Having now experienced online learning with my grand children I take my hat off to the innovative teachers who, at a moments notice, because that is all the notice Covid19 gives us, switched to a full online learning program. Each morning the program for the day divided into typical school periods was ready for download. The day commenced with a Zoom meeting setting up the planned learning experiences. Then we got on with it, stopping for morning recess and lunch. It was like a school day at home. Apart from the wifi groaning under the strain of three students from our house being online all went well until eventually the children were able to return to school full time.
At present the students of the state of Victoria, Australia are back online as the authorities and the populace of Victoria battle to bring a devastating Covid outbreak under control. The good news is that they are winning the battle day by day.
In this unpredictable environment I imagine myself back in harness as a school Principal. I would need to be very agile, as commentators are won't to say these days. As well as disaster plans and building evacuation plans I would now have to be in daily readiness with a Covid19 plan. If and when an outbreak occurred the school would be closed for 'deep cleaning' and we would need to flick the switch to online learning. Underlying this would be the understandable nervousness of the student and staff bodies now faced with a probable 14 days home isolation and Covid testing.
In maintaining preparedness in this fluid environment I as the Principal would have to give much thought about the longer term effects on student learning and the related student wellbeing. I would not be over worried at gaps in the learning of the students at this point, but if there were to be more Covid disruption this could become disastrous for students who do not find learning easy. Solutions do not spring to mind as I write this post. Of a more focussed and immediate concern I would have to have action plans right now for the cohort of students facing final year 12 assessments. This is a stressful and vital time in their lives.
In Australia there is a team response to this with state assessment bodies and on-the-ground educators seeking the best solution for the 2020 cohort. Principals will thankfully know what to do, but only time will tell if the decisions were appropriate for these senior students.
My blog is themed as "Schoolprincipalship,yougottaloveit", but many of today's Principals might find this a bit of a stretch under the current pandemic.
May the Force be with all who wage the battle to bring the pandemic to a close.
GD
