Virtual Success School Demographics

Virtual Success is a public charter high school that provides an online secondary education to students all over the state of Idaho. There are currently 369 students enrolled with Virtual Success.

Thanks to the online nature of the school, many data metrics are tracked for each individual student. Since internet connectivity is key when attending an online school, one of the most important pieces of data that we collect from each student is their average connection speed when logged into the online school. Since students do homework, tests, research, and live class sessions online, it is import that students have an internet connection capable of supporting video and audio streaming at fairly high rates. Below is a breakdown of the students average connection speed while logged into the online school:

Virtual Success currently employs 20 full-time and 6 part-time teachers, all of whom are considered highly qualified in their subject area. Out of the 26 teachers on staff, all but three live throughout the state of Idaho. Virtual Success is headquartered in Boise, Idaho. One thing that makes Virtual Success unique amongst other online schools in Idaho is it functions like an individual school district and is headed by a school board that guides the decision making and culture of the school. Virtual Success is in control of the curriculum, staff, equipment, and student body much in the same way that a traditional brick and mortar school district maintains control over the education and well-being of its shareholders. Virtual Success is just like any other school with the exception of it being totally online.

Maturity Model Rankings: Administrative Filter - Integrated Stage

Virtual Success is at the Integrated Stage as it pertains to the Administrative Filter. It has a policy and administrative team that are focused on ensuring a quality technological experience across the spectrum. The school board as well as the administrative team are committed to providing faculty and students with the best possible educational tools and experience. They have a broad vision in terms of the technological direction of the school and strive to make that vision a reality. Problems that hinder the administrations vision of the school are in the budget and planning stages of the program as it views technology. Being an independent charter school means only being able to rely on funding generated from one school instead of multiple schools across a whole district as in the traditional setting. This leads to a sometimes frugal budget and older technologies being adopted. On the technological planning side of the program, while there is a plan in place, it is not always followed. Sometimes new technologies are purchased using limited information. This has led to money being wasted on technology that is not wholly adopted by the school and eventually abandoned. If budgetary and planning issues were improved upon, a higher ranking would be issued for the Administrative Filter. Policy: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Since Virtual Success is an online high school, technology is common throughout the program. At an administrative level, policy has been developed and is used throughout all aspects of the program in order to address the technological needs of the school.

Policy: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage The technology use at the high school is guided by a comprehensive plan and system that has been approved by the school's board of directors. The plan is widely known throughout administration and is flexible in terms of being able to adapt to new technologies.

Planning: Behavioral - Islands Stage The school has a general plan for technology use but it is used sometimes sporadically and made to only apply to certain areas of the school. This is sometimes due to budgetary constraints or the whims of one or two individuals. Planning: Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage Though the school has a comprehensive technology policy in place, technology use planning happens in pockets of the school and specific technologies are sometimes purchased on a whim in order to experiment with their use in a specific part of the program. This is tolerated within the administration because they want to seem on board in helping find new technologies to help the school. Budget: Behavioral - Emergent Stage The money for technology is there but it is integrated into the budget for the whole school. Administrators sometimes dip into this portion of the budget if they need money for other things. The policy for guiding technology spending is very loose and not well articulated. Much spending happens on a whim or without much planning. The two people involved in the schools finances are not the most tech savvy individuals and rely on others for decision making in this regard. Budget: Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage Part of the school's budget is allocated for technology but the amount of money fluctuates greatly and the budget is not always adhered to depending on how other areas of the school are doing financially. Only two people have final say in how money is spent at the school. Administrative Information: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Almost all paperwork generated by the administration is digital. Very little paper is used in daily workflow. The software for this is available to all administrators and teachers and all members of the school have been instructed in its use. Administrative Information: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage The software and technology needed is there and is applied uniformly to all administrative staff and teachers.

Curricular Filter - Intelligent Stage

Being a successful online school means that technology acceptance and utilization is of pinnacle importance. Virtual Success does an excellent job implementing technology throughout the curriculum and student experience. Teachers at the school are very accepting of technological integration and the adoption of new technologies is encouraged amongst the staff. A teacher at Virtual Success must be very comfortable with technology in order to have a successful and fulfilling experience at the school.

