About the Program:
The Office of Instructional Technology for Prince William County Schools provides an alternative educational opportunity for students through the Virtual High School.
We have designed and developed online courses that students may take for high school credit. These courses are open to all students enrolled in an accredited base high school and in grades 9-12. Rising freshman or middle school students may be accepted in certain circumstances. Contact jonesgk@pwcs.edu for more information.
The VHS @ PWCS also accepts home instructed students with enrollment in their local base school to receive and apply the student's course grade.
The VHS offers courses for full credit in three sessions per year: fall, spring and summer. Students complete two orientation sessions. The "program" orientation is online and available five days prior to the session start date. The "course" orientation is a face-to-face orientation where students can meet their instructor and review course expectations, as well as complete their first day assignments with teacher assistance. This is an important opportunity for the teacher and student to connect and feel comfortable during the session. Students then work from home or school to complete their assignments and take their tests online. Students must take mid-term, SOL and final exams face-to-face with their instructor. If a student is out of district, they may use a proctor at their base school.
Virtual High School courses are not self-paced, self-directed courses. They are based on a published schedule and require weekly interaction with the instructor and peers. Students can work ahead as along as they are meeting the set deadlines and must meet together at a pre-established date and time for high-stakes exams such as mid-term, final, and SOL.
Online learning courses tend to be very work intensive and since there are no bells or hall monitors to begin and end classes, students involved in online courses must have a strong desire to learn and achieve. Most students who have taken a course from the VHS @ PWCS have commented that online courses are excellent but require at least as much time as a traditional classroom course, if not more. To see if you meet the minimum qualifications visit our Student Criteria page.
VHS@PWCS Statistics:
The program began Summer 2000 with three courses. We now offer 19 courses and had record enrollment of 460 students this past summer. Over 6,000 students have completed our courses:
Average Course Pass Rate: 93%
Drop Rate: 3%
Student/Teacher Ratio: 8:1 - Summer Ratio 20:1
SOL Exam Pass Rate: 89%
