Tom Vander Ark: An Arizona Online Success Story

Last week I visited Arizona’s largest school, Primavera Online.  Headquartered in Chandler, Primavera serves primarily upper division students seeking an alternative pathway to graduation.  Half are juniors and seniors.  A quarter who have left school are classified as ‘grade 13’, what my friends in New York would call over-aged and under-credited
Primavera is powered by American Virtual Academy curriculum and learning platform (more on AVA in a later post).
In a few months, more than 500 graduates will gather (most physically, some virtually) at Grand Canyon University for a graduation ceremony.  Primavera has been helping Arizona students graduate for a decade.  It’s a homegrown academic success story. Click here to read more about my visit.

Lisa Graham Keegan: Improved Technology is Key to Better Education in Arizona

Arizona has every opportunity to provide an accountable education system that will dramatically impact the future of Arizona's workforce and economy - and especially the lives of those we teach. The issues before us are not simple, and addressing them requires maximizing every available resource.
One feature of the fastest-improving classrooms in the state is the availability of advanced technology. While technology changes the way all of us run our lives (how many of you are reading this online?), it also changes the possibilities for the classroom and school.
We know that schools can literally add hours to their week by relying on sound data systems for everything from test scores to payrolls. We also know that technology can enhance any teacher's classroom by offering personalized "tutoring" in addition to a teacher's foundational teaching.
Click here to read my complete op-ed which was published in the Arizona Republic.