Online Learning Offers Unique Assistance for Struggling Readers

SEATTLE -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Online courses that provide better, more focused support to high school students reading below grade level are making it possible for dropout prevention and recovery programs to cost-effectively address reading proficiency challenges in the face of constrained budgets and lack of specialized resources.

Apex Learning®, the leading provider of digital curriculum for secondary education, has introduced six new standards-based courses into its Literacy Advantage™ pathway. Literacy Advantage courses support academic success in courses required for high school graduation for students who are struggling with reading comprehension. The new courses, available this summer for the 2010-2011 school year, are Geometry, Biology, English II, U.S. History, U.S. History to the Civil War, and U.S. History since the Civil War.

Literacy Advantage courses help educators take advantage of online learning to provide individualized instruction, more and more a point of emphasis as literacy struggles have been linked as a contributing factor in high school dropout decisions. Many of the almost 7,000 students who drop out of high school every day cite ongoing difficulty with reading and writing as significant influences in their decision to leave school early, according to the Alliance for Excellent Education.

Studies show seven of 10 eighth graders nationally read below a proficient level. At 65 percent, the numbers are only slightly better for 12th graders. Rockingham County Schools in North Carolina is one of many districts turning to online learning to better support struggling high school readers in mastering rigorous, grade-level appropriate academic content.

“A big problem for us is the number of students in high school credit recovery programs who are at below proficient reading levels,” said Rodney Shotwell, superintendent of Rockingham County Schools. “High school teachers are not trained in reading instruction, but if students can’t read and comprehend, they are not going to be successful in any curriculum. In courses like Algebra I, Biology and U.S. Government, students have to learn and understand terms specific to the content. Digital curriculum that helps them process and understand the subject matter is filling an important dropout prevention and recovery need for our district.”

Added Steve Green, a Longview (Wash.) School District high school teacher: “We have students who are reading well below grade level entering our high schools. The Literacy Advantage courses from Apex Learning will greatly help these students.”

Apex Learning introduced its first four Literacy Advantage courses last fall, Algebra I, Physical Science, English I, and U.S. Government and Politics.

"Online learning allows us to provide unique support to struggling readers in their efforts to be successful in the required high school courses,” said Cheryl Vedoe, CEO Apex Learning. “Our goal is to keep them in school and on track to graduate."

About Apex Learning

Apex Learning is the leading provider of digital curriculum for secondary education. Since its inception in 1997, Apex Learning has more than 2.8 million student enrollments in more than 4,500 school districts. The company’s standards-based, online courses in math, science, English, social studies, world languages, and Advanced Placement are successfully used for credit recovery, remediation, alternative schools, distance learning, and exam preparation. Apex Learning, headquartered in Seattle, is accredited by the Northwest Association of Accredited Schools and its courses are approved for National Collegiate Athletic Association eligibility. For more information visit: www.apexlearning.com or call 1.800.453.1454.