Local Schools Continue Serving through Crisis with Digital Learning

In an effort to stall the spread of COVID-19, most businesses and organizations have closed temporarily or curtailed their activities in some way. Many have found innovative ways to adapt and meet the needs of clients.

Few people would argue that schools across the nation — including Peachtree Corners area schools — have made the necessary changes quickly and efficiently. With short notice, they moved from classroom to digital learning.

Teachers are connecting online with their students while offering support to the parents working from home. Administrators and school support staff are making sure that teachers, pupils and parents get everything they need, and providing free, nutritious meals for students who need them.

Local schools, public and private, have found ways to keep students learning, families involved and everyone connected so they can weather the storm together.

Publisher’s Note: This article was written for the April/May issue and submitted March 31 for publication. Since then Gwinnett County Schools have moved to a 4-day school schedule which ends on May 20th.

Paul Duke STEM High School

Dr. Jonathon Wetherington, principal at Paul Duke STEM High School, explained that the teachers and staff are always prepared for Digital Learning Days as an emergency possibility. “As the COVID-19 concerns increased, we gradually began to ramp up our readiness the week prior to school moving to digital learning,” he said. “Given our regular digital learning on Fridays, we were well prepared for this experience, and I think we are getting better every day that goes by.”

He reported that the digital learning is going well. The students and teachers are highly engaged, he said, and students are checking in and continuing their learning every day. “We appreciate our parents pitching in and helping our students on a daily basis because we cannot be there for them like we are used to.”

Dr. Wetherington admitted that some students were reluctant to complete their assignments, so teachers and staff call to check on those individuals. “Also, our students are struggling — just like many of us — with the realities of our current situation, and we are reaching out more and more with phone calls and conference calls to provide some routine normalcy and support,” he said. “Our teachers love our students, and many of our students are worried about their future.”

For one of the weekly advisement lessons in March, the Gwinnett Student Leadership Team focused on helping the students learn how to handle their stress better. “Our students and teachers are truly amazing!” Dr. Wetherington said.

It’s just one example of the many Paul Duke STEM success stories. Another is the French teachers who were able to connect with their students to share musical moments with French songs. “I think our biggest successes are when we are able to connect with our students directly through a phone call or video lesson,” he said. “These human moments help sustain our digital efforts, and they remind our teachers and students that we teach students, not subjects.”

Schools belong to the communities they serve, Dr. Wetherington noted, and “at times like this, it is wonderful to lead such a caring and passionate group of teachers committed to our students’ success.” He added that he truly appreciates all the support that the parents and students have shown, as well.

“I say to the students often that ‘We are learning together to lead tomorrow,’” he continued. “I just never knew that tomorrow would come so soon, so I am grateful for how we are all learning together each and every day.”

Cornerstone Christian Academy

“Cornerstone families: for those of you who have been around Cornerstone for a little while, you know me well enough to know that I desire to keep our doors open if at all possible. While digital learning is worthwhile, we all know it cannot replace face-to-face interaction.” This is how the first communication regarding the Coronavirus situation to the Cornerstone Christian Academy community began.

After rolling out digital learning plans, Headmaster Colin Creel closed with this: “I am so grateful for all of our staff and their willingness to do whatever is necessary to ensure that the integrity of our students’ education is not compromised. In addition, thank you to our parent community for supporting our efforts to achieve this goal. We are blessed beyond measure. Onward and upward!”

Under the leadership of school principals, Cornerstone implemented digital learning protocols on March 16. Parents were asked to pick up textbooks, journals, binders and other resources from the school.

Chromebooks were made available to students. Teaching teams collaborated to devise the best plan for close to 400 students in Kindergarten through Eighth Grade.

During the Coronavirus quarantine, students continue to check for uploaded assignment documents which include links to video and textbook resources, as well as online assessments. Middle School teachers are hosting live Zoom classes on a set schedule each morning and recording those classes for any student unable to attend.

Lower School teachers assign work through a nightly email to parents. Plans include detailed instructions for the students as well as links to several online resources including videos and activities.

Teachers are also keeping it personal with sweet daily welcome videos encouraging their students to have a great day. There are many opportunities for the teachers to assess their students’ work and provide support when it is needed.

In addition to daily required assignments, enrichment lessons and activities are provided. Physical Education (PE) videos keep the students active and have even included a fun video unit on juggling. The fine arts department is utilizing FaceTime to provide live piano and voice lessons.

In an effort to keep families connected, Cornerstone posts daily family challenges, jokes of the day submitted by students and dinner table topics on our digital learning parent resources page. Families especially have enjoyed submitting their video answers to the school’s Family Feud game. Everyone gathers, online, on Friday mornings to worship God together in Chapel; it’s a favorite part of each week for families.

