Evanston Virtual High School
A distance education program offered by Uinta County School District #1
Minimum qualifications
All instructors in the Evanston Virtual High School program will be certified by the state of Wyoming in their respective subject area and will require they be "highly qualified" as defined by the Wyoming Department of Education and the Professional Teaching Standards Board. Instructors will also have taught in the content area for a minimum of three years.
Professional development
Evanston Virtual High School requires all staff to participate in distance education staff development both prior to and after their initial teaching begins. This professional development is delivered via on site and/or web-based instruction. Though our approach to teaching the material is unique, our pedagogy is not. To accommodate the diverse learning styles of children, we employ a variety of teaching strategies, including direct instruction, hands-on exploration, use of manipulatives, practice exercises, threaded discussions, and group and individual projects.
The unique qualities of our learning environment mandate the use of specialized online pedagogical techniques. With respect to teacher development we focus on the structure of the curriculum, the utilization of technology to enhance instruction and communication, student motivation and progress monitoring in a distance learning setting, and the customization of the curriculum to meet the individualized needs of the students enrolled in our program.
Staff development plans are developed yearly and include both in person and online training events. Online events are both synchronous and asynchronous in nature. Whenever possible, the same tools that teachers use with their students are used to train the teachers themselves. Ongoing professional development occurs throughout the year and is supported by Evanston High School and Uinta County School District #1.
Performance expectations
Evanston Virtual High School teachers are expected to possess appropriate skills in such areas as e-mail, web-based delivery, data management, telephone skills, and virtual classroom management. Feedback to students should occur within 24 hours. Synchronous web-based lessons are provided at various times throughout the courses for general instruction, remediation, or enrichment. Teachers create additional instructional activities that are delivered either face-to-face or through computer-based instruction.
Method(s) of evaluation
Administrators review online grade books, student progress, and data management systems for each instructor. Formative evaluation will be conducted several times yearly. Uinta County School District #1 teacher evaluation forms and procedures are used with adaptations to a distance education format. Regular staff meetings are held to discuss issues (both staff and student) related to the Evanston Virtual High School.