COVID-19 virtual schooling tips?

[LittleLebowski]

My school district (at the county level) is still waffling about whether or not to be 100% virtual for the first quarter or two of school this year or to try limited in-person schooling. Note that they don't have a plan and school starts September 8th. Very poor leadership. I'm certain we will be 100% virtual for 2020, it's only a matter of time before the announcement.

Either way, there will be a heavy use of Canvas (https://www.canvas.net) and I assume Zoom or the like. We went ahead and bought a touch/convertible Acer Chromebook (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C715KLH/) for school work, hopefully it works out.

[LittleLebowski]

My school district (at the county level) is still waffling about whether or not to be 100% virtual for the first quarter or two of school this year or to try limited in-person schooling. Note that they don't have a plan and school starts September 8th. Very poor leadership. I'm certain we will be 100% virtual for 2020, it's only a matter of time before the announcement.

Either way, there will be a heavy use of Canvas (https://www.canvas.net) and I assume Zoom or the like. We went ahead and bought a touch/convertible Acer Chromebook (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C715KLH/) for school work, hopefully it works out.

Holy shit, the price jumped $85 since I ordered this thing a few weeks ago!

[mtnbkr]

You're in PWC, right? I thought they decided on 100% virtual for the time being. Manassas is, but has claimed that they will re-evaluate monthly (probably to placate the folks who are freaking out).

Manassas is providing laptops/tablets to students (or at least at the level my kids are currently).

MCPS uses Zoom, Schoology, and Google Classrooms. Assuming that Zoom will be the main "real time" tool, I had my kids do a 3-way test with me and each of them in separate rooms to make sure their personal laptops were configured properly (mic, headsets, etc) and they could get into the session. It was also a test of our ISP's ability to carry 3 video calls at once since I also work from home and heavily use VOIP or video via Skype and Teams.

I used my CTL Chromebook to test from my end (my girls both have Win10 laptops and will get Win10 convertibles from school). It has a similar hardware spec to the Acer you linked and managed Zoom just fine.

One thing MCPS is doing that I like is allowing students to review recorded class sessions later if they can't attend class in real-time. I'm sure that won't be a substitute for regular attendance, but will allow them to keep up if they miss a session.

ETA: Workspace and rules of engagement for non-students in the house will be important. Knowing the students' class schedules so you don't interrupt "class" is key. We're treating it how I approach my own WFH habits (ie I'm on calls from 7am-11am, free from 11am-12pm, so no non-emergency comms before 11am).

Chris

[Guerrero]

We have almost the same Chromebook for Younger Offspring; decent choice.

You may want to look in to getting a decent headset w/mic.

Make sure you're familiar with how the main Google apps (Docs, Sheets, Slides, etc.) work.

You may want to look into increasing your internet bandwidth if you only have a mediocre plan. You might also want to contact your ISP and have someone physically check your connection. We found out the hard way that, while our pipe was sufficient, our physical connection sucked (tons of dropped packets).

Look into local Catholic schools.

[mtnbkr]

We have almost the same Chromebook for Younger Offspring; decent choice.

You may want to look in to getting a decent headset w/mic.

Make sure you're familiar with how the main Google apps (Docs, Sheets, Slides, etc.) work.

You may want to look into increasing your internet bandwidth if you only have a mediocre plan. You might also want to contact your ISP and have someone physically check your connection. We found out the hard way that, while our pipe was sufficient, our physical connection sucked (tons of dropped packets).

Look into local Catholic schools.

+1 to headset. I like wireless options so I can get up and walk around, but that's not a huge issue for students. Still, it could prevent dragging the computer off the desk. :)

As for bandwidth, we have 100mb fiber here at my house and know from experience it can easily carry 3 video calls and other uses simultaneously. However, if the computer or router doesn't support a robust wireless standard or there are signal issues due to the house construction, QOS may suffer. Test ahead of time (including headset config).

Chris

[Nephrology]

It made me sad to learn that both your daughter and I have Canvas accounts.

https://i.imgur.com/kn7TIs5.jpg

[Grey]

Best of luck to all of those with kids in this cluster of an education year.

[Totem Polar]

It made me sad to learn that both your daughter and I have Canvas accounts.


Fucking Canvas. That suite has its origins back when the first Clinton was in office. The only browser that I have that will display the controls properly is firefox.

