Growth Rings: Redesigning Learning, crucial to the quality of life, and survival.

­Growth Rings:

Redesigned Learning, crucial to the quality of life, and survival. 

The shared COVID-19 experience has exposed many aspects and conditions of human daily living on planet Earth. The pandemic has shown that globally all people are interconnected and susceptible to the threat of diseases and that we are social beings that must be in connection with one another. 

On an organic, micro-level, though confined and quarantined, mankind has been creative in staying connected and interacting.  From concerts performed on front porches for neighbors to Zoom videos calls, to standing outside grandparent’s widows, we are staying connected. With families having to physically quarantine, social media, specifically Facebook and Twitter, have united us, with some families having more conversations and interactions now than pre-COVID-19.

Covid-19 has been a ‘hard stop’ for some families in the United States. With no ball practices, cheerleading, soccer, or swim lessons, families have reconnected. With telecommuting and working from home, moms, dads, and kids have shared the valuable gift of time, and have experienced the pandemic together.  For those who work in the media, broadcasting from home gave a glimpse of broadcasters’ personal lives and illustrated how we are all experiencing this together. 

It has been interesting to note that individuals, now with limited disposable income, have had to really discern needs from wants. It costs less to cook at home than eat out, telecommuting saves gas, Netflix and Roku are much cheaper than going to the movies, and home projects and game nights are rewarding. 

Covid-19 has highlighted those who do not have access to affordable health care and the vulnerability of neighborhoods and communities of color and poverty. It is important to note that our consumer-based economy only works if people are employed and are buying goods and services.  Many people at or below the poverty level already had survival skills and the know-how to navigate hard times.  For those new to these conditions, it is traumatic.

On a macro level, governments have struggled to connect, react, and respond to COVID-19. It has been troubling to government leaders that they have been powerless to stop the pandemic, and it says something that globally each country is trying to find a cure on its own.  Just think what could be accomplished if we all were focused and working together for a global solution. 

What does post-COVID-19 public education and schools need to be?

This will be an ongoing question as we move through the pandemic. In my last blog post, the thinking was shared that pre-COVID-19 schools addressed four basic boxes: Academic, Moral Compass, Physical, and Social-Emotional. Each box is interconnected and significant, however, of the four boxes the Academic box is the only one measured by state achievement tests and the results shared to the community.  There is little or no measuring, public reporting, or sharing of the other boxes.  Will these boxes still drive schools in post-COVID-19 public education, and how will this be accomplished in a virtual or online modality?

In Roy Morrison’s 2018 interview of Fred Swaniker, African Leadership Academy Co-Founder & Trustee, Mr. Swaniker stated that: “We need to completely reimagine education. Instead of learning to memorize facts and figures, students need to “learn how to learn” and how to solve problems. And they should be allowed to learn independently. Changes are needed at every level. You have to infuse things like entrepreneurship into the curriculum because, with the disruption that’s going on, many people are going to have to create their own jobs.”

Mr. Swaniker remarks are thought-provoking but focus primarily on the academic box. In his full interview, he did not touch on the Moral Compass, Physical or Social-Emotional Boxes. Many education reformers, and others calling for change, also seem to be focused on the Academic box, and either overlook or assume the other boxes have been or will be addressed. One should never assume.

Maslow before Bloom?

For educators in the United States, the belief is that in order for students to reach their full academic potential, Basic and Physical needs, as identified by Maslow, must be addressed. The thinking being you have to meet Maslow before you can Bloom. The question going forward is how should, or could, these boxes are addressed in a blended or virtual/online model as well as traditionally at school? There are examples of students that have academically achieved and overcome despite Maslow's deficits and deficiencies. Perhaps the direction might be to deliberately design and build  Horatio Alger's "rag to riches" type lessons/experiences into learning? Through project-based learning, tied to real-world challenges, develop "grit"?  Can or should schools have the sole responsibility of meetings Maslow or should this be a shared, family, and community responsibility? Can schools really successfully do it all? 

Looking to the Fall...

As we head into June, depending on where you live we are 60 to 90 days out from starting the 2020-21 school year. Still, in the throngs of the COVID-19 pandemic, schools are doing the best they can to project and come up with plans for Fall school start-ups. In conversations with parents, teachers, administrators, business leaders, elected officials, and community members, three different school year scenarios are emerging, each with specific supporters and detractors.  1) A normal traditional start but prepared to close if the COVID-19 comes back 2) Every other day or week on, a week off school schedule, or 3) Continue with virtual, distance learning.  Each scenario will require continuous evaluation of conditions, and all are subject to change. 

Face to Face, Blended, or Virtual?

The thinking behind each of these proposals has both pluses and minuses. Some would say that none of them is really a good choice.

The “face to face” plan assumes that COVID-19 could be controlled through social distancing and cleaning; but if it flared up, schools would close and switch back to virtual/distance learning.  This creates medical risks for adult staff that may have underlying health concerns, not to mention the frustration of starting, then stopping school at a moment’s notice, leaving parents having to find childcare.

Many Districts are planning for either a blended hybrid model or remaining in a virtual model. With the blended model, the student body would be split in half, using social distancing to combat COVID-19. Half the students would come to school either every other day or come to school one week then off the next. In the off-time, students could receive instruction virtually.  In Iowa, one school district is considering a week on, a week off model with kids attending class four days a week. Students would not attend Fridays so deep cleaning can occur. Again, the question is childcare on the off days, the impact on athletic practices, and the effectiveness of hybrid instructional strategies and assessments. 

Something else to include is that many state legislatures have defined in law the length of the school year, start and stop dates, maximum class size, time on buses, and daily hours of instruction. These items may all have to be addressed as well.  

So Many Important Questions to Address

At the end of the day, parents should have the final choice as to whether or not they send their children back to school.  The driving question will be, “Are there teachers there to teach the kids?”  There was already a pre-COVID-19 teacher shortage. Several school districts have made plans for summer school to “catch the students up” on missed learning?  What about the kids that do not choose to attend or participate in the catch-up activities?  Another question was raised to me the other day concerning seniors and their graduation.  I was asked “did the class of 2020 really achieve and accomplish the work or did the clock just run out and they got to graduate anyway? What is the diploma really worth this year?”

Another reality to be addressed is the funding for schools. Many believe public education, pre-COVID-19, was underfunded. Looking to the near future, with the economy shut down even less money will be available. Wages and benefits make up 70% to 83% of a school district’s budget. That means in order to make the necessary budget reductions, very hard decisions will need to be made. Going forward it will be important to communicate, be transparent, flexible, and creative.  Nobody likes surprises, and facts must be shared truthfully without spin.

For the past four months, folks have experienced the stress and trauma of sickness, job loss, remote working, and shelter in place. Now 60 days out from the start of the 2020-21 school year, a clear path forward for schools is not in place. A decrease in school funding, the potential reduction in the teacher workforce, training teachers to teach digitally, on top of the continued COVID-19 pandemic. 

Growth Rings are forming, and our children are watching to see how we adults address the challenges before us.  Now more than ever good choices must be made.  What we do and say now will have great meaning and help to define mankind as we go forward.