Novanet Makes Students Learn, Results Show

Elisha Erickson was two credits behind when she enrolled at Barker Center High School this fall.

Now, this senior is six credits ahead, and she expects to graduate early from the alternative school.

Erickson gives credit to an online learning program called NovaNET, being piloted this year by Central Valley School District.

NovaNET is among a new generation of academic packages delivered via computer. Courses are tightly structured. Pre-tests determine what the student already knows. NovaNET chooses course material at the right level of difficulty for that particular student; a series of lessons and multiple choice quizzes allows students to progress at their own pace.

“It helps your GPA, too,” Erickson said. You can’t move on to the next lesson without scoring an 80 or above.

Two other Barker students jump in, eager to explain why they like the program.

“When I graduate I’m actually going to know something,” says senior Jenny Pebbles with a satisfied grin.

“This program is a savior,” says Brandon Playle, a sophomore who finished his freshman year with a string of Fs and just two credits. “You don’t get F’s in this, you just keep going until you get it right.”

Playle came into the Barker program halfway through the fall trimester. By now, he’s tackling academic challenges that he’d not taken on before, says teacher Jana McKnight.

“And his attitude and enthusthisam are, bar none, the best.”

McKnight coordinates students’ use of NovaNET. She’s the human element who makes this program work for students, deftly using humor and common sense to help the students over bump after bump.

McKnight says she’s put in many hours this fall learning how to best use the program, and the more than 10,000 high school lessons it contains.

“I’ve been obviously pleased, but also surprised that it appeals to such a wide range of kids,” she says.

This winter Barker Center will add a computerized weather station, and students will install snowpack stations at Liberty Lake.

McKnight is searching through NovaNET’s many options to find and or create a weather program to complement that project.

NovaNET is among the better known of many online curriculum packages. Spokane Public Schools uses it to help students catch up on credits.

The program isn’t cheap, though. Central Valley paid $38,000 for 16 NovaNET sites, which means 16 students can use NovaNET at a time. Renewing for a second year will cost considerably less, as the district now has the necessary equipment, said district spokesman Skip Bonuccelli.

Central Valley School Board Chairman Craig Holmes said the program is worth it, given the results for students such as Erickson, Pebbles and Playle. NovaNET is just one way of expanding technology in education, Holmes pointed out.

He and other officials got a first-hand look at NovaNET recently. They were tutored by those who know it best, the students themselves.

“We had a great time,” Holmes said. “I was required to prepare for an SAT test.”

And how did he do on his SAT?

Replied Holmes: “That will be a closely guarded secret.”