COVID-19 shutdown notwithstanding, Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board (H-SCDSB) administrators and trustees held a regular monthly meeting from their homes Wednesday through Skype, with attention paid to how the board’s students are coping with online learning during the current COVID-19 shutdown of schools.
“I’ve heard a lot of my peers have actually been happy with the (online) work,” said Anthony DeLorenzi, H-SCDSB student representative.
“They feel like it’s good to be in the groove of a schedule, in the groove of doing some work and moving on and trying to figure out what the rest of their year is going to look like.”
“As far as workload (is concerned), the teachers have been giving them a plan for the week on Monday and they (the students) enjoy having the freedom to complete their work (on their own schedule)...they can do all their Monday and Tuesday work on Monday. I’ve heard nothing but good things about the work. Surprisingly, no complaints,” DeLorenzi told the board
Lucas Marano, DeLorenzi’s fellow student representative, said “it’s pretty much the same for me. All the people I’ve talked to about it, and to me personally, it seems pretty organized. All the assignments are easy to access and the instructions are really clear. It’s harder to ask your teachers questions but the contents are pretty straightforward...I haven’t heard any complaints so far.”
Sounds good, but what of those who do not have access to online learning in disadvantaged homes or rural areas?
Rose Burton Spohn, H-SCDSB director of education, responding to a question from trustee Kathleen Rosilius, said “on Thursday, April 9th, our board’s physical plant department helped deliver paper based packages of instructions to approximately 70 students who indicated they had no access to the internet at home.”
Burton Spohn said H-SCDSB superintendents have put together a plan to ensure that practice will continue for as long as the COVID-19 school closure continues.
“Teachers will be providing...ongoing communication. It might have to take the form of a phone call if students don’t have access to the internet (when it comes to receiving help from teachers when students get stuck on their work).”
The provincial government ruled publicly funded schools across Ontario will remain closed to students until May 4 due to COVID-19 fears, but that closure has now been extended past May 4, the government stating more information will be made available in the coming days.
