In Pennsylvania, the popularity of the Capital Area Online Learning Association (CAOLA) appears to have bolstered the organization’s belief that part-time or full-time online learning will be the future of K-12 education. 12th year. Now the association, which works with dozens of school districts across the state to provide an online learning model, has expanded its curriculum options through a new partnership with Arizona-based StrongMind.
StrongMind, a company that offers a Digital Promise-certified digital curriculum, with social and emotional learning and other educational tools for virtual and blended learning, said in a press release that partnering with CAOLA will make StrongMind an option. for over 10,000 K-12 students the association serves each year. The release describes the StrongMind program as fair, personalized, and designed to prepare K-12 students for success in the 21st century.
StrongMind’s courses include an assortment of media, interactive activities, student assessments, project-based learning, and opportunities to collaborate with teachers and other students. The press release says schools can use their own teachers if they wish, in which case StrongMind will provide them with professional development. However, StrongMind also has its own bench of teachers who can supervise lessons, or a participating school can opt for a combination of these.
According to the CAOLA website, students using the platform who remain enrolled in their local school district will still graduate from their local high school. The courses offered by the association are all tailored to the student and designed to give them the technology skills needed to succeed in today’s job market, the website says. The program can be full-time online, or single on-site or distance learning courses. It also offers career choices leading to certifications, summer school, and credit recovery, among other options.
“Adding StrongMind to the CAOLA Consortium enables us to provide our customers with additional choices in the K-12 curriculum,” CAOLA Online Learning Supervisor Holly Brzycki said in a public statement.
For StrongMind, this is the latest of several partnerships in recent years, having worked last year with iLearn Collaborative to provide professional development for schools and districts, and with Valor Academy for tuition-free customizable courses. .