Traverse City Record-Eagle

Other Views

January 21, 2012

Another view: Cyberschool cap stays on

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There must be better

and more varied

ways to provide

education in Michigan. But

that doesn’t mean that an

overreaching Legislature

should venture wildly

and expensively into new

ventures, an outcome that

is likely under a proposed

bill that would lift limits

on the number of virtual

charter schools, also known

as cyberschools.

Removing the cap on cyberschools

this early in the

game could lead to money

grabs by out-of-state enterprises,

loss of funds for

traditional public schools

and harmful experiences

for Michigan students.

A state law enacted in

2010 allowed for two cyberschools

in Michigan with

a maximum of enrollment

of 400 students. Before the

experiment could meet its

mandated two-year testing

period, state Sen. Patrick

Colbeck, R-Canton, introduced

a bill that would

eliminate all limits on

cyberschools. ...

Alternative-learning scenarios

should be actively

pursued. There is little

logic in the assumption that

all students learn the same

way.

Nor does it make sense

that the best way to learn

is in static hour-long (or

shorter) classes with 25 to

30 students sitting in neat

rows listening (or not) to a

teacher ...

But state Rep. (Bill) Rogers,

R-Genoa Township,

is skeptical about claims

that cyberschools are an

alternative for students who

aren’t succeeding in school.

“If it truly is for kids that

can’t fit into a certain system,

I get that, but I’m not

100 percent sold,” he said.

Fair enough. This is an

area that should be fully explored

before unilaterally

raising the cap on cyberschools.

Livingston County

Daily Press & Argus (Howell)

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