In 2013, Florida lawmakers overhauled the state’s virtual education laws. Among other things, they created a new course-choice system.
The Florida Approved Courses and Tests (FACTs) Initiative, launched earlier this year, offers students more ways to take online courses, including some offered outside their districts.
When lawmakers first debated the program, much of the buzz focused on the prospect of high school students taking Massive Open Online Courses for credit. That hasn’t come to pass.
But educators have found other uses for MOOCs, both for high school and college students. This afternoon, the House Choice and Innovation Subcommittee is set to hear from two colleges that developed multiple MOOCs to help students prepare for college-level coursework. The efforts took on new importance after a 2014 law did away with traditional remedial courses, and left colleges looking for inexpensive ways to help students catch up.
Both Broward College and St. Petersburg College report thousands of students — mostly in Florida, but some around the world — have used their free courses to shore up their skills or prepare for tests.
The panel will also hear from Michael Horn of the Clayton Christensen Institute on microschools and online learning. That’s the kind of presentation that could set the stage for another look at the state’s virtual education laws.
Rep. Manny Diaz, R-Hialeah, who helped write the course-choice law and now chairs the subcommittee, said it’s too early to say whether legislators will look to change the 2013 law, but he wants to look for ways to expand access to college courses.
“Is there a way for us to capitalize on FACTS and dual enrollment?” he asked. Online courses might give students a low-cost way earn college credits before they finish high school, or to take courses offered by elite universities in other states. “We need to make sure our students have access to the best courses in the world,” he said.
