Keeping Pace with K-12 Online and Blended Learning, 11th Edition

Keeping Pace with K–12 Digital Learning is the title of this year’s report. Digital learning is replacing the previous reference to online and blended learning. This seemingly small word change signifies a significant evolution in the landscape, and a major change in the way we are analyzing and reporting on it. A bit of history should be helpful in understanding our original focus, and our reason for change.

Keeping Pace with Online Learning was first published in 2004. We chose to focus on the young and disruptive K–12 teacher-led online learning segment, and not the broader education technology segment. At that time, K–12 teacher-led online courses were almost exclusively provided by state-supported virtual schools delivering supplemental online courses, and charter schools where students took all of their courses online. A small but growing number of school districts were also beginning to establish full-time online programs accessible to students regionally and across individual states.