Staff opinions on distance learning (part 1)

This article features the responses of three staff members at CIHS: Mrs. Santini, Mr. Galligan, and Dr. Gibbs.

What kinds of permanent changes do you think will come out of this pandemic?
Santini- I think the economy is getting hit hard, and I worry about people who lost their jobs – even if it’s temporary.

Galligan-It’s been great to see families spending so much time together, lots of walking and bike riding and playing out in the yard, it would be awesome if that trend continues.

Gibbs-A permanent change that I will make is taking joy in every opportunity to be together as a learning community. I hope others are also able to be appreciative of what we have in a physical school in the future.

What challenges are teachers facing during online learning?

Santini-There have been so many challenges – too many to list here.

Galligan-mostly getting to being used to not being with our students personally.

Gibbs- I read a quote this week that spoke to teachers are in the air building an airplane in the sky. Our staff are tireless workers and have gone above and beyond to provide an education to all students grounded on high-level relationships. Transitioning their physical classroom to a virtual world is not an easy task. It requires going in-depth to best understand what are the most important parts of the class and ensuring that we deliver those topics to ours, students, whether online or offline.

What challenges are students facing during online learning?

Santini-Based on my own students’ responses to a Flipgrid they did last Friday, they seem to be still figuring out where to find their assignments and how to submit them. Thankfully this shouldn’t be too new since our school has been making the shift to Schoology already this year.

Gibbs- The biggest hurdle is anything to learning to do school differently. Everyone at CIHS has had a great deal of experience doing school when they are physically present. Many have never taken an online class, so this is all new to them.

What is being done for off-line students?
Santini-Yes, teachers and staff have been working hard to make sure offline students are also receiving materials. Sometimes this is more challenging than others depending on content material, but efforts are definitely being made. Hopefully that material will come back completed!

Gibbs- We are providing copies of material to our offline learners every week. They are getting a similar experience to our online learners but in an offline format.