By Cate Hill

With the recent outbreak of the coronavirus in the U.S., Virginia Governor Ralph Northam (D) made the decision to close all schools for the remainder of the school year on March 13. Northam stated, “We are taking this action to keep Virginians as safe and healthy as possible, and to minimize exposure to COVID-19.” This decision was not made lightly, knowing that many children and families that depend on school-provided meals and education. 

Before the announcement, administrators at Collegiate School had already asked students and faculty to stay home for an additional week following Spring Break. While students enjoyed an extended break, teachers used the time to become more familiar with the technology they would be using in the weeks of online learning that have followed. Outside of Collegiate, social distancing has become increasingly important in communities all across the U.S., as the number of infected individuals increases. 

At Collegiate, students in grades JK-12 are continuing to learn with the help of their teachers and online platforms, such as Seesaw, Schoology,  online the video-conferencing app Zoom. Online learning for Lower Schoolers has proven to be challenging, as social development is a fundamental part of their education. 

2nd Grade teacher Beth Albrecht shared both the concerns and advantages of online learning. Having worked with students on Seesaw throughout the year, she is comfortable saying that her students have become quite “tech-savvy” in their abilities to use the platform. Seesaw is an educational tool that allows kids to use photos, videos, drawings, text, and more to show what they know. In addition, Albrecht explained that Lower School teachers “are Zooming all day and night working on the best lessons we can to engage our students.” With the help and support of 2nd Grade families, she feels that the community has transitioned smoothly. 

On the other hand, Albrecht acknowledges that “2nd Graders’ academic work is all about the process and product,” and she is disappointed that she will not be able to sit with her students face-to-face each day and watch their progress. Albrecht adds that “working and playing with others is an integral part of the 2nd-Grade experience,” and that is hard to practice under the restrictions of quarantine. 

Lower School faculty have suggested a schedule for parents of students to follow, which recommends amounts of time that should be devoted to each activity each day. This allows for working parents to help their children in a way that works with their schedule. Albrecht explains that the Collegiate Lower School team “decided to give approximate times for each activity, rather than assign what times during the day each student should be sitting on their device.” 

Daily activities and assignments for her 2nd Grade students include subjects such as language arts, math, social studies, and world languages, with integrated lunches, outdoor time, and other breaks from screens. In addition, Albrecht will typically Facetime four to five of her students each day in order to check in with them. 

Albrecht says that, most of all, she misses her students. She explains, “I miss the daily interactions, stories, and precious teachable moments,” and she wonders “what this pandemic will mean for their future and social/emotional health.” 

Pamela Lowe, an assistant 1st Grade teacher, also shared her opinions on the ins and outs of online learning. She said that one positive aspect of online learning that 1st Graders at Collegiate have is access to school-provided iPads. Although interactions are no longer in person, Lowe says, “When Zoom starts, we will LOVE seeing their sweet faces and for them to see each other!” Lowe says that in the 1st Grade, “We now Zoom three times a week, and beginning next week it will be an additional two days for small groups.”

However, she misses the normalcy of a daily school routine and seeing her students’ smiling faces each day. In addition, Lowe explained that teachers “are not able to do as many art activities,” and the “children do not have manipulatives at home,” an essential part of teaching strategies with her 1st Graders.  

Similar to the 2nd Graders’ schedule, the 1st Graders’ schedule includes various subjects and activities that can be done according to their own daily timeline. In addition, Lowe says, “both lead teachers and assistants were calling children daily,” but now that will “be folded into the small group Zoom sessions.”

After talking with other teachers at Collegiate, Lowe shared that many students in the Lower School, regardless of grade, are missing their school activities and being on campus with their teachers and friends each day.

Upper School English teacher and Match adviser Vlastik Svab said, “My son is in Lauren Brown’s 3rd Grade class, and I’ve been really impressed with how the 3rd Grade team has worked together to create an incredibly detailed and comprehensive plan for each day. Henry is working diligently and enjoys seeing Mrs. Brown and his classmates twice a day on Zoom.” 

While the Lower School is following a suggested schedule, Collegiate Upper and Middle schoolers are following a more structured plan. With scheduled meetings through Zoom for each of their classes two to three times per week, students in the Upper and Middle School are able to continue learning their class’s subject matter in a structured format.