At Colorado’s Largest Online School, Students Weren’t Logging In

Listen Now
Photo: Student at computer (Flickr/CC)
A student types at a computer.

An Education Week investigation found just one in four students at GOAL Academy, Colorado's largest online school, used the required education software each day. It also found that during a typical week, 55 percent of students didn't use the software at all.

The report says many of the issues are emblematic of problems at cyber schools across the country, and points to a 2015 Stanford study that found two-thirds of online schools performed worse than traditional brick-and-mortar schools. Some proponents say the comparison is unfair since cyber schools often serve a more challenging population.

The report by Education Week's Ben Herold and his colleagues also documents a trail of financial mismanagement by GOAL Academy's founder, who resigned last year.

Herold spoke with Colorado Matters host Ryan Warner.

Related: