File:Deliverable VISCED D3.9A Policy Recommendations England v1 0.pdf

With regards to the findings of the VISCED Research Project, this paper suggests that policymakers and leaders in the English education system should look to the following areas: 1. Ensuring that existing regulatory, accountability and support frameworks do not disadvantage virtual schools or colleges but at the same time should subject them to the same levels of inspection and accountability as traditional schools. 2. Clarifying the position with regards to the ownership of qualifications achieved by students through virtual schooling. 3. Supporting teachers in the use of the rich data generated through online and virtual schooling. 4. Developing parents, carers, guardians and family as home-educator support for online Learners and developing appropriate recognition and pathways for mentors. 5. Securing value for money through exploring the use of Open Educational Resources and encouraging collaborative purchasing between virtual institutions. 6. Enhancing existing education strategies through exploiting the potential of virtual schooling to reach out to the excluded and marginalised, improve the quality of specialist curriculum areas such as Science, Technology, Engineering and 7. Mathematics (STEM) and Modern Foreign Languages (MFL), extend the curriculum offer through creating viable cohorts for niche subjects.