Christa received her master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Kent State University, as well as a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. She taught middle school language arts and social studies for seven years before coming to work for Michigan Virtual in 2018. As a Research Specialist with the Michigan Virtual Learning Research Institute, Christa enjoys using her passion for education, curriculum, research, and writing to share and shape best practices in online and blended learning with other educators not only in Michigan, but nationwide.
Research indicates that online learners perform better when they have strong onsite mentor support. But mentors need support, too. Drawing on survey responses, this blog examines mentors’ current practices, key challenges, and unmet needs—and what those insights mean for designing more effective professional learning.
Cuccolo & Green’s (2025) report highlighted the relationship between students’ assignment submission patterns and final course scores. Given that pacing has important implications for student performance, knowing what assignment submission patterns look like across schools with varying demographics could help prompt early identification and intervention. As such, this blog explores students’ assignment submission patterns based on school-level demographic information.