”Due to COVID, all transportation has to be socially distant. Please log into your 1962 Ford Falcon to make your cross-country road trip...”

[Caballoflaco]

”Due to COVID, all transportation has to be socially distant. Please log into your 1962 Ford Falcon to make your cross-country road trip...”

:( I don’t even have a ‘62 Ford Falcon...

[UNK]

I know my daughter, senior this year, spent a lot more time working on school work last school year when it was all distance learning. To me thats a good thing especially preparing for the college years. Coincidentally she also made the best grades shes ever made. Not sure if that is a reflection of online school or her efforts.

[Guerrero]

I know my daughter, senior this year, spent a lot more time working on school work last school year when it was all distance learning. To me thats a good thing especially preparing for the college years. Coincidentally she also made the best grades shes ever made. Not sure if that is a reflection of online school or her efforts.

Same thing with my Older Offspring. I think the results are both, online school and efforts.

We found that, without the physical class for immediate feedback, the teachers had unconsciously upped the pace (in both our kids' school). We had to contact both schools once or twice to tell them to dial it back a bit, and this is coming from my wife, who's a very hard-charging high-school math educator.

So, to distill this down to advice/tips: don't be afraid to contact the teachers or the school if it seems to be going too fast/intense. Remember, the teachers aren't having the same kind of interaction with the students and parents and probably don't (yet) have a good feel on how to pace the classes.

On the other hand, we had to ride both Offspring a little harder than normal to get over the (unconscious) perception that this wan't "real school."

[David S.]

If you're going to do schooling online anyway, have you considered doing a real online school? For instance: Acellus (https://www.acellusacademy.com/) and a hundred others.

It's self paced (flexible schedule), and your kid will probably get the work done in a fraction of the time and have the rest of the day to be a kid. It's designed from the ground up for online learning, instead of the hack job I fully expect public government school online learning to be.

If my kiddos were school age, I'd be looking hard at this option. I'm sure the public school will take them back if the go in-person again.

How cool is this???


https://youtu.be/5oMDkfrGI1Q


https://youtu.be/2NIcxU7u9K0

No affiliation.

[Guerrero]

How cool is this???

OK... National WWI Museum is now on "The List" of places to visit.

[Bergeron]

I imagine that there are tutoring companies out in NOVA. I had additional jobs working as a tutor, Abe I think it’s generally a great supplement, maybe even more so, depending on what the policies are regarding actual face-to-face tiring vice virtual tutoring.

[Totem Polar]

:( I don’t even have a ‘62 Ford Falcon...




https://www.getyarn.io/yarn-clip/bcf88c51-eafb-4233-81d2-03288bd6e958#bYcHNUhuzyB.copy

[mtnbkr]

Fucking Canvas. That suite has its origins back when the first Clinton was in office. The only browser that I have that will display the controls properly is firefox.
I just learned from Thing 1, a senior this year, that she used Canvas last year for her dual enrollment classes. It must have worked properly because I didn't remember any issues on our end. We were a Firefox household until a recent update (this Summer, after school was over) broke a number of things and I learned Chromium Edge was actually faster and more compatible with the things we used a browser for.

Firefox had me thinking I needed to build a new PC. :rolleyes:

Chris

[Totem Polar]

So, I have this required training to take before I can get on campus to inventory instruments, organize the office, set up the PPE, etc. It’s been a challenge just getting authorized to take the training online. I finally get in, and the slides won’t all display in my browser correctly.

Fortunately, I’m a P-F member in good standing—and there is nothing that we haven’t deep-dived together, if not this whole COVID thing. I just took the quizzes at the bottom of each slide and aced the training. Never let it be said that all the time we spend farting around here counts for nothing...

[Totem Polar]

My school district (at the county level) is still waffling about whether or not to be 100% virtual...

Either way, there will be a heavy use of Canvas (https://www.canvas.net) and I assume Zoom or the like. We went ahead and bought a touch/convertible Acer Chromebook (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C715KLH/) for school work, hopefully it works out.

