Burch on Virtual Charters and Other Market-Based Educational Trends

Two weeks ago I reviewed Terry Moe and John Chubb’s new book celebrating market-based education reform, especially home-based online learning.  Today I review Patricia Burch, Hidden Markets: The New Education Privatization (Routledge, 2009), which is a critique of these same trends.

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Why Parents Choose Cybercharter Schools

This post briefly reviews Rose M. Marsh, Alison A. Carr-Chellman, and Beth R. Stockman, “Selecting Silicon: Why Parents Choose Cybercharter Schools” in TechTrends 53, no. 4 (July 2009): 32-36 [available here]

Carr-Chellman and two of her doctoral students here report the results of interviews they conducted with seven cybercharter parents to find out why conservative homeschoolers are embracing this option. 

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Cavanaugh reviews the literature on Cyber Charter Effectiveness

This post briefly reviews Cathy Cavanaugh, “Effectiveness of Cyber Charters: A Review of Research on Learnings” in Tech Trends 53, no. 4 (July/August 2009): 28-31 [available fulltext here]

In another article taken from the special issue of Tech Trends devoted to cyber schools, Cavanaugh, Associate Professor of educational technology at the University of Florida at Gainesville, summarizes the literature on the effectiveness of cyberschools. 

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Cambre on Religion in Cyber Charters

This post briefly reviews Belinda M. Cambre, “Tearing Down the Walls: Cyber Charter Schools and the Public Endorsement of Religion” in Tech Trends 53, no. 4 (July/August 2009): 61-64 [Available fulltext here]

Cambre, an education professor at the University of New Orleans, here summarizes the legal background of the public education and religion issue and then offers a brief speculative discussion of legal issues that might arise with cyber charters.  This article is part of a special issue of Tech Trends devoted to cyber charters. 

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Klein and Poplin on Virtual Charter Schools

This post reviews Carol Klein and Mary Poplin, “Families Home Schooling in a Virtual Charter School System” in Marriage and Family Review 43, nos. 3&4 (2008): 369-395.

Klein,  a Teacher on Special Assignment in Anaheim, CA, and Poplin, Professor of Education at Claremont Graduate University, here offer the results of a survey Klein conducted of parents whose children are enrolled in the California Virtual Academies (CAVA). 

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Clark on Virtual Schools

This post reviews Thomas Clark, “Virtual Schooling and Basic Education” in Bramble and Panda, eds., Economics of Distance and Online Learning: Theory, Practice and Research(New York: Routledge, 2008), pp. 52-71.

Clark, president of TA Consulting, which helps cybercharters develop successful long-term strategies, and author of several articles on virtual schools, here presents a broad overview of virtual schools, aimed at an international audience.   

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Part 3 of review of Williams, ed., AT ISSUE: HOMESCHOOLING

In this third installment I will review chapters 5 and 6 of the anthology AT ISSUE: HOMESCHOOLING 

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