Livingstone Range School Division is always looking for ways to bring education to rural areas, and one of its newest initiatives is a virtual school.
Trustees heard about the new virtual school May 23 meeting from director of learning and innovation Chad Kuzyk.
Kuzyk started by reading the division’s vision statement: “To be leaders in providing quality education to rural students in a dynamic learning environment.”
“The best for our kids, that’s what we strive for,” Kuzyk said.
“We have to be dynamic in what we do for our kids,” he later added.
The division’s virtual school provides courses and educational programs which are delivered electronically to a student at a school site or off-site, under the instruction and supervision of a certificated teacher.
Essentially, the virtual school is a place for students to get learning on-line.
“It’s one more opportunity for students that may work for them,” Kuzyk said.
The virtual school offers courses such as French, Spanish, and Math 31.
“It offers them that opportunity they normally wouldn’t have,” Kuzyk said.
Kuzyk also talked about the virtual school personalizing learning for students.
The virtual school personalizes the learning for:
- Students who want to take a course that is not offered at their home school.
- Students who need to take a course that will not fit into their regular schedule.
- Students who prefer to complete their program independently and at a self-directed pace.
- Students who need to re-take a course.
- Students who require assistance with credit recovery.
- Students who are involved in high level sports or fine arts making regular school attendance difficult.
The virtual school offers flexible learning environments.
In each community, the virtual school is based at the outreach school in that community where each teacher is required to develop one course delivered across the division, while providing learning support to all virtual school students in their home community.
This allows students to stay in their own community and take courses.
Grade 10-12 students enroll in consultation with their school principal depending on the availability of the program, and there is no cost to any Livingstone Range School Division student.
There are 71 students in the virtual school taking courses in Math; Career and Life Management; Social Studies; Science; French; Spanish; and Psychology.