I should probably offer some input, if I’m going to be in this thread. One, the idea of earbuds is a good one. Two, don’t be afraid to get into the Zoom settings and alter the sound to “use real audio” to boost clarity. With headphones, a good connection, and a space that is relatively distraction-free, things should move along well. The biggest warts I encountered on the teaching end of things were in decreasing order: bad internet connection; loss of clarity from ambient sounds; dead batteries (I know you’re good with your Ankers); and siblings/dogs/parents going back and forth behind the students causing distraction.

Be sure to watch for enough break-taking and getting outside so you don’t end up with a kid who has troglodyte eyes and the world’s shittiest posture. Looking at an upper FAST target box-sized window on an ipad or laptop for hours on end will do bad things for concentration and eyeballs.

Don’t install Zoom on anything that you want to keep secure.

JMO.

[MGW]

Fucking Canvas. That suite has its origins back when the first Clinton was in office. The only browser that I have that will display the controls properly is firefox.

”Due to COVID, all transportation has to be socially distant. Please log into your 1962 Ford Falcon to make your cross-country road trip...”

I hate Blackboard too. Although a Blackboard seems to work with any browser now. Maybe it’s just the people creating the course I’m in that can’t get it together.

[MGW]

In defense of schools the rules and recommendations from local health departments and state BOE’s are changing sometimes hourly. It’s extremely difficult to figure out how to jump through all the hoops and still make sure that students are going to get credit toward graduation. Trying to move from a culture of in person instruction to a 100% remote or a blended environment is complex. Add to that everyone thinks they understand how to run a school because, you know, they went to a school at some point in the past.

That being said, public education has for the most part proven how irrelevant it has really become.

If your school goes to 100% remote I would also look at moving to an independent online company. Use the free time your kids have for enrichment activities. Just make sure what you pick will meet the states requirements. The only thing your kids will miss is the social aspect. Eventually, when things open back up, you can find enough activities outside of public school to meet that need.

If you’re going to stick with your local schools program it sounds like you’ve already on the right track. I’m a big iPad fan for remote education over Chromebooks. I think they’re vastly more versatile. Add a keyboard and Apple Pencil and what they can do is pretty limitless. But if you’ve already bought the Chromebooks don’t sweat it. They’ll get the job done.

[JAD]

OK... National WWI Museum is now on "The List" of places to visit.

Call when you’re in town, I will show you Willy Wonka levels of barbecue.

[JAD]

Might give LHS a ring. Catholic schools around here have been able to open in person despite the publics starting virtual, because they have their shit wired right. When we did go virtual last year, it was OK.

[CDH]

We've chosen to homeschool. A minimal number of hoops to jump through at the state level. I'm enjoying being directly involved with child's learning, testing, etc. It's a bit more demanding on my end but as the head of my household it is my responsibility to educate my children. I hope I'm up for the task over the long haul. So far, so good.

[LittleLebowski]

Holy shit, the price jumped $85 since I ordered this thing a few weeks ago!

Back down to $329 (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07C715KLH/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). I’m shopping headphones for the kids.

[mtnbkr]

I’m shopping headphones for the kids.
I spend 4-8hrs/day on Skype and Teams. I prefer phone-oriented BT earpieces over "headsets". I'm not inclined to talk louder because I can't hear myself properly and I have better ability to hear what's going on around me in the house.

ETA: Plantronics Voyager (https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Plantronics+voyager&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) is what I use. I have 3 of them (two at my desk, one in my laptop bag). They'll simultaneously pair to multiple devices, which lets me answer phone calls as well as use them for PC-based calls (Skype/Teams). That's relevant to students, but the point is they're versatile and compatible with a wide range of devices.

Chris

[LittleLebowski]

I spend 4-8hrs/day on Skype and Teams. I prefer phone-oriented BT earpieces over "headsets". I'm not inclined to talk louder because I can't hear myself properly and I have better ability to hear what's going on around me in the house.

ETA: Plantronics Voyager (https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Plantronics+voyager&ref=nb_sb_noss_2) is what I use. I have 3 of them (two at my desk, one in my laptop bag). They'll simultaneously pair to multiple devices, which lets me answer phone calls as well as use them for PC-based calls (Skype/Teams). That's relevant to students, but the point is they're versatile and compatible with a wide range of devices.

Chris

Sheez, this virtual schooling is getting expensive. I will say that my AirPods Pro (https://www.amazon.com/Apple-MWP22AM-A-AirPods-Pro/dp/B07ZPC9QD4/) investment has paid off for me with all of these virtual meetings.

