Virtual Schools
86 North Carolina Schools Gain Online Courses
Eighty-six independent schools in North Carolina are expanding their instruction online in an effort to boost learning opportunities for their students. The schools, part of the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools, will also offer online credit recovery opportunities for students who have fallen behind.
Through a deal struck a deal with a distance learning provider Aventa Learning, the NCAIS will offer 140 online courses to middle school and high school students, as well as credit recovery options. Nineteen of the online courses will be AP courses. (A list of available Aventa AP courses can be found here.)
Carol Keenan, director of virtual education and teacher services for NCAIS, said the move will allow schools to differentiate instruction and provide additional opportunities for learning.
"The primary focus of our schools is to meet the needs of all of our students," Keenan said in a statement released Monday. "By partnering with Aventa, our schools will be able to expand their course offerings and really differentiate their learning while giving students and parents more options for an enriched curriculum, whether they're looking for Latin or Advanced Physics."
Aventa Learning is a unit of KC Distance Learning, which acquired it in January 2007.
NCAIS serves about 35,000 students and has a 10:1 student-teacher ratio. The 86 member schools represent a wide range of school types, including traditional, coeducational schools; schools with religious affiliations; single-sex schools; and boarding schools.