The novel coronavirus (COVID-19), has caused many PreK-12 schools to transition from face-to-face instruction to some form of online learning. In order to support the transition to remote learning, the faculty, students, and alumni of the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) program have put together several blog posts that will focus on general considerations, challenges, and specific strategies at the PreK-12 level.
We are honored to work with and learn from the MAET community as they navigate and implement this change in instructional delivery in their learning communities. Please enjoy the third post in our series by Annaleigh Kress, an MAET graduate who is sharing a piece of her story in hopes to support you and your learners.
Annaleigh Kress is the Digital Age Learning Coordinator at the American School of Milan. Originally from New Hampshire, she received her undergraduate degree in Educational Theatre from NYU and has taught at international schools in New York City, London, and now Italy. She is a proud graduate of Michigan State University’s MAET program, where she studied Educational Technology in Galway, Ireland for three summers. Annaleigh also has a passion for theatre. She co-founded a summer theater program in Manchester, NH in 2006 and directs both the elementary and upper school musicals at ASM. You can learn more about her work through her website and can connect with her on Twitter at @mskress3.
Diving into Distance Learning
As I sit here in the fourth week of distance learning and the second week of lockdown, it feels as though the world has turned upside down. Europe has now become the epicenter of the coronavirus, with Milan right at its center. Our region of Italy, Lombardy, got hit hard and fast in the early weeks of this pandemic, and suddenly we have become the focus of the news around the world.
For us at the American School of Milan, it began the Sunday evening after our winter break, February 23rd, when we received word from the government that students were prohibited from attending school. Luckily, teachers were still able to gather at school to discuss and prepare for online learning before we were mandated to stay home, too. That day was invaluable. Not only were we able to meet face-to-face in grade level and department teams, but it also allowed us to gather important resources from school. Our Pre-K teachers grabbed calendars, English teachers stocked up on books, and music teachers lugged keyboards and guitars home.
In the world of educational technology, we’re always looking to shake things up and redefine what learning looks like for kids. We’re currently living with the exciting opportunity to live in a moment of change, while still grappling with the day to day logistics of this big transition. The first week was mostly focused on getting kids online and putting routines in place, yet it was clear that not all teachers were well-equipped with resources or skills to make distance learning a success. Some students and teachers really thrive in this environment, while others are struggling with the lift to a 100% online platform. To help bridge this gap, our Director of Technology and I put together a website where teachers could find information, tutorials, and examples of the best tools for distance learning. An unexpected issue that we’ve run into is that we’re being inundated with resources and free subscriptions. We tried to be very purposeful about what we recommend to our teachers. After two days, the website launched. Our teachers are now using it as a home base for tech support and are gaining confidence in their tech skills every day.
Late last week, the virus began its significant spread to other countries within Europe. Our administrators wanted to share our resources with other international schools who were desperate for some guidance. Much like we relied heavily on the help of schools in Asia, we wanted to pay it forward to others who wanted to follow in our footsteps. However, in Europe we have tight privacy regulations, called the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR for short). Because this new website was littered with student information, classwork, and faces, we could not share it outside of our school community. However, in an effort to offer as much help as possible, we created a cloned website with all of the student data removed. It has fewer examples and tutorials, but still gets the message across. Feel free to share it with your school community, or use it as a model to create a resource that is more fitting for your context.
The MAET community is here to support you. Looking for a resource? Feeling stuck with your next step? Trying to troubleshoot something? In search of inspiration? Have something funny or inspirational to share? Send a tweet to #MAET to connect.