For centuries, people have primarily relied on face to face interaction as a method for teaching, disseminating information, and organizing — that has changed.
Across the country, students everywhere are deviating from their normal routine and scheduled school day: The early morning rise, catching the bus, making the breakfast line, and the midday gossip that blends with casual, school day conversation has come to a halt. That shift has not been easy.
But, we find ways to cope.
“Social connection during a time of distance learning is both a moral as well as legal imperative for us,” Alberto M. Carvalho, Superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS) posted on his Twitter account.
M-DCPS, which is the fourth largest school district in the country, began monitoring the spread of COVID-19 in December and began preparing, in the event that schools were forced to close.
“The resilience that everyone has shown, and the patience they have shown for such a dramatic shift of the fourth largest school district in the country is laudable and appreciated,” said Marie Izquierdo, Chief Academic Officer for M-DCPS.
Now, well into the fourth nine weeks, distance learning has become the new normal — as students Zoom, post and collaborate on virtual spaces — and this new routine will continue for the foreseeable future as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) continue to prescribe social distancing measures.
And, in fact, before schools were closed at the end of the day on March 13th, MLEC had already surveyed students and teachers on their technological needs, including the need for devices and challenges with internet connectivity. Teachers had already established lines of communication with students, in the event of closures.
Even with all the preparation, it was not an easy transition.
“I don’t think that people expected to be away from school for so long,” said Ms. Castro, MLEC’s Activity Director. But, as the [novel coronavirus] continued to spread, it became clear that closures across the country would be for far longer than people expected.
City, county and state officials declared a state of emergency. Businesses closed. Stay at home orders were issued
Across the country, parents and caregivers juggled to balance their own work with helping their children learn.
Around the country, many disadvantaged communities have struggled to keep up. Not all households have the technological resources, like tablets and computers, to keep up with distance learning.
That is not the case in Miami-Dade County.
“For Miami Dade at least, the barrier wasn’t the computers, it hasn’t been the computers, it’s really been the connectivity,” said Ms. Izquierdo.
Over 95,000 devices, that includes iPads, laptops, and cellular hotspots, were distributed to students — from PreK to 12th graders — and the District opened up a Help Desk hotline to assist parents, teachers and students. The team fielded calls from throughout our community and beyond. Many of the calls came from parents in other districts, looking for direction.
And, Ms. Izquierdo, M-DCPS has embraced partnerships with networks such as Comcast to provide internet to homes, and Sprint’s ‘1 Million Project Foundation’ which seeks to grant students in grades K-12, who lack internet access, with cellular devices to be used as hotspots.
“A device is never going to replace a high quality teacher, but a device can serve as a bridge, or as pipeline, to a high quality teacher,” said Ms. Izquierdo.
Yet still, M-DCPS continues to face minor challenges, but the District is on the forefront of change and innovation.
“Moving forward, whether it’s another pandemic, whether it’s another category five hurricane I think that this medium is going to allow for some level of continuity in terms of being able to return to educating students — not necessarily returning to school, but maintaining that continuity,” said Ms. Castro.
And in maintaining that sense of continuity, M-DCPS has even observed a growing percentage of attendance in the Dadeschools system, which deserves recognition considering the various circumstances of each student.
“Our attendance is getting better every day,” said Ms. Izquierdo. “On Thursday we had 90.7% attendance, which is pretty on par for a brick and mortar day, a regular school day in Miami Dade County, but if you filter student portal attendance for the week, so Monday through Thursday, 98% of our students go to the portal at least once,” she continued.
Not only is maintaining a sense of continuity and practicing distance learning about shifting to virtual platforms, but it is also about providing basic supplies for students who are in need of it.
The District, and our teachers have jumped in to fill those needs.
At Miami Lakes Educational Center, for instance, students enrolled in AP Studio Art were able to pick up art supplies they’d need to finish their portfolios. Ms. Soto, Communication Academy Leader, set up a grab and go station where students could pick up those supplies.
We may not really know when we can return to a sense of normalcy, despite our shared efforts to embrace this seemingly new era of technological usage and far-distanced communication.
“The reality is, students want to be in school, teachers want to be in school and there’s never going to be a substitute for classroom learning and the engagement of teachers with students,” said Ms. Castro.
