Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

VHS Learning Students Achieve Course Pass Rate of 91%

Boston – While many schools and families worry about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on student learning, students who enroll in high-quality, teacher-led online classes with VHS Learning continue to show consistent progress. During the 2021-2022 academic year, students taking VHS Learning online courses had an average course pass rate of 91%. This average pass rate has remained consistent at 91% over the last three years.

Students who took VHS Learning summer school courses for credit recovery achieved success as well. In 2022, those students who previously failed a course and retook it with VHS Learning summer school had an average pass rate of 75%. 

In the 26 years that VHS Learning has been providing supplemental online high school classes, it has earned a reputation for its high standard of educational quality, which keeps schools and students coming back. In 2021-2022, VHS Learning had 18,899 course enrollments by students from more than 600 partner schools. Last year, 88% of schools previously utilizing the program continued their participation in the 2021-2022 school year. Further, 90% of administrators and 90% of site coordinators who manage the VHS Learning program at their school said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their school’s VHS Learning experience.…Read More

Schools Across the U.S. and Around the World Partner with VHS Learning to Open a World of Opportunities to Students

Boston — Schools across the U.S. and in eight countries have started or renewed partnerships with VHS Learning this year to provide teacher-led, high school online courses in a variety of disciplines. Some have been partnering with the nonprofit organization for over 20 years.

“Online learning is a valuable tool that can help schools provide students with greater course variety and options for learning,” said Carol DeFuria, President & CEO of VHS Learning. “Schools around the world value our 26 years of experience educating students online, and many partner with us year after year. They trust our program to support their schools’ instructional needs and provide their students with comprehensive, interactive, and engaging online courses led by certified teachers.”

New international school participants this year include BIS in the Republic of Korea, Kingham Hill School in the United Kingdom, and Shanghai SMIC Private School in China. Returning schools include American Community School Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates; Asia American International Academy in Taiwan, Province of China; Escola Americana de Belo Horizonte in Brazil; Qatar Academy Sidra in Qatar; and International School of Kigali in Rwanda.

In addition, many U.S. schools have continued their long-time partnerships with VHS Learning. Schools that have utilized VHS Learning for 20 years or more include three Massachusetts districts: Abington High School in Abington, Nipmuc Regional High School in Upton, and Northbridge High School in Whitinsville. Schools that partnered with VHS Learning over 15 years ago include Hampden Academy and Falmouth High School in Maine, and Bromfield School and Hopkins Academy in Massachusetts, Newmarket Junior-Senior High School in New Hampshire, and Hackettstown High School in New Jersey.…Read More

Vector Solutions Releases New Student Safety & Wellness Courses to Address Topics of Concern for Students Today

Tampa, FL – June 16, 2022 – Vector Solutions, the leading provider of training and software solutions to help schools make their operations and communities safer, smarter, and better, has created a new set of online courses for students focusing on important safety topics such as trauma awareness, dating violence, human trafficking, and more. The courses are the latest addition to Vector’s award-winning library of Student Safety & Wellness Courses.

The short online video lessons help schools teach and promote discussions about important safety, wellness, and social and emotional learning topics that have a big impact on individual students and the school community. The new collection of courses includes:

  • Active Assailant Preparedness
  • Dating Violence Awareness
  • Human Trafficking Awareness
  • Sexual Abuse Awareness
  • Trauma Awareness

Each course is broken into short, age-appropriate modules for grades 9-12 and grades 6-8. The courses will be available for schools to implement at the start of the 2022-2023 school year.…Read More

VHS Learning’s New Flexible Courses Expand Student Options for Online Course Enrollment

Boston – May 12, 2022 – Scheduling flexibility is frequently cited by students and teachers as a major benefit of working with VHS Learning’s asynchronous online courses. Starting in August, students will be able to take advantage of an even more flexibly paced course format.

The new Flexible course model will be available for 16 courses beginning in the 2022-2023 academic year:

  • Algebra 1 Flexible
  • AP® Calculus AB Flexible
  • AP® Calculus BC Flexible
  • AP® Computer Science Principles Flexible
  • AP® Environmental Science Flexible
  • AP® Macroeconomics Flexible
  • AP® Microeconomics Flexible
  • AP® Music Theory Flexible
  • AP® Physics 1 Flexible
  • AP® Spanish Language and Culture Flexible
  • AP® Statistics Flexible
  • AP® United States Government Flexible
  • AP® United States History Flexible
  • English 9 Flexible
  • English 11 Flexible
  • Spanish 1 Flexible

Each Flexible course is self-paced, and teacher led. Courses begin on the first of every month from August through February (August through December for AP® courses). The courses will end at the completion of the school year, so later enrollees will progress through course material at a faster pace.…Read More

Salt Lake City School District Partners with Vector Solutions to Manage its Staff Training

Tampa, FL – February 3, 2022 – The Salt Lake City School District in Utah has adopted Vector Training (formerly SafeSchools), an award-winning online training management system  and Vector Solutions’ online video training courses to help the district manage staff training and compliance for its 4,000 employees. The switch to Vector Training helps the district address federal, state and local compliance training requirements, along with district-specific policies.

Vector’s Safety & Compliance course library includes expert-authored online courses such as Bullying Recognition and Response, Active Shooter, Accident Investigation, Athletic Liability, Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Prevention, and more. Vector Training helps districts simplify training management and comply with important state and federal training mandates, including OSHA, Title IX, Mandatory Reporting, Youth Suicide Prevention, Bullying and FERPA.