The students experience technological integration as soon as they log in to school and without the extensive use of technology, they would not be successful in school. All course resources and assessments are online and any tools the student may need are distributed digitally. Even in Special Education, most remedial and one-on-one work is done online with a certified Special Education teacher, using digital means to communicate and help the student. As long as Virtual Success keeps up the good work in terms of integrating technology into all aspects of the curriculum and keeping teachers and students immersed in the digital world of online education, they will maintain a superior rank in the Curricular Filter. Electronic Information: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Since Virtual Success in online, all teachers and students rely heavily on a broad system of software in order to get daily work done. Electronic Information: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Comprehensive software resources are used throughout the curriculum and everyone has access to this pool of technology. Assessment: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All student assessment takes place online and the data can be accessed by the students, parents, and faculty of the school very easily. Assessment: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Students, parents, and faculty can easily access assessment data and tools that are available schoolwide. Curriculum Integration: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All curricular areas access technology throughout the program, including Special Education. All curriculum resources are online and available to faculty and students. Curriculum Integration: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All curricular resources are online and available to faculty and students. Curriculum can be accessed 24/7. Teacher Use: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Being an online school means that the teachers could not do their work without heavy technology resources. Teachers are 100% dependent on computers and online resources in order to do their jobs correctly and effectively. Teacher Use: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All teachers are provided necessary technological components in order to do their jobs. Student Use: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Students access all of their curriculum online with computers provided by the schools. Without technology, students would not be able to function in the school's online environment.

Student Use: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Computers are provided free of charge to all students and an internet reimbursement is available to all students. Students have all hours access to the curriculum and their computers.

Support Filter - Islands Stage

The Support Filter is the one area in which Virtual Success could improve the most. Virtual Success functions well in terms of technology and communication as long as everyone knows how to operate the technology and the technology functions as expected. Unfortunately, that is not always how things work out when dealing with computers and a digital environment. When things dont go as planned, Virtual Success can struggle. The shining light in terms of support is definitely the staff of the school. Administrators and teachers alike are used to helping each other out and providing informal tech support to each other when things do not go as planned. The schools staff is very tech savvy and are a great technological knowledge base in their own right. This is a very good thing because there is very little formal tech support in the event software and hardware do not act as they should. On the hardware side of things, technical support is almost non-existent. Usually, problems are solved by simply replacing a whole computer or router which can take time and can kill productivity and connectivity. On the software side of things, one man controls all of the technical support for the whole school. All software issues are routed to him and he then communicates with other parties. This is also time consuming. The shareholders within the school also have little say in how technology is utilized or supported. Students and parents often rely on teachers for technical support and if a laptop breaks down, it is replaced instead of a technician trying to solve the problem over the phone. This results in possible data loss as well as the student possibly not being able to access the curriculum for a time. Virtual Success would do well to address support issues and improve the current climate of support in the school to achieve a higher ranking. Stakeholder Involvement: Behavioral - Islands Stage All technological planning and implementation is done so with little parent or student involvement and is driven heavily by the faculty and administration. The parents and students may be aware of technological changes but have little power to influence them. Stakeholder Involvement: Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage When planning for technology use, only the faculty and administration have any real say in what happens. Student's interests are considered but ultimately, students and parents do not get much of a say in how technology is implemented. Administrative Support: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Administration is often let into the planning process and has a very big say in how technology planning and the acquiring of technology takes place. Administrative Support: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage

Administration devotes much time to the support of technology and is integral to the planning and deployment of technology throughout the school. Training: Behavioral - Islands Stage A lot of technology is acquired but not all faculty are trained on it. Technology training is done on a very "need to know" basis. Faculty are not trained extensively enough in some areas and are forced to figure things out for themselves quite often. Training: Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage Training is sporadic and not ongoing. Only certain groups are trained on certain pieces of technology. Training may be slightly inadequate for the environment. Technical & Infrastructure Support: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All staff utilize informal tech support and help each other out whenever possible. Staff are very proactive in seeking solutions to tech issues and do a great job supporting each other. Technical & Infrastructure Support: Resource/Infrastructure - Emergent Stage There is almost no formal tech support regarding hardware and very little tech support regarding software usage that teachers have access to on an immediate and ongoing basis. Formal tech support for software goes through one person and can be very slow. This forces the faculty to fend of themselves quite often.

