Online Courses for Credit Recovery in High Schools

By Eliot Levine, Jeremiah Johnson, Jenny Malave and Stefanie Santaniello
June 27, 2017

This report, prepared by The University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute for the Nellie Mae Education Foundation (NMEF) examines promising practices for online credit recovery programs. These programs help underserved students achieve a diploma through a more personalized approach with the flexibility to work anytime and anywhere and progress based on mastery. This report draws on a study of 24 Massachusetts high schools across 11 districts that developed online credit recovery programs as part of the federally funded MassGrad Initiative. The report includes the following information about these programs:

  • examples of successful student supports and program elements
  • assessment of effectiveness in reducing dropout rates and increasing academic achievement, graduation rates, and college enrollment
  • descriptions of typical patterns of student participation and performance

The conclusions and recommendations will be useful for any school or district leaders interested in starting or strengthening an existing online credit recovery program.

Source Organization: Nellie Mae Education Foundation

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