative Assessments, embedded within a lesson, check understanding of concepts and skills as they are presented. Assignments, which follow the lesson, also serve as formative assessments. By providing corrective feedback, Edgenuity s formative assessments help students understand where their gaps in knowledge exist, and learn where additional practice or support is needed. Interim Assessments occur after students finish an Edgenuity lesson. The items for these assessments are drawn from an item bank, each aligned to a specific lesson objective. Using Webb s Depth of Knowledge and Bloom s Taxonomy, items are labeled based on their level of difficulty. Typically there is a 1-2-1 ratio of easy medium hard items. Summative Assessments are provided at the end of each unit and/or course to evaluate students overall performance. All of Edgenuity s assessments are designed to provide observable evidence of mastery of the Common Core and South Carolina State Standards. Student mastery is also viewed through completed projects, essays, or other assignments. Mastery of lesson quizzes or tests can be viewed through a series of reports. An explanation of how the assessments will be standardized across the district if the courses will be offered in multiple schools. All assessments are the same ensuring standardization across the district. Edgenuity s robust, randomized test bank automatically provides new test questions (multiple versions) for each assessment attempt. Test questions have been evaluated by experts to ensure they accurately measure the learning objectives of the instruction at the level of the related standards. Test question answer choices include appropriate distracters. Assessments are standardized for each course. If a course is customized, the assessments automatically customize to ensure students are only assessed on included course objectives. 2. The Proficiency-based System will be evaluated annually, and district will report the results back to the local board of education: Edgenuity s learning management system and professional development staff can provide a variety of reporting information back to the district for program evaluation. Additionally, Edgenuity s research and evaluation department can support the district in the analysis of program data to determine program effectiveness. 3. The district will communicate NCAA eligibility requirements and higher education guidelines regarding proficiency-based courses with parents and students. District response regarding communication of NCAA eligibility requirements and higher education guidelines regarding proficiency-based courses. Page 2 Edgenuity Inc.
Edgenuity s curriculum and our Instructional Services instructional model has been reviewed by NCAA and found to meet the NCAA requirements for online courses. Courses taught with Edgenuity teachers (through Instructional Services) are NCAA-approved. If the District wants to offer NCAA-eligible online courses using Edgenuity s curriculum with the district s teachers-ofrecord, the District must contact NCAA to submit documentation describing their implementation model demonstrating how it meets NCAA s requirements for teacher role, no pretesting, fixed start and end date, and level of teacher-student communication. However, the District will not need to submit Edgenuity's curriculum, since the curriculum has already been reviewed and approved. NCAA has posted a list of our approved course on its website: https://web1.ncaa.org/hsportal/exec/hsaction?hsactionsubmit=searchhighschool 4. Proficiency-based courses meet all relevant state statutes and regulations unless a State Board of Education (SBE) waiver has been granted to the district. Edgenuity will provide all appropriate documentation regarding course scopes, syllabi, and standards alignment. The program structure and implementation model are the responsibility of the district unless the district has contracted with Edgenuity to provide comprehensive instructional and management services for its proficiency-based program. 5. Teachers of all proficiency courses must hold South Carolina certification and be appropriately certified for the proficiency subjects taught unless a SBE waiver has been granted. If the district has contracted with Edgenuity for instructional services in addition to the licensing of online courses, Edgenuity teacher s will hold South Carolina certification and be appropriately certified for the proficiency subjects taught. Page 3 Edgenuity Inc.