Connectivity Filter - Intelligent Stage

If one is going to work at or attend an online school, internet connectivity is of the utmost priority. This is true for the teachers as well as the students. If a student cannot connect to the internet, they cannot access the curriculum. If a teacher cannot connect to the internet, they cannot communicate with or instruct students. Virtual Success as a school hinges on internet connectivity. Fortunately, Virtual Success, its students, and its staff, are all fully connected to the online world. Almost all students have broadband internet access and all of the teacher have broadband internet access. This means that email, curriculum, and video conferencing are accessible to all students and staff at all times. Communication never stops at Virtual Success and this is due in large part to the schools commitment to making sure connectivity is a top priority. Virtual Success is definitely at the Intelligent Stage within the Connectivity Filter. Local Area Networking: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Staff uses available WAN services for all video, voice, and data needs. Classes are taught online via live class sessions on a daily basis. Local Area Networking: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage

Internet and network resources are available for all staff to use for all communications and data needs. District Area Networking (WAN): Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Staff uses available WAN services for all video, voice, and data needs. Classes are taught online via live class sessions on a daily basis. District Area Networking (WAN): Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Internet and network resources are available for all staff to use for all communications and data needs. Internet Access: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All staff and students utilize the internet almost constantly for all educational and communication needs. Internet Access: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All students and staff have direct internet access and students are reimbursed for their internet charges on a per semester basis.

Communication Systems: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Staff and students are constantly using emails, video chats, messaging, and proprietary software for synchronous classroom sessions. Communication Systems: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Email and VOIP and other communication technologies are available for all staff and students.

Innovation Filter - Intelligent Stage

The mere fact that Virtual Success is an online school means that it is an innovator in the educational field. Ten years ago, the practices that are commonplace at Virtual Success would not have been feasible due to the technology and educational mindset of most practitioners at the time. Virtual Success is filled with innovators who love trying out new methodologies that involve integrating technology into their instruction. The students are also innovators in their own right because they are trying something very new in the field of education. They are learning in ways that would have been unimaginable fifty years ago. Virtual Success employs numerous technologies to facilitate communication between staff members and students. A typical day at Virtual Success means using video conferencing, digital messaging, email, and online class sessions that happen in real time. All students and teachers must be able to utilize these technologies in order to be successful and they do it everyday. This is why Virtual Success is at the Intelligent Stage within the Innovation Filter. New Technologies: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage

Staff are constantly seeking out new technologies and ways to communicate with and educate students. Staff enjoys working with and experimenting with new technology. New Technologies: Resource/Infrastructure - Integrated Stage While the staff is very comfortable with new technology, the technology itself can be sometimes slow to be integrated into the system due to funds or lack of effort by administration to commit to new technology for the school. Student and staff computers are fairly dated. Comprehensive Technologies: Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Staff and students are trained on and utilize a wide spectrum of communications technology in order to engage in online education and use multiple formats on a daily basis.

Comprehensive Technologies: Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All communications technology across all formats is constantly available to staff and students and technology is regularly incorporated into lessons, classroom assignments, and assessment.

Conclusion
Virtual Success stands out as a technological and educational innovator but it is not without areas that could stand to be improved. For this reason, Virtual Success achieves an Integrated Stage ranking in technological maturity. The school does a lot of things right and I believe it serves the student base well. Areas of improvement at the school include, better budgetary planning for technology and increased formal technological supports given to staff and students. One thing that made itself very clear while conducting this evaluation is that Virtual Success has a great group of teachers and administrators who have the students needs in mind. They are a very tech savvy group of people who love the challenges that come with being an online school. They are constantly looking for ways to use technology to improve their program and better educate their students. I see no reason that Virtual Success could not increase their ranking on the Maturity Model if they made slight improvements in areas throughout their program and kept doing some of the great innovative practices that they already have in place.