School 2.0 — the digital semester begins

Sonoma Valley District schools opened virtually August 17 as teachers presided in classrooms hauntingly bereft of children. Under the Distance Learning 2.0 plan adopted by the District, teachers from first to 12th grade introduced themselves over Zoom to students who were logged in from home. Because Sonoma County is on the state’s Covid-19 watch list, no on-site classes are allowed. 

Near the end of July, when what seemed inevitable became an incontrovertible reality, the District outlined in an email for parents the options available to them for their children: Distance Learning 2.0 until on-site instruction can occur on a hybrid model; Distance Learning 2.00 all year long; and a homeschooling option labeled Independent Study. Few details for the latter were available at that time. 

Superintendent Socorro Shiels told the Sun that, in response to the survey sent out with the email to parents, approximately 80 percent of the families responded that they “are looking forward to returning to school when it is safe.” Approximately 20 percent feel they will pursue options that keep their students at home the entire school year. No breakdown between those choosing yearlong DL 2.0 and Independent Study was available, or any information about these choices relative to the different sites. 

Shiels wrote to parents last week, “Welcome back to what is, hopefully, the weirdest start of the school year we have ever experienced.” In a statement to the Sun, the superintendent spoke positively about the staff response, “The entire staff of the school district has been working hard to create the best learning opportunities during the pandemic… I am proud of all the hard work of every member of our school community to make this a strong start of school.”  

The new teaching arrangement required a modification of details of teachers’ contracts. Over the past two weeks, Valley of the Moon Teachers Association and the school board worked together for long hours to establish a Distance Learning Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the 2020-2021 school year. Ronette Wesson, co-president of VMTA, reported that they worked well together for the benefit and safety of all students and staff. “We heard from our members through calls, emails, text, and in the district-wide meetings held this summer. All input, questions, and concerns have been considered and addressed.” The MOU was put to VMTA members last week, and according to the other VMTA co-president, Renea Magnani, 96.4% of the voting members voted in favor. The MOU was then approved by the Board of Trustees.

The District elected not to delay opening until after Labor Day, an option offered by the State of California to provide teachers and all staff two more weeks of planning and professional development. 

The principal of El Verano School Maite Iturri talked about what was entailed. “We have had to rewrite every system, create everything brand-new, in a very short amount of time.” Iturri elaborated on the positives of this year’s opening: “Distance Learning 2.0 is far different from the crisis teaching we found ourselves in last spring. Teachers and staff learned a tremendous amount about what works and best practices in a virtual world. Lessons from summer school have been applied to our teaching this fall.” The El Verano principal also noted, “One of our greatest learnings is the need for tech support from staff who are ‘trilingual’ (tech, Spanish, and English) for families. Navigating instruction and technology requires support and we are working to make sure that the process and structures are in place for families.” 

She continued, “Free Valley-wide high speed wifi is a need for our families. When deciding on which bill to pay, the internet is not always at the top of the list.” 

There are many issues surrounding the online delivery of instruction. The District last spring supplied a Chromebook or other computer to every student. This week every new kindergarten student is receiving a ChromeBook from his or her teacher. The District also provides hotspots for families who lack internet access. Aside from the inevitable technological problems, which are being handled through the student’s site, there is the fundamental concern about children spending so much screen time in order to have access to the curriculum. Even for first graders, the plan proposes four-and-a-half hours a day of direct online instruction. 

A major challenge of online instruction is how to deliver appropriate instruction to students with special needs. Toni Vernier, the new Director of Special Education, acknowledged that the needs of these students were not met in the online instruction offered during the spring. She is committed to meeting the needs of these students, who make up 15 percent of the total. Monthly meetings with staff are being offered to all parents of special ed students in the District.

Another significant issue is how working parents will be able to oversee their children’s daily classes. Many families have addressed this by organizing “learning pods” run by either a parent who works in the home or doesn’t work, or a hired “teacher nanny.” In a Zoom forum with the superintendent and other administrators in July, essential worker parents posed this dilemma to the District, asking what resources could address this inherent inequity.