Section II Description of District Plan for Proficiency-based System 1. Describe your rationale and justification for using a Proficiency-based System, including any pertinent needs assessment data. This answer may include, but not be limited to, the following: Discuss, in detail, needs assessment data that precipitated the decision to use proficiency-based instruction. How will this plan address the individual needs of students as they work toward receiving a diploma, moving to the workforce, and/or attending college? As one of the first to develop an innovative online and credit recovery learning model to facilitate individualized learning, Edgenuity is now one of the largest and most comprehensive providers of online credit recovery and instructional content for a variety of online and blended implementations with implementations in all 50 states and many major school districts. Founded in 1998, Edgenuity is a company comprised of educators for educators who recognized the opportunity to leverage technology to improve access and academic outcomes for students. Edgenuity is built on the philosophy that no two students learn in exactly the same way, or at the same pace; and each student has individualized learning needs. With this, Edgenuity offers the district over 14 years of proven experience in a variety of online and blended learning models to assist in preparing its students to live, learn, and work as productive citizens in the 21st century by equipping its students with high level interactivity, multimodal learning, and the 21st century skills needed to academically achieve, graduate with their cohort, and be prepared for college and career. Edgenuity s content is rigorous and promotes college and career readiness. The studentcentered system enables students to take ownership of their learning managing their academic calendar, time management, and course progress and success. Additionally courses are developed to promote the higher levels of Bloom s Taxonomy and Depths of Knowledge. Students develop critical thinking, application and time management skills as well as the content and subject specific knowledge preparing them for success upon graduation. Promoting deeper thinking leading to transferable knowledge Highlighting processes of thinking Encouraging students to engage with texts and concepts with inquiry questioning, and explaining Generating and testing hypotheses Making real world applications Critical thinking and decision making Metacognitive strategies including goal setting, success thinking, self-monitoring, selfevaluation, and self-explanation Page 4 Edgenuity Inc.
Collaborating, communicating, defending and explaining concepts with other students in the Collaboration Corner threaded discussions. What evidence of support is there for the policy from students, parents, staff, and the community? How will the district s policy on proficiency be communicated to stakeholders? 2. Provide a brief description of the structure and scope of the Proficiency-based System in your District. This answer may include, but not be limited to, the following: Will proficiency-based courses be used to award initial credit? Credit recovery? Edgenuity s courses have been utilized as core instruction or in credit recovery in a variety of implementation models included blended and completely virtual programs. Edgenuity provides its comprehensive, interactive curriculum in a virtual classroom and virtual tutor learning environment with a robust learning management system. The flexible learning management system combined with the proven curriculum provides both students and administrators with a comprehensive instruction and tracking system designed to meet the individual needs of all students. Depending on the district s implementation, Edgenuity can support either an initial credit or credit recovery model. Describe how proficiency-based education will be implemented in your district. Include instructional methodology, delivery of instruction, student eligibility, staff, funding, system for awarding credit, time frame, etc. District response for student eligibility, staff, funding, time frame, award of credit and other program elements. Instruction is systematic and explicit, building on previously learned concepts and designed to help students acquire, practice, and apply skills and knowledge. Courses incorporate a progression of learning where concepts and skills advance and deepen over time. Lessons begin by reviewing skills and knowledge students will need in order to understand the lesson and complete the related activities. They connect what students are learning with relevant prior knowledge, typically by using a warm-up activity that introduces students to the lesson s topic and engages students in a task that connects new knowledge to known knowledge. This task may help students recall and verify prior learning, prompt thinking about a subject, connect a topic to students own lives, challenge students to reflect on a new idea, or pose a compelling problem. Different students are motivated to learn in different ways. Edgenuity believes effective engagement builds student interest through strategizes such as optimizing choice and autonomy, optimizing value and relevance, providing appropriate level of challenge, and minimizing threats and distractions. Edgenuity also poses that effective engagement includes developing traits Page 5 Edgenuity Inc.