Since they aren’t able to interact with the school community, non-teaching staff members have formed a Care Team, praying for families, writing notes of encouragement and making phone calls to see how to serve families.

A parent recently sent this note to Cornerstone: “Through our nine years at Cornerstone, we have been reminded again and again of something that was said to us by a parent when we first toured the school: “Cornerstone is like an extension of our family.” Never has that been truer than it is now. In this time of adversity, we are all sharing the same fears, uncertainty, challenges and disappointments, but we are facing them together offering each other the same encouragement, hope, faith and love that a family does during difficult times.”

Norcross High School

Principal William Bishop of Norcross High School said that NHS students and teachers have done an outstanding job moving over to learning and teaching digitally. This isn’t surprising, since the teachers have been growing their skills in using digital tools to teach students over many years.

“Our Norcross High School Foundation for Excellence has assisted the work in using digital tools by increasing the amount of technology that our students and teachers have access to at school,” he explained. “In the last few years, when we have been out of school for weather reasons, we have had Digital Learning Days, so this is not new to us.”

Still, Bishop added, learning digitally over a longer period of time is an adjustment for everyone. “In the past, if we are out of school two or three days, test dates or learning certain skills might be delayed until students returned to school,” he said. “As we look at the possibility of students learning digitally over a longer period of time, we have had to make a few adjustments in how we teach and how we assess student learning.”

One challenge the school faced was a handful of students who were not participating in some of the classes. The teachers and other staff members reached out to them and their families, and “we have made great progress in the participation of our students,” Bishop reported. That kind of focus on success is nothing new, he stressed, since NHS teachers and students are constantly making adjustments to ensure students are learning, whether in a classroom or online.

Digital Learning Days also brought an opportunity for some students to catch up on their classes. “Early in the semester, we had a few students who were behind in their work and needed to get caught up on their learning,” Bishop said. “With the support of their teachers, many of these students have not only learned new material online, they also caught up on the knowledge and skills they were missing before digital learning began.

“Our society values people who have knowledge and skills,” he continued. “It is key that our students continue to learn and grow whether it is in a traditional classroom or learning digitally.”

Greater Atlanta Christian School

When the school year went to digital learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Greater Atlanta Christian School (GAC) had a ready solution and pivoted to its online learning platform. Launched two years ago, GAC’s online Ethos School has been adapted to support the current need for digital learning for the school’s 1,600+ student body.

“Based on research and the demand for digital skills in the workplace, education systems are moving toward more online options,” said Director of Academics Dr. Betty Morris.

“Top tier colleges are leading the trend by offering higher educational degrees via an online platform.”

GAC was already educating more than 200 students across the globe through its Ethos School program before the current health crisis. Therefore, “our administration and highly-qualified teachers fully understood the online learning setting and were prepared to quickly transition the GAC educational experience into an online learning environment,” said High School Bible teacher Derek Wilson.

With modalities adapted to the age and needs of the students, GAC teachers are ensuring that learning continues and and that students and families feel supported during this challenging time. The response from parents and students has been overwhelmingly positive, for both the way in which GAC has supported students and families emotionally and also for the way in which students are adapting to the new learning environment.

With daily videos going out from its president, Dr. Scott Harsh, and frequent, uplifting messages going out through email and social media, GAC is making the most of the situation.

“Maybe the biggest difference-maker so far that I see is the tone of normalcy and excitement GAC has created for the kids during this time of online learning,” said parent Sandra Onal.

GAC students continue with their regular school day, with interactive instruction given in every class period. Teachers are using digital tools to fully engage students during class and are available to help before and after school as well.

Teachers are also finding creative ways to make class time fun and engaging. One teacher, Joann Waldrop, asked all of her students to bring their pets to class. Students are also scheduling lunch via Zoom together. The opportunities for connection are endless.

“There are many valuable lessons in all of this,” said Dr. Harsh. “Students are learning to adapt and make the most of the challenging circumstances. Even when so much has come to a halt, our students are continuing to learn, connect, laugh and grow, even though school looks different. An essential element for personal growth is adapting to change and learning resilience and I’m so very proud of the way our students are responding.”

Wesleyan School

Wesleyan School was scheduled to begin Spring Break at noon on Friday, March 13. As the global and national reality evolved that week, the administration and academic leadership had approximately 48 hours before Spring Break to craft a plan, notify families of the shift to distance learning upon return from the break, and to train teachers.

