Coupeville High School French teacher Everett Winsberg retired at the end of the last school year. It left 26 students without a chance to take their second year French course.
However, a new program the school district is offering this year provides an online option for French students to complete their second year of coursework.
The Digital Learning Commons provides students at the middle and high school with access to research databases and online courses.
“It was a particularly opportune time to get involved with the Digital Learning Commons,†said Glenda Merwine, director of Student Learning for the Coupeville School District.
The school district had hired another language teacher to replace Winsberg, but the replacement doesn’t know French.
Merwine said the school district had an obligation to pay for the tuition for the second year French class, which will cost $275 per student. The school district agreed to pay the tuition for the students.
“We felt like we had to provide the option to finish out that requirement,†Merwine said. She added the 26 students eligible to take second-year French are enrolled in the online class.
If students wish to take additional classes through the commons, then their families would have to foot the bill.
The Digital Learning Commons provides access to online classes from vendors. For students to take such a class, they would need approval from the principal. Costs for a course range between $250 and $350 per class.
The commons provides hundreds of classes ranging from vocational education to advanced placement courses. The available courses are a help for school districts with few students.
“When you’re small, you can’t offer as many opportunities,†Merwine said.
She said the school district will look into funding options to help lower-income families, but officials are more concerned with implementing the program first.
The Digital Learning Commons provides more than access to classes. It will also provides research tools for students at the middle school and high school.
“There are going to be unbelievable research tools available,†Merwine said. The agreement with the commons provides students with access to several databases to help with research for assignments.
The database access to the commons will cost the school district $6 per student for the 2006-2007 school year. Since school started Tuesday, the Coupeville School District doesn’t have a firm enrollment count yet. The school district projects 267 students will attend the middle school and 366 students will attend the high school this school year.
The Digital Learning Commons started in 2002 with support from the state Legislature, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. It is available to public and private schools in Washington state.