related to sustained student effort and persistence and helping students learn to self-regulate and take ownership over their learning. Edgenuity builds student interest and engagement in a variety of ways. The technology is a motivating method for students to learn and the engaging on-screen teacher makes topics interesting and come to life. Edgenuity courses offer a variety of ways for students to engage in the course and to develop and express their knowledge, including use of contemporary tools and media such as interactive discussion forums, multimedia composition software and virtual manipulatives. Courses require students to interact with texts and ideas in order to summarize, clarify understanding, explain concepts, elaborate, and/or synthesize information. Customizing tools within the Edgenuity courses provide opportunities for students to manipulate their learning environment while reading, writing, and thinking about topics. For example, students can learn at their own pace, pause and rewind videos, mark up text, and take electronic notes. Relevance is optimized through connecting topics, thematic units, and application to realworld problems, while the use of headphones in Edgenuity courses helps reduce distractions. Adjustments to student instruction based on assessment data help to ensure an appropriate degree of challenge, with scaffolding support to help students. Teachers also have options to customize the course settings (e.g., adjust the time allotted for assessments; change the grade weights for quizzes and exams) in order to make the level of challenge more appropriate for individual students. Tools and activities for strengthening students metacognitive skills in areas such as goal setting, self-monitoring, and self-evaluation help students learn to self-regulate. In addition, our learning management system collects student achievement, progress, and engagement data. The Student Dashboard allows students to see and track their learning gains. Interactive Educational Systems Design, Inc. s Foundations Paper provides evidence of how Edgenuity s courses align with research on effective instruction. The Foundations paper can be accessed at www.edgenuity.com. Who will be authorized to grant credit for proficiency? What staff development or training will be required? Edgenuity provides flexible and customizable professional development with onsite training, webinar trainings, coaching, follow-up, and ecommunity teacher resources. The Professional Development Consultant will train instructors and administrators to effectively use and manage the online system to maximize student learning outcomes and instructor effectiveness. Ongoing Professional Development options include on-site training, webinars, follow-up, coaching, unlimited access to product support, and access to ecommunity, an online resource for instructors and administrators containing videos, manuals and other support materials. Page 6 Edgenuity Inc.
How, when, and where will students have opportunities to earn credit for proficiency? Edgenuity s implementation will vary dependent on the district program. By utilizing technology to personalize learning, schools will engage students while keeping them on track for graduation. The implications of an effective blended learning or virtual program are many. Higher graduation rates, improved state and national standardized test scores, opportunity for students who don t perform well in a traditional classroom model are just a few of the benefits. We support innovative blended and online learning models in partnership with districts through our consultative implementation program. This program combines the expertise of individuals experienced with blended and virtual learning, our blended learning implementation and goal setting process, a learning management system to leverage technology to support all students and provide data on student performance, and state of the art online curriculum for grades 6-12. The solution incorporates the development of a customized implementation plan for each partnering district which takes into account: Academic goals Student needs Curriculum Staff and professional development Technology Facilities Page 7 Edgenuity Inc.
How will students learn knowledge and skills and demonstrate performance and achievement in ways that may not be dependent on seat time? Edgenuity s online courses address all instructional expectations. Students complete instruction, assignments, and assessments online at their own pace in the model implemented by the districts (blended, virtual, etc.). Data is returned to the classroom teacher in the form of easy-to-interpret reports and dashboard displays, so the teacher can differentiate instruction appropriately based on student need. The classroom teacher has a high degree of control over the student learning experience, with the ability to customize courses, modify student options and settings, and monitor and gate student pace through the course. The teacher can also populate the online discussion board to engage students in asynchronous discussions about readings and other topics. The student platform is also easy to use and intuitive. The assignment calendar in the student organizer and the next activity display in the lobby make it easy for students to see what they need to do each day, and a progress tracker on the student home page tells students whether they are on pace, behind, or ahead in their online coursework. Edgenuity courses are designed to provide periodic practice by reviewing skills and content at the end of every unit, as well as at the end of each semester. Edgenuity test and exam reviews represent opportunities for cumulative practice that integrates previously learned skills in a meaningful context. Teachers are provided aligned rubrics, assessment guidelines, and reporting documentation to support interpretation of student performance. Rubrics and other support documentation are found in the learning management system. How will the plan help provide students proficiency opportunities in-class, out-of-class, or through prior learning? Edgenuity s mission is to drive positive academic outcomes, so we continue to research what is most effective in online education both for students on our platform and those learning through other means to continuously improve student engagement and encourage more time on task, two very important indicators of successful academic outcomes. Our vision for the 21st century classroom is one in which students access high-quality, standardsaligned online coursework on a range of devices from laptops to Chromebooks to ipads to Windows and Android tablets in school and at home. Supports and scaffolds within online courseware let students control the pace of instruction, pausing and reviewing as needed or accelerating through content if they have demonstrated mastery. Students also have access to translation tools, read-aloud, captioning, and other supports to ensure all students can be successful. Robust tools embedded in Edgenuity s learning management system let teachers individualize the student learning experience and make appropriate modifications and accommodations for Page 8 Edgenuity Inc.
