This dissertation consists of three papers. Online Learning, Offline Outcomes: Online Course Taking and High School Student Performance. This paper uses fixed effects models to estimate differences in contemporaneous and downstream academic outcomes for students who take courses virtually and face-to-face, both for initial attempts and for…

As Internet technology encroached on the public school classroom about a decade ago, Kim Ross, superintendent of the Houston School District in Houston, Minnesota, saw an opportunity. At first, he and his administrative team simply wanted to offer students in the district of 1,300 access to more classes via the web than what a district that size…

Researchers conducted case studies of Ninth Grade Success Initiative (NGSI) grants to gain a greater understanding of issues facing large numbers of at-risk students, many of whom, despite potentially receiving services as early as kindergarten, still reach ninth grade unprepared to succeed academically in high school. Case studies focused on NGSI…

"Keeping Pace" has several goals. First, it strives to add to the body of knowledge about online education policy and make recommendations for advances. Second, it serves as a reference source for information about programs and policies across the country, for both policymakers and practitioners who are new to online education as well as those who…

This report is the third in a series of annual reports looking at the state of online education across the country. The goal of "Keeping Pace" is to be a useful document for policymakers and practitioners, and as such it takes a journalistic approach to research and writing instead of an academic approach. This report has two goals: first, to add…

The goal of "Keeping Pace" is to to serve as a useful document for policymakers and practitioners, and as such, it takes a journalistic approach to research and writing. Most state and program profiles include footnotes that reference state laws, state policies, and websites of programs. However, in some cases, the information is general and was…