Raising Blended Learners

Launched in 2016, as an initiative of Raise Your Hand Texas, Raising Blended Learners is a demonstration initiative that showcases strategies for using “blended learning” — a combination of traditional classroom teaching and online learning components that give students some degree of control over the time, place, path or pace of their learning. The goal is to personalize instruction and improve K-12 student achievement across diverse student demographics and geographic regions in Texas — specifically in schools and districts with persistent achievement gaps.

In April 2016, Educate Texas provided funding to Raise Your Hand Texas to select five demonstration sites to receive three-year grants, plus technical assistance, to implement a blended learning program. The winners of the Raising Blended Learners competition included:

• Birdville ISD
• Cisco ISD
• KIPP Houston
• Pasadena ISD
• Point Isabel ISD

Grantees were given the flexibility to define their own goals and priorities according to the needs of their student population — from raising overall scores on the STAAR test to lowering high school dropout rates or accelerating literacy among English language learners. Participants were required to demonstrate the long-term sustainability of their models and present a plan to expand early successes across their entire systems.

Educate Texas is proud to support the intentional integration of technology into the classroom as a way to support teachers in improving learning outcomes, equip students with 21st century skills, and allow schools to realize cost efficiencies and scale blended learning in sustainable ways.