students, as per their individualized education plans. Individualized student assignment calendars let students know whether they are on track, and powerful educator dashboards let teachers monitor student achievement. With data at their fingertips and a curated library of re-teaching resources, teachers can maximize their face-to-face time with students to pull together flex groups based on common needs and review student work one on one or in small groups. How will the plan align with and support current State Board of Education approved content area academic State standards? Edgenuity s team of instructional designers and alignment specialists continuously update the content and system to meet state and national standards. Edgenuity s Common Core Course Suite was specifically built and released in 2012 to meet the new English and mathematics standards. Additionally, Edgenuity follows changes to standards or courses approved by the state of South Carolina. New courses are continuously in development to meet expanding course offerings. The curriculum department s structure allows for continuous moderation, evaluation, and development of current and new course content. Alignments can be found in the learning management system. To assist in providing documentation for your proficiency-based program, Edgenuity s alignments are also available at www.edgenuity.com/scproficiency. The diagram below shows the Common Core State Standard alignment in the learning management system. The South Carolina State Standards aligned courses and alignment documentation can also be found in the learning management system. Page 9 Edgenuity Inc.
3. Describe the methods the district will annually use to evaluate the overall proficiency process and the program outcomes. This answer may include, but not be limited to, the following: When and how will the plan implementation be analyzed and evaluated? At what stages will data be analyzed and evaluated? Edgenuity provides initial and ongoing professional development to support program implementation and progress. The Professional Development Consultant will customize the training and consulting to meet the web-based credit system program needs with the ultimate goal of ensuring all students achieve success and high school graduation. Edgenuity personalizes each implementation plan to best meet the district s infrastructure and to maximize program, teacher, and student objectives. As part of the implementation planning process, Edgenuity and the district determine decision and program evaluation points including a mid-year and end-of-year analysis. Who will do the analysis and evaluation, and what methods and measures will be used? Edgenuity utilizes a variety of methods to evaluate course effectiveness, including surveys, regular data pulls on assessment items, and outside reviewers. Edgenuity also works with select district partners to evaluate student performance on state and national assessments. The learning management system provides teachers and administrators with powerful tools to maximize student and teacher results. Learning management tools include: Student progress and performance monitoring and tracking Page 10 Edgenuity Inc.
Dashboard tracking and notification system ecommunity Teacher Resources GradeBook Family Portal for sharing student performance with parents/guardians How will students who have gained success through proficiency be tracked in their next steps? What methods will the district use to check that students earning credit through this process have the skills and knowledge they need for subsequent work in that subject area? In an online program such as Edgenuity, every student action can be recorded and assessed providing teachers with a range of formative and summative data to inform instruction. The program provides opportunities for a variety of student responses, including performance tasks, multiple-choice and drop-down questions (primarily in practice and formal assessments), fill-in and short-answer questions (primarily in practice), and free response (primarily in Journals). Formal assessment occurs in the following places: Formative: Students take a brief quiz at the end of each lesson. The data from this quiz is compiled in real time for teachers, so they can adjust their review and future instruction to target concepts and skills that were difficult for students. Summative: Students take summative assessments at the end of each unit (unit tests) and at the end of each semester (cumulative exams). Formats include performance-based task and portfolio assessment as well as selected and constructed response. The course includes open-ended questions that support a full range of cognitive complexity. Open-ended questions elevate thinking beyond recall and simple skill application--challenging students to make inferences, analyze story elements and author's purpose, and trace the development of exposition and argument in nonfiction texts. Students can also select some of their journal entries for portfolios, as well as selected assessments if they choose. These assessments provide multiple checks for teachers and administrators to determine if students are mastering content. Page 11 Edgenuity Inc.