Summary

HB 1785 (Open States or Arkansas Legislature)  expands access to blended learning and digital learning opportunities for students by creating a pathway to a new requirement that every student be provided with one digital learning course. It eliminates seat time for digital learning courses and sets up an approval process and public list of approved digital learning providers.

Legislative Analysis

This legislation requires the Department of Education to annually publish a list of approved digital learning providers offer digital learning services. These providers can be from in or out-of-state, but must prove that they have previous experience offering digital learning courses (based on student growth), meets minimum curriculum standards and uses highly qualified teachers to deliver courses.

The legislation explicitly states that while a teacher delivering digital courses should be highly qualified, they are not required to be licensed as a teacher by the state board. It also prevents the Department from requiring digital learning providers to only offer courses to public schools requiring physical attendance to complete the credit. Digital Learning providers can be purely or partially online schools and cannot be hindered from being classified as a provider due to restrictions based on physical attendance.

Beginning in 2013-2014 as a pilot program, and in 2014-2015 as a requirement for all schools, it will require public and charter schools to provide at least one digital course as either a primary or supplementary method of instruction and that will be made available in a blended learning, online-based, or other technology-based format tailored to meet the needs of each student.

It will also require that the ninth grade class of 2014-2015 take at least one digital learning class to graduate and the Department of Education will not limit the number of digital classes for credit a student may take. The digital learning courses will be required to be capable of being assessed by standardized tests and local assessments.

Legislative History

Detailed Vote History:  Legiscan | Open States

Signed by Governor Mike Beebe on 4/17/2013