Education during a Pandemic
Teachers are struggling across the world to meet the unique educational expectations of the 20–21 School Year. Stereotypically, teachers are rising to the challenge and encourage each other by sharing best practices as they are learned. We simply must open our doors and our borders to continue to learn more best practices. Crowdsourcing best practices can work at the District, State, National, and even Global level.
Typically, there are 3 types of teachers. Each type of teacher has unique concerns.
- Fully virtual (teacher may be at home or at school-but students are at home)
- Face to Face only
- Virtual and Face to Face. (teacher is at school with F2F students and simultaneously responsible for their Virtual students)
Internet access should be available for every student in the US. If students in third world countries have access through noble partnerships every student in the US should have both a device and working internet that will stream educational content. A recent Education Week Research Center survey reported that less than one in three school districts include the distribution of mobile broadband hotspots as part of its COVID-19 response plan. LISA Academy made both hotspots and devices available to every student who expressed a need.
While a device and internet are required for virtual education, so much more is needed as well. Schools that did not invest in digital platforms and curriculum to help their teachers differentiate are struggling to provide content online. Even teachers who did have access to digital content may have chosen to ignore it and continue to teach “from the book.” The transition to online teaching using an LMS incurs a steep learning curve. Teachers in Arkansas were required to learn a new LMS this summer in addition to learning how to adequately engage students in our new normal. Luckily, the Arkansas Department of Education is providing assistance to virtual teachers through TESS Support for Virtual Educators. LISA Academy has been using digital platforms for several years.
Parent engagement and student engagement are different for all three types of teachers. A F2F teacher may resort to using the LMS but still engaging with students and parents in a traditional way. Virtual and partially virtual teachers will need to strategically work to engage them both. Increased autonomy and self-motivation are required for success in an online model of education. Research clearly shows that there is a direct positive correlation between parent engagement and student success. Parents will still need to check on their online students' progress daily/weekly. Parents will need to become warm positive encourages. Teachers will need to remain in conversation with parents to help guide them.
Teachers across the globe are expressing exhaustion. The new normal is stressful and involves so much more out of school preparation, grading, and contact. The additional stress of teaching F2F with potentially ill students and staff is tempered by the excellent plans created by the Arkansas Department of Health regarding schools. The School report is provided twice weekly. Contact tracing is working and schools are following the guidelines carefully.
Give grace to educators near you. Family and work-life are continuing to collide. Teachers care deeply for their students and are working many extra hours to ensure that their students receive the education they deserve.
Suzanne M. Rogers, M.Ed.
