After a week that turned the world upside down for many, educators have stepped up in many places and reimagined their role to support remotely not to mention figured out how to provide food and connection on the fly. At the same time, families and caregivers began to work from home, learn to teach, and adjust to a new sort of normal. There have been schedules, opinions, resources, packets, and guidelines shared, and often revised or updated on the daily as we adjust or learn new information. 

When there are so many unknowns it can feel like we have more control when we try and standardize what people do and when we can quantify and measure it, it feels more real. But if we are honest this doesn’t work for many kids in school and most certainly is not going to work for kids and families when they are at home and the home circumstances and support are as different as each and every child. Just because we can recreate school at home by digitizing worksheets and sending out packets doesn’t mean we should.

Although the ingenuity of educators and parents has been amazing, the pace and the expectations to be available all day and night, to parent, and to teach are not sustainable nor should they be the goal. It’s been hard and stressful for so many at times to just keep it together in the face of uncertainty. Give yourself permission to take care of yourself, slow down, focus on what you can do and let that be enough.

School vs Learning

I have been thinking a lot about how to best use our time and how to focus on what really matters. This graphic that was created by Geoge Couros highlights the difference between school and learning. We discuss this in a conversation here.

Much of what we do in school is driven by what is easy to measure and therefore much of it is standardized from the schedule, the pace, and the content. In this article, 40 million students in 4 days, How is the shift to learning at home going? Stacey Childress shared:

“In reality, this unprecedented shift to learning at home cannot be standardized. And yet, some school districts and state agencies are trying to rein in the early efforts of teachers and principals until a unified plan is developed from the top…The consensus advice to parents and caregivers seems to be: create a bit of structure, make a little time for formal learning and more time for play and exploration, and help kids feel safe and secure. Above all, keep it simple and make it work for your family — there is no one best way.”

Kids (and adults) need to feel connected and safe first and foremost and what better time to provide children the opportunity to be seen, heard and inspired to learn, not just do school at home. I know that many are thinking, “My kids need structure. They can’t just be left alone! If they had a choice they would play video games all day …I think of my colleague who was talking about the struggles with her son and acknowledged, “He isn’t driving his own learning.” I want to be clear here that not many kids are going to create a schedule, know exactly what to work on and be perfectly self-sufficient for 6 weeks or more. Not many adults I know can do this, to be honest. There can and should be a balance between “do whatever you want” and sit here for 6 hours a day and “do school.” That is why I love this post from my friend Emily Roth. She collaboratively set up goals based on her girls’ interests and needs. She created structures that allowed for voice and choice and a flexible schedule that works for each of her girls. 

As I have been taking in so many different perspectives, knowing of course that there are many I still don’t see or fully know, what I see is that each circumstance is so different. Each teacher, school district, family, child, and community has its own opportunities and challenges. I also know that regardless of whether or not kids are in school, learning is happening all the time. Kids are learning as they watch how we react to our environment and unknows. They are learning how we treat one another and as they see people who rise up to help and support others. They are watching to see how we follow the “rules” (or don’t). They are learning as they process their feelings. They are learning when they get so bored they want to scream and as they dance, sing, and create. And much of this learning and their experience will stick with them far beyond the chapter 2 biology test or the main theme of a paragraph in a test prep packet. 

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

Most states won’t likely have standardized tests this year and given the lack of opportunity for all kids to complete coursework and tests, college admissions might require different processes. I keep thinking necessity is the mother of all invention and this is the time to invent new structures, tear down ineffective ones and awaken hidden talents and passions in our children. Let’s think about how we can focus on connection and learning instead of recreating ineffective structures and routines of school that breed isolation and disengagement at home. Let’s not focus on how to cover it all remotely when we would have probably been spending the month (or more) prepping and taking tests anyway. Instead, could we see it as an opportunity to focus on what learners need and what they want to learn instead of what is in the pacing guide or will be would have been on the test, especially since they probably won’t remember it anyway?

For more on this, check out my conversation with Geroge Couros here.