During the break, the division principals, associate head of school, technology team and other administrators worked to prepare, and students began distance learning from home on March 25.

“While this certainly is an adjustment for everyone – students, parents and teachers – things seem to be going well,” said Wesleyan Associate Head of School Ramona Blankenship. “Our principals created a distance learning plan that started out gradually in terms of pace and workload. They did this intentionally to lay a strong foundation and to give families as much bandwidth as possible to adjust to this new normal of students and parents working from home together.”

Blankenship said that, overwhelmingly, the feedback has been positive as parents are sorting out how to oversee schoolwork from home while many are working remotely themselves.

Bethany Davidson, mother to Jamarcus, 12th grade, and Anslee, 9th grade, as well as two Wesleyan graduates, said she thinks the school did an exceptional job rolling out the distance learning model. “As a parent, I’m very grateful for all the hard work our administrators and faculty have done to help things go as smoothly as possible. It’s fun to be able to do things together that we don’t normally get to do, like have lunch on the porch.”

Davidson added that the family has decided that they enjoy this form of learning — with the exception of the social aspect. “That’s the hardest part — being disconnected from our Wesleyan community which is so very important to us!”

According to Wesleyan Lower School Dean of Counseling and Student Services Nancy Jones, one of the big challenges everyone is facing — not just schools or students — is managing emotional health during this time. “We believe that as a school, we are not just responsible for the academic well-being of our students, but also for their social and emotional well-being,” Jones said. “To that end, we are working hard to provide resources to families to support them as they navigate this unprecedented time.”

Counselors in each division — lower, middle and high school — have curated articles for parents on how to talk to their children about the pandemic and provided links to activities and resources for student use.

“Middle and high school have started a Weekly Wellness Guide that is sent directly to students each week,” Jones continued. “This includes a suggested daily schedule of activities students can do to clear their minds, relieve anxiety and stay healthy during this time of uncertainty. We are using Wesleyan’s digital platforms to provide check ins with students, and to provide light-hearted video moments for our whole Wesleyan community!”

Ninth grade student Anslee Davidson said that she’s enjoying the freedom to work at her own pace. “I finished before lunch today and then was able to work on my music and then enjoy some time out on the lake,” she said. “The biggest negative is not being with my friends and my teachers. I miss them all so much.”

GCPS Delivers Education and Nutrition to Students

As of March 16, Gwinnett County Public Schools (GCPS) has shifted to digital learning in response to the COVID-19 crisis. According to the GCPS website, “students and classroom teachers continue teaching and learning at home through Digital Learning Days.”

Teachers post assignments on their eCLASS C&I course pages during Digital Learning Days. Students use the MyeCLASS student portal to log in to their course pages where they access assignments, resources and other materials.

If a student does not have access to a computer or device, teachers can provide alternative ways to access assignments, such as email. Teachers may also support student learning through other means, including phone calls, discussion boards or online conference tools.

An important factor of successfully switching to Digital Learning Days is making sure students stay healthy by supplying meals to students. Many GCPS schools are providing lunch for pick up, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., for anyone 18 years of age or younger.

These lunches are provided at no cost to the individual through the federal School Nutrition Program. The student or child must be present to receive the meal; a child does not have to be a student at the school site to receive a meal.

Through the week of March 16-20, there were 138,371 meals provided to students: 23,004 at 68 school pick-up sites and 115,367 at bus stops.

“The number of students participating has grown since the first few Digital Learning Days. Our school nutrition and transportation teams have done a wonderful job continuing to make and deliver meals to our students,” said Norcross High School Principal William Bishop.

Schools in Peachtree Corners where meals are available include Berkeley Lake Elementary School, Peachtree Elementary School, Stripling Elementary School, Duluth Middle School, Pinckneyville Middle School, Summerour Middle School, Duluth High School, Norcross High School and Paul Duke STEM High School.

That’s not all. School buses deliver meals at bus stops in select clusters — Berkmar, Central Gwinnett, Discovery, Meadowcreek, Norcross, Shiloh and South Gwinnett — and for several schools, including Berkeley Lake Elementary School. The buses make stops at their regular bus stops between 11 a.m. and noon. To get a meal, the child must be at the stop when the bus arrives.

“In GCPS, we talk about the two types of employees who serve our community — those who teach and those who support those who teach,” the GCPS website says. “We are so proud of the hard work that both types of employees have done and will do in coming weeks to ensure that learning continues for Gwinnett schoolchildren, and that lunches are provided to children who need them.”

For the latest information on student meals and GCPS Digital Learning Days during the Coronavirus crisis, visit the GCPS website, gcpsk12.org.