Mich. Pupils Could Face Online Rule

Legislation would require e-learning ‘experience’ for high school diploma.

Michigan education officials are pushing legislation that includes online lessons as part of a package of new requirements for high school graduation. If state lawmakers approve the bill, which was introduced late last month, the mandate would be the first of its kind in the nation, state officials there believe.

While the details are still in the works, officials envision a substantial “online experience” that could range from a course for high school credit that is supervised by a classroom teacher, to a noncredit test-prep tutorial pursued at home, or a course unit that is conducted with online tools.

“We thought of this as a skill that people would need to have to continue to be lifelong learners,” said Jeremy M. Hughes, the chief academic officer for...