APEX online classes don’t deserve a bad rap

MAT-SU — The jury was out on APEX. It was thought that a live teacher had so much more to offer than a computer program. This may be true, especially for someone who has never experienced the Academic Program for the Exceptional, or APEX.

The Mat-Su Borough School District has used APEX since 2012. APEX is specialized for secondary schools like Valley Pathways and Burchell High School, though students throughout the district in both middle and high schools use it.

APEX has earned a bad reputation solely from the fact that it is out of the norm. The standard teaching method has been one teacher teaching rows of students seated at desks in a classroom. The APEX program completely defies that theory. There is a supervising adult, but students have the computer and the class time to work freely.

Virtual learning removes time and place barriers to offer students a quality alternative to the traditional classroom. APEX users get the same curriculum as other students, but get to learn on a different timeline. The program offers reminders for due dates and study strategies to prepare for online quizzes, journals, and class discussions.

The assignments aren’t all graded by a computer, though. Every APEX student has an assigned teacher. These teachers run that specific class both online and in person. There are options to email back and forth with the specific teacher plus class discussions where teacher and student alike converse on the studied topic.

Three Wasilla High School teachers teach an APEX class, but WHS students enrolled in APEX do not necessarily have the Wasilla APEX teachers. Teachers throughout the district are APEX instructors.

According to the most recent agreement between the Matanuska-Susitna Education Association and the Mat-Su Borough School District, a teacher who is selected and agrees to serve as a virtual teacher using the APEX Curriculum outside of the regular workday is paid a stipend of $3,300 per semester. There is additional pay for a class load of more than 25 or 30 students, depending on how many APEX classes the teacher manages.

“The program would normally cost the district thousands of dollars, but most of the expenses are covered by grants from the legislative department of education,” said Mat-Su iTech teacher Heather Pelletier.

A teacher’s weekly time spent on APEX varies a lot. Sometimes many students submit work to be graded, other times, few do. Teachers may spend anywhere between two and 10 hours on APEX a week.

There are 1,416 students enrolled in at least one APEX course in the Mat-Su school district, which has 2,272 course enrollments available for district students. Wasilla High alone has 193 students enrolled in APEX.

However, APEX teacher Sean Murphy, also a Mat-Su Career and Technical High School social studies teacher, said the program doesn’t work for everyone.

“I would not consider APEX to be an ideal platform for learning, but it is great for some students. For a student who is self-directed and motivated, it allows for more choices and options and is good practice for later online learning that students may face when (or) if they go to college,” he said.

While a semester of APEX is designed to be completed in an entire semester of school, many kids complete their class before mid-term. Doing so gives the student the chance to start yet another class in that same semester or school year. If a student adds an extra APEX class, he or she can carry it into the summer to be completed. At the end of each APEX unit, students take a computer scored test, and a teacher scored test. These tests are the only part of the curriculum that requires a teacher be present. Other than these tests, all APEX work can be completed on any computer at any time, anywhere.

Students who have not successfully earned required course credits are provided the opportunity to get back on track for on-time graduation with APEX learning digital curriculum. The same standards-based content that engages students earning the original credit ensures that all students are able to master the skills and concepts necessary for future success.

A growing number of high schools are offering non-traditional programs like APEX digital learning in order to bring students back on their feet. The program and its opportunities have spread across the globe. It has become obvious that APEX learning in Mat-Su schools is making what was once considered only possible in the future the reality in the present world of education.

Olivia Vincent is a sophomore at Wasilla High. She is enrolled in an APEX class.