Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1278320
Morning Brew/Unsplash DISTANCE THOUGHTS Maintaining focus on students amid an uncertain future By Julian Peeples R E P A R I N G F O R T H E new school year has probably never been more complicated. As the state continues to fight the growing COVID-19 pandemic, local associations and school districts across Cali- fornia are spending summer negotiating just what it will look like when instruction resumes next academic year. And while how best to maintain student and educator safety is an ongoing discussion, it appears certain that distance-learning will continue for most if not all school districts for 2020-21. All of education jumped into the deep end of the distance learning pool last year when schools closed abruptly in response to the pandemic. We asked educators from a variety of disciplines to share some of the experiences and advice moving forward in a remote learning environment. Kendall Griffin "Stop laying off the people that we will need to implement [reopening schools] and make it work." R E O P E N I N G S C H O O L S N E E D S to be a group and community effort, and those are the parties that should have input in the process. As an ESP, I know that we are left out of most, if not all, big decision-making discus- sions, but hopefully not this time. We ESPs will be implementing a majority of the critical processes in reopening schools — including transporting, greeting, feeding, advising, directing, and most of all cleaning! Whether the plan is staggered/block scheduling, half-days or altered days, the most important step is to start this discussion with everyone. Stop laying off the people that we will need to implement this effort and make it work. I believe that we need teams of parents, ESPs, teachers and administrators by grade level and school site to break down what is needed and the steps to take to implement them. KENDALL GRIFFIN Ventura Education Support Professionals Association Ventura Adult and Continuing Education E S P S N E E D A S E AT AT T H E TA B L E P 18 cta.org Class Act