K12 Inc. Scraps India Outsourcing

A company that runs one of the nation’s largest networks of online schools recently decided to discontinue a program that arranged for high school teachers in the United States to send their students’ English essays to India for evaluations by reviewers there.

The existence of the program by Herndon,Va.-based K12 Inc. is an example of the opportunities and hazards for education companies interested in tapping the expertise available in other countries. K12 faced criticism from people in Arizona about the outsourcing program after a blogger revealed some details about it.

David A. Safier, a retired English teacher in Tucson, Ariz., criticized the use of India-based reviewers on the Blog for Arizona , where he is a regular contributor. Writing about the Arizona Virtual Academy, a state-funded public charter school that uses K12’s management and curriculum services, Mr. Safier said the essay-review program raised concerns about educational quality, the use of taxpayer money, and even student safety and privacy. He claims that the Arizona Virtual Academy’s parents may not have been fully informed or...