Going Virtual!: Unique Needs and Challenges of K-12 Online Teachers

The findings in this report represent Phase II of the Going Virtual! research series. In this report, we posed the question, “What are the unique needs and challenges of K-12 online teachers?” The first phase of the Going Virtual! research series, conducted in 2007, addressed the need to investigate the national status of professional development for K-12 online teachers.

We conducted a national survey during fall 2008, and had 884 total respondents representing online teachers from virtual schools, supplemental online programs, and brick and mortar programs offering online courses. The investigators used an interpretive research design to begin identification of the unique needs and challenges of K-12 online teachers, as both 1) aligned to an emerging synthesis of professional standards for K-12 online teachers, and 2) as described by the teachers in their own words. This methodology provides very practical information for policymakers seeking to establish national and state standards for K-12 online teachers, and for trainers designing professional development programs. It also allows for the identification and creation of constructs of understanding not currently existing in the literature that researchers can study at a later date using more structured research approaches.