March 13, 2020 is a day that will live in my memory forever. It was the day the COVID19 invaded our state. Our Governor ordered that schools close for student attendance. While our doors were shut, staff was busy working. Staff worked to clean the building. Staff worked to provide food for students and their families, Staff worked to shift instruction from a traditional model to an online model. Staff worked to create instructional and communication plans for the community. For most of the school staff this shift was huge. It required more time working especially for administration who coordinated all of these efforts. Everyone was learning a completely new job. All staff was trained to meet our students needs face to face, few on staff had ever expected to be required to do so in this emergency remote learning environment. This was a shift.
Schools shifted from their normal operations to new 2020 pandemic operations in similar ways as businesses. Lead by administrators as guides teaching staff embarked to discover how best to meet all of our students needs. Exploring all options available. Reaching out as best we could. This required hours of work. Creating new plans and a new path forward. Staff ended up working like first year teachers learning how to deliver lessons on the fly. It was hard for students too. Without the normal structure of the school day, students struggled with online schedules. Teachers ended up supporting students on-demand. Teaching shifted from instruction during school day, to instruction on demand 24/7. It added news stresses to an already stressful job.
As the debate rages about “reopening” schools in the fall, let’s remember that although the buildings were closed, SCHOOLS WEREN’T CLOSED, they SHIFTED. The media continues to use “closed” when describing schools. This devalues all the hard work that happened and continues to occur as teachers want to be prepared for fall no matter how we are asked to deliver lessons.
This summer has administrators working on multiple plans for fall. Everyone of them desires to return to face to face instruction when safe to do so. Teachers are full of anxiety on how the fall will look in their classrooms. Busy learning about every online learning method that they can. Hearing the so many shout out that schools need to “reopen” knowing we never closed. All in education worry about our students and what they are missing during this shift to learning from a distance. Now as districts are finalizing their 3 pronged plans, politicians are threatening funding if we don’t “reopen”.
Schools don’t have to reopen, most are delivering summer school programming right now. All districts have teams of staff working on best modes for delivery of lessons this fall. Educators are working hard so success is found in the fall for what ever road the local leaders feel is safest for us to head down.
Just remember Schools never closed. We will continue to shift as our community needs to provide education for ALL of our students.
Sweat to Inspire 