[mtnbkr]

Sheez, this virtual schooling is getting expensive. I will say that my AirPods Pro (https://www.amazon.com/Apple-MWP22AM-A-AirPods-Pro/dp/B07ZPC9QD4/) investment has paid off for me with all of these virtual meetings.

Is your school system not providing laptops? While both my girls have their own laptops, they'll be using school-provided systems for their classwork and virtual sessions.

Chris

[Duelist]

My district is 1:1 chromebooks, provided by the district. The high school went 1:1 on them a couple of years ago using HPs, so spring this year wasn’t too terrible because all the students had the computers needed. Getting new chromebooks for all of the elementary and junior high kids, plus replacing all the ones at the high school that needed it, plus all the charters in the area going 1:1 as well, means just my district in rural AZ bought probably 3000+ chromebooks in the last few months. Considering that so many districts around the country probably did the same thing, and may have had to do it without the starter pack at the high school to reduce the numbers a bit, and then families buying their own, and it’s no wonder demand has driven the going prices up.

Back to spring: we had, at best, a 35% engagement rate. Because of that, I have been very concerned about this school year. I *know* we have kids, seniors and others, who have not even bothered yet to log in, and we started Monday this week. On the other hand, all of our counselors and admin staff have absolutely had no time to do anything but answer student and parent emails and fix scheduling issues all week, and for the two weeks prior. Monday was a tsunami, but flow reduced from there, and I didn’t even bring my laptop home after work yesterday. Texts and emails still happen, but most of them are people I know personally, so it’s less, and even for some of them, I’ll let it go until Monday.

Our model: the elementaries and junior high are 100% online with teacher support. The high school offered students the choice of 100% online for the semester, or a hybrid that can go back and forth between part-time classroom, part-time virtual, to 100% virtual with one email. We started the semester on all virtual, and are waiting for the state and district to decide if we get to hold any on campus hybrid classes in September. If that happens, we will start whatever athletics we can manage with social distancing rules. Cross country and golf will get to play, football will probably get to start low contact practices. I don’t know how you play football or basketball with these restrictions, but they can probably come up with practice plans. Tennis should be okay to practice and play when it starts in spring, and maybe even do their normal fall prep work.

Parents are, the majority of them, very supportive of the school and their students in trying to make this all work. Some kids are going to thrive in this framework. Some are already struggling.

[Half Moon]

Back to spring: we had, at best, a 35% engagement rate.

School opened online a couple weeks back here. From what wife is seeing we're doing better than that so far but still not great. About 1/3 of her students are no shows.

District was driving her nuts in the ramp up to the year. Changing directions 180 degrees every two to three days, just thrash and contradiction the whole way, even up to the day before students came back. It's settled down now that things are committed but ramp up was NOT a case study in leadership.

[Duelist]

Forgot to say: our school busses have been fitted with Wifi routers and hotspots, and are being driven out to neighborhoods every morning and parked with the system going so that kids without internet at home can find a district WiFi connection from home. If a specific kid or house of kids notifies the district, they will make sure that a bus is parked in range of that specific house.

Homeless kids, and kids who need special services, or just a place to be during the day, are being brought on campus. Our district feeds hundreds and hundreds of kids for free every day, and has been all summer.

Out of the box solutions are becoming the norm. We have to change, we have to adapt how we conduct business. There isn’t another option.

[Wise_A]

My former employer seems determined to open September 8th.

Grade schoolers are daily. Fifth grades are being pushed to Middle School. Grades 5 and 6 are meeting daily, while 7 and 8 are going on alternating days. High schoolers are going on alternating days, IIRC. ~30% of previously-enrolled parents declined to use busing this year. Which brings me to my point--

--If your kid is going to school, I would take a good hard look at how exactly cars and buses are making drop-offs. If your district's numbers are anything like my district's numbers, opening and dismissal are going to be a shitshow unless there's separation between the bus loops and parent pickups. I think most districts will be alright, but I've seen some pretty messed-up layouts, both at very large, modern centralized schools, and older 1950s-era school-in-the-middle-of-town layouts.

If you don't have any risk factors at home, you might be better off putting the child on the bus over picking them up yourself. Students have a lower rate of injury or death on school buses compared to passenger cars anyway.