Local school divisions in Medicine Hat are announcing plans to provide online learning programs alongside in-class instruction in the rapidly approaching school year.--NEWS PHOTO COLLIN GALLANT
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
Medicine Hat’s two school divisions are readying online-learning programs for students whose parents are weighing options ahead of an Aug. 31 return to class.
Pupils across Alberta have been home since mid-March when pandemic protocols barred large indoor gatherings.
For public school students, the return could be via an online learning “At home HUB,” which will be essentially considered a specific school-like unit by the board.
All general students in Kindergarten to Grade 9 who sign up will be grouped together by class with specific teachers and administrators guiding lessons and the workload.
That setup, said Medicine Hat Public School Division superintendent Mark Davidson, allows both HUB and in-class staff to concentrate on particular challenges in the coming year, without having to manage both protocols.
“The expectation is that we teach the programs of study,” said Davidson, whose office has discussed the potential of stay-at-home learning this fall in person with concerned parents and also surveyed all parents and staff this summer.
Concerns, he said, often included uncertainty about health and safety, but also the level of instruction and how to weigh the benefits and risks.
“We know that we can use the technology well to connect to families and students, but we needed to mirror the structures that exist in schools – that sort of rhythm and regular feedback, for kids to collaborate with each other,” said Davidson. “So we began discussing the notion of building (an online) school … that really mirrors a traditional school day.”
The Medicine Catholic Board is planning a program and requirements to keep its “at-home” students in contact with their specific teachers at schools throughout the division.
Supt. Dwayne Zarichny told the News a strong majority of parents favour a return to in-person instruction, but others will be accommodated.
“We recognize there are cases where students are immunocompromised or parents may not be initially comfortable sