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In Your Corner, Leadership and Change Management, Planning
Planning and Managing the Transition Back
Most schools across the country are making the transition from some type of remote or hybrid experiences to face-to-face teaching and learning. For most of us, moving back to more direct, in-person contact with each other is a welcome prospect.
Nevertheless, we need to attend to several issues and implications as we make the transition. Predictably, there will be people who assume that the process should be simple, immediate, and problem-free. Yet, our students will require some time to adjust after a long period of learning in a remote context without the support and distractions that come with learning in the same physical space as classmates. We too will need time to recalibrate our practices and expectations to reengage with students face to face.
We need to keep in mind that students have experienced different routines, expectations, and connections while learning remotely. Some of what students have experienced may easily and gleefully be abandoned in favor of what they recall from past face-to-face learning experiences. However, there likely are aspects of learning in the past several months that students want to bring back with them to the classroom. For example, most students have learned how to more fully integrate technology in the process of learning and may be reluctant to return to an instructional context that is less reliant on and integrative of technology. They also have learned skills and strategies for learning independently and accessing remote resources that can enhance learning back in the classroom. Now is a good time to survey students, hold focus groups, or interview students about their learning expectations and preferences as they transition back. Students will be happier and the shift will be smoother if the perspectives and preferences of students are considered and reflected in their experiences as they return.
Similarly, our expectations for student behavior had to be modified to reflect the context and variables present in remote learning. The return to in-person learning means that some of the flexibility students experienced might be lessened, but we need to be cautious to avoid tightening behavior expectations just because we can. Now is a good time to reflect on the behavior expectations that will best support learning. We need to draw on what we learned about motivation and engagement driven by learning interest and commitment, rather than rely on forced compliance through threats and consequences. The fact is that ownership for and commitment to learning grows when students have more choices in their learning and greater voice about how they will learn.
For some educators, remote learning has been a reality since the beginning of the year. We have formed relationships and come to know our students in a distance learning context. These relationships can be strong, but they still will need attention when we return to in-person learning. We need to allocate time to renew relationships in a different context and build an in-person learning community. Of course, our efforts need to build on existing relationships with students and we need to support students to expand and deepen relationships they have formed with each other. Without question, the transition back will come with some anxiety, angst, and reluctance for some students. The more we can support them and reinforce relationships, the smoother and faster the transition will occur.
We also need to be alert to signs of emotional, psychological, and even physical trauma as students return. The past months have been stressful for all of us, but for some students the stress was compounded by family disruption, strife, and abuse. It was difficult in remote learning contexts to always pick up on signs of abuse and neglect and signals of emotional and psychological problems. For students whose remote learning experiences were colored by trauma, the transition may represent a welcome change, or it may represent more stress and lead to acting out and other troubling behaviors. We need to be ready to step in and provide support and connect them with any resources they may need to find their way forward to safety, good health, and success. In fact, this is a good time to review with colleagues the array of available resources and processes for accessing services.
Of course, we need to pay attention to where students are in their learning. Rest assured that they will not all be in the same place. Some students may have thrived during remote learning. Others will have struggled and fallen behind. We need to learn what students know and are ready to learn, and chart with them a path forward. Trying to replicate everything students have missed will not likely be the best choice. Rather, consider focusing on key concepts and skills students will need to support their progress. As time allows, these students will be better able to fill in content gaps using the core strategies and skills they have learned.
Finally, we need to stay attuned to our needs and feelings. While we may also be looking forward to the return to in-person instruction, it will take some time to find our stride and feel comfortable. We need to give ourselves some slack to adjust, while remembering and using what we have learned from remote instruction to lift our practice and enhance our impact.
In Your Corner, Student Learning
Powerful Levers to Counter Disengagement and Disappearance
This year may have been the most challenging of our careers. It may also have been the most challenging year for our students and their families. Much of what we have been accustomed to in our practice has been disrupted or does not apply in the pandemic.
The struggle to engage students and keep them motivated and committed to learning in this context is far different from what we have faced in normal years. It used to be that routines could be set and followed, students regularly showed up in our classrooms, and distractions at least seemed to be manageable.
Across the nation we hear reports of increases in failing grades, irregular attendance, and even students missing from class. The realization that for too many students this may be a lost year, in addition to the learning disruptions of the past spring, is heartbreaking. Yet, we also know that many factors and forces driving the drop-off in school attendance, engagement, and focus are beyond our control. Families are struggling. Students are often stressed and may be torn between school and dealing with other life demands.
Still, accepting the reality that we cannot control all the forces competing for the attention and commitment of students does not mean that we are powerless and cannot counter them. In fact, we have some very powerful, proven levers at our disposal. When used effectively, they can create a nearly unstoppable force to attract students and build powerful momentum for their learning. Here are five levers we can engage to make a difference.
The first lever is the simple statement “You matter.” When students experience this message in our words and actions, it is nearly irresistible. When we know someone values us, we want to be around them. They are people we can trust. We can take risks with them. On the other hand, when we feel that we don’t matter, it’s an easy choice to go elsewhere and engage in other pursuits.
Second is the clear commitment “I am here for you.” Knowing that someone who values us also stands ready to support us, encourage us, guide us, and is committed to our success can be powerfully reassuring. When our actions reflect this commitment and students feel the reassurance of our advocacy, we can be a welcoming and safe connection in their lives.
The third lever is found in the message “I appreciate having you in this class.” When we have a place where we are welcome and belong, we want to spend time there. Further, when we help students see ways in which they bring value and add richness to the learning experience of others, we grow a sense of community. Being part of a community also conveys responsibility to protect and contribute. There is little in life that is more compelling than feeling needed.
A fourth lever is the message “Struggles, setbacks, and mistakes are important to learning.” Many students have come to believe that in school, mistakes are signs of failure, struggles are signs of weakness, and setbacks are evidence of incompetence. Yet, real learning—learning that involves grasping unfamiliar concepts, learning complex skills, and exploring novel content—often requires mistakes and missteps to achieve success. Children and young people grasp this truth in other areas of life, but grading practices, judgmental feedback, and other forms of shaming too often send a message that in school, anything but perfection is to be avoided. The power of this messaging can be magnified in remote learning contexts, when support is not readily available, uncertainty is rampant, and walking away feels like a convenient option.
Finally, we can reassure students that “smart” is highly overrated. Practices common in formal education settings often send the message to students that fast equals smart, struggle signals lack of potential, and asking questions reveals a lack of intellect. Yet, dedicating time to learn deeply, being willing to struggle until a solution is discovered, and seeking answers are crucial contributors to success in life. What matters is the discipline to persist, commitment to keep trying, and confidence that success will come. Now is the perfect time to reinforce these insights for learners and help them to understand that smart is something they become, not who they are.
Of course, to tap the full power of these learning levers, we need to do more than mention them in passing or post them as a theme. Our actions, our attention, and our expectations must offer constant and consistent reinforcement of their importance and potency.
In Your Corner, Thinking Frames
In Your Corner, Leadership and Change Management
In Your Corner, Thinking Frames
In Your Corner, Thinking Frames
Share Your Tips & Stories
Share your story and the tips you have for getting through this challenging time. It can remind a fellow school leader of something they forgot, or your example can make a difficult task much easier and allow them to get more done in less time. We may publish your comments.
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As much as we sometimes want to take control and tell students what they should do when they face a difficult challenge, it usually is best to position ourselves as coaches, reflectors, and supportive advocates.
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