Even for this Olympia online school, COVID-19 has created new challenges
iConnect students are used to online learning — they enrolled in an online school program, after all.
Still, the program, an Alternative Learning Experience that’s part of Olympia School District’s Olympia Regional Learning Academy (ORLA), looks different than it did before the COVID-19 shutdown because students no longer have the option to see their teachers in person.
But iConnect’s transition has been less extreme than schools that are going from all in-person to all remote learning. So, The Olympian asked staff to share their advice for teachers and parents that have been forced to make that uncertain leap.
How the online learning program has changed
Students enrolled in iConnect log into the online curriculum to watch video lectures, answer questions, complete assignments and quizzes — they can even take notes online, though Sam Bingaman said he encourages his students to take notes by hand.
Bingaman, who teaches iConnect students in grades 6-12 humanities and electives, told The Olympian most assignments are automatically graded by the program, except for essay responses he grades.
It may seem like the curriculum essentially runs itself. But even with the established online set-up, the program requires students to spend one hour per week on-site.
This was the first school year iConnect enrolled K-5 students, according to Kristy Grinnell, assistant principal at ORLA. It’s paired with hConnect, ORLA’s program that supports families who homeschool. The result is a philosophy more akin to homeschooling than the older iConnect students’ program, with parents expected to be actively in charge of their students completing the curriculum.
For students in grades K-5, a parent is required to come in with them for the weekly in-person visit, according to Kristy Grinnell, assistant principal at ORLA. Teachers meet with them and go over their students’ work for the week so the parent can help them follow through. For writing, they might pick up paper packets.
Older iConnect students come in alone. Their classroom is “like working in your living room,” said Grinnell. There are snacks, tea, and coffee. A maximum of six students per hour are assigned to check in with their teacher, so they get one-on-one time.
Bingaman said he teaches over 90 students and has what he calls an “open-door policy,” offering help even to students who aren’t scheduled to be at the school. There were constantly students in his classroom before the COVID-19 shutdown, he said. He saw some students every day of the week.
When schools shut down, the school didn’t require new work for three weeks, for the sake of equity, until they could be sure everyone had access to the internet and laptops, Bingaman said.
Yes, access is a concern even at an all-online school. Some students may have had a laptop at home they could use in normal times, for example, but not when five other siblings are at home and need it, Bingaman said. Some may have never had at-home internet access.
Like other schools, iConnect provided optional assignments to do at home during that time.
Students enrolled full-time take four classes per trimester, and now have less time to get those classes done. Teachers can cut some of the assignments that help students make sense of content, but aren’t the “meat and potatoes” of the material.
Losing in-person engagement in a physical classroom changed the way Bingaman teaches, he said. He’s relying more on the preset curriculum than he usually does. He has regular Zoom open-door office hours, but not every student is checking in, he said. Adding to the changes: He has a child at home and provides child care.
Some students are self-motivated, highly skilled, and off and running with the curriculum with a check-in now and then, Bingaman said. Others lean heavily on the in-person sessions for understanding material.
“I would actually label it as critical for some of our students,” Bingaman told The Olympian. “We’ve seen a number of our students have a lot less success with the program because they’re not having meeting time with me or the other teacher” who teaches those grade levels.
For students who are having a hard time with material, his resources to help are more limited. He can take notice and send them resources — but, then, the onus is on the student to use that resource and understand it.
“I can’t sit down next to them and say, ‘Hey, what’s going on, I can see that you’re struggling,’” Bingaman explained.
Not everything worked right away after the shutdown — there may have been too many emails sent to parents, ORL Administrator Celeste Waltermeyer said. Some Zoom sessions didn’t go smoothly.
“Our Olympia community has given a lot of grace to our teachers and our schools in getting this moving and started,” she said. “They’ve been so gracious with the teachers as everything is new.”
Advice from iConnect staff and homeschooling parents
Right now, a lot is being asked of the parents and guardians who look after students. Responses to a survey The Olympian conducted make that clear: Parents report having to withdraw from classes, change work hours, even quit jobs to be with their children during the day with schools shut down.
It’s not surprising, then, that iConnect staff say the parent or guardian relationship has been key to success in their program.
“The partnership between parent and student within the online learning format is really important,” Waltermeyer said. “I think all parents are starting to maybe learn that. This really is what online learning looks like.”
Bingaman taught in other settings before ORLA, including at a local public high school. He was hesitant to give advice for teachers transitioning to all-online learning when asked. But, when pressed, his first piece of advice was that parental relationships have been his most important tool, and that reaching out to set up regular communication is key.
“The parents I can get on board are the students I can really impact,” Bingaman said. “If a parent doesn’t value what I’m trying to do, whatever I’m trying to do isn’t going to work. When I can get them on board and get them help, that’s when I can make a difference.”
Other tips: Consistency, on the teacher’s part, is helpful. As is flexibility.
“Still be flexible in that you are probably going to be sending emails in the middle of the night,” Bingaman said. “But having consistent times when you are available through office hours has been helpful for students. Right now, their schedules are crazy, and some of them don’t even know what day of the week it is.”
Staff at ORLA recently asked parents with students enrolled in the hConnect — homeschooling — program for lessons learned over the years to share with non-homeschooling families.
Their advice fit into a few general themes, Assistant Principal Grinnell said.
One theme: Parents shouldn’t try to do too much. School at home, Grinnell wrote in an email to The Olympian, does not take six hours. Other activities can count as “school,” and one-on-one instruction is more efficient than a full classroom, so it doesn’t take as long.
Take breaks, the advice from homeschooling parents said, and try to fit school into routines that you already have.
“You don’t need to be on Zoom all day long,” said Grinnell.
This story was originally published June 4, 2020 at 2:27 PM.
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