The Salt Lake City School District selected Vector Training after an extensive vetting process. Among its requirements were:…Read More

Schools in All 50 States and Two U.S. Territories Offer Students Access to Quality Online Courses from VHS Learning

Boston – Feb. 3, 2022 – In 2021, 44 new schools partnered with VHS Learning, a nonprofit empowering schools with the industry’s best teacher-led online learning programs. Located across the United States and around the world, these school partners are now offering their students access to the nonprofit’s more than 300 core and elective courses online. With the addition of these schools, VHS Learning is now partnered with schools in all 50 states, two U.S. territories, and 63 countries.

“Having partners in all 50 states is a first for us, and it’s extremely fitting that this milestone marks our 25th anniversary” said Carol DeFuria, President & CEO of VHS Learning. “Our students have maintained a high level of academic performance even during the pandemic, by continuing to surpass national averages for Advanced Placement® pass rates. Our history of excellence helps schools feel confident about choosing VHS Learning to meet their online education needs.”

The new U.S. school partners are in twelve states – Connecticut, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. New international school partners are in China, Taiwan, Korea, Portugal, Sierra Leone, and the United Arab Emirates.…Read More

Online Courses from Vector Solutions Help Schools Address Pandemic-Related Behavioral Challenges

Tampa, FL – September 20, 2021 – For many students, the stress and challenges of the pandemic may have caused regression both socially and emotionally and in terms of their behavior.  To support teachers and administrators this school year, Vector Solutions, the leading provider of training and software solutions to help schools make their operations and communities safer, smarter and better, has created a new set of online training courses addressing some of the most common behavioral challenges expected this school year.

The “ Back to School Behavior Management Course Bundle” includes 15 evidence-based training courses in the areas of managing challenging student behaviors, key behavioral disabilities, and essential processes and procedures for handling behavior appropriately and safely.

“We’ve heard a lot about the need to tackle pandemic-related ‘learning loss’ this school year, but if we don’t support students’ behavioral, social, and emotional needs, they may not be able to focus on academics,” said Vector Solutions CEO Marc Scheipe. “Our new courses provide valuable training to help teachers and administrators safely address these behaviors and help students focus on learning.”…Read More

EdisonLearning and Pointful Education Partner To Expand Access To Online Career and Technical Courses

Pointful Education’s suite of CTE and elective offerings are now available to all secondary students enrolled in eCourses through EdisonLearning

EdisonLearning a premier provider of digital learning solutions for grades 6-12, and Pointful Education, a leading publisher of career and elective courses, today announced a partnership that expands EdisonLearning’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) and elective offerings with the integration of Pointful Education’s online courses.

The partnership will offer secondary students of all current and future EdisonLearning partners a wide variety of learning opportunities spanning several career pathways with courses ranging from eSports to Entrepreneurship. The courses feature project-based learning, engaging video content, a variety of assessments, and interactive activities. These CTE and elective courses add to the 150+ courses already available in the EdisonLearning library and expand schools’ access to well-rounded content to support students’ college, career, civic and life readiness.…Read More

VHS Learning Partners with Continental Han Feng Network Technology to Develop Chinese Language Program

Nonprofit VHS Learning is partnering with Continental Han Feng Network Technology (CHF) to develop a full Chinese language high school program. Chinese 1 through AP® Chinese Language and Culture courses will be added to the more than 250 online courses currently offered by VHS Learning. CHF and VHS Learning are working collaboratively to develop Chinese 1 and Chinese 2 courses during the first year of this multi-year partnership and VHS Learning is training qualified teachers in preparation for releasing both courses in September 2021.

“We are thrilled to be able to offer a full Chinese language program to VHS Learning students,” said Carol DeFuria, President & CEO of VHS Learning. “We know there is a huge demand for Chinese language instruction, but not all high schools have the staff or resources to offer these courses. I anticipate a significant demand for these courses and am thankful for the support and partnership of CHF as we bring these courses to life for high school students everywhere.”

To develop the program, VHS Learning is working with a stellar team of subject matter experts. The team will take state of the art content and create engaging learning experiences, fully aligned to ACTFL World Language standards, and delivered through VHS Learning’s unique, asynchronous model.…Read More

VHS Learning Partners with Schools in Massachusetts to Offer Online Courses

Three Massachusetts schools are the latest to join the hundreds of schools around the world in choosing VHS Learning as an online course provider for their students. Schools can easily increase their course offerings by giving students access to the VHS Learning catalog, which consists of more than 250 unique teacher-led online courses, including 24 AP® offerings, innovative STEM programs, and a wide variety of unique electives.

Marblehead High School, located in Essex County in the northeastern part of Massachusetts, has chosen to expand course offerings with a new membership that provides 112 student enrollments in VHS Learning courses. Andover High School, also in Essex County, expanded their VHS Learning partnership by purchasing 100 enrollments, and is also incorporating one teacher into the program. Natick High School, located in the Greater Boston area, purchased 40 enrollments.

VHS Learning design and delivery standards were the model used by the National Education Association when they created the first standards for online learning. Last year in collaboration with the international nonprofit Quality Matters and the Virtual Learning Leadership Alliance, VHS Learning helped revise the National Standards for Quality (NSQ) in three areas: Online Courses, Online Teaching, and Online Programs.…Read More