“This measure will help provide a thorough and proper evaluation of virtual charter schools to determine if they are, first and foremost, permissible by law,” said Diegnan (D-Middlesex). “We also need to conduct a thorough review to ensure that these schools meet strict standards for delivering a quality education.”
The bill (A-3105) would create a twelve-month moratorium on the approval of virtual charter schools. The bill defines a virtual charter school as one in which all or some instruction is provided through the Internet, and the students enrolled in the school and the instructional staff employed by the school are geographically remote from each other.
“This task force will play an important role in determining whether virtual charter schools should play a role in the future of education in New Jersey,” said Johnson (D-Bergen). “It’s important to proactively examine their place in our system now instead of allowing them to proliferate without the proper oversight.”
Following the bill’s effective date, the Commissioner of Education will not be allowed to approve any application for the establishment of a virtual charter school for a period of 12 months while a task force is created to investigate and develop recommendations for the structure governing virtual charter school education in New Jersey.
The Virtual Charter School Task Force would consist of 9 members, three appointed by the Governor, three by the Senate President, and three by the Assembly Speaker.
“As it stands now, virtual charter schools are essentially the Wild West of the education community,” said Greenwald (D-Camden/Burlington). “There is relatively little oversight or insight into their operations, something this legislation will help develop.”
The task force’s recommendations must address: statutory and regulatory authority for the operation of virtual charter schools; part-time and full-time virtual charter schools; non-profit and for-profit virtual charter schools; parental involvement requirements; financial management systems; guidelines for Internet-based technology for classes; and guidelines for the performance of virtual charter schools.
“There are far too many unanswered questions in terms of whether this teaching method is effective for both educational development and social growth,” said Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen). “Given the fact that students will be online for a great deal of their day, I also hope the task force will examine whether proper controls are in place to help limit exposure to cyber bullying.”
The task would be required to issue a report to the Governor and the Legislature no later than March 1, 2013, at which time the taskforce would expire.
“The rapid proliferation of technology often makes it difficult for us to keep up with the way it impacts our day-to-day lives,” said Conaway (D-Burlington). “When it comes to our children’s education, this is where we need to apply the brakes until we can get a firm assessment on whether this method of teaching is in their best interests.”
At least five virtual charter schools have been approved by the Department of Education, four of which will be based out of Newark and run by K12 Inc., a technology-based education company that operates on the New York Stock Exchange. The fifth school is Merit Preparatory School, which is also based in Newark.
The bill now awaits consideration by the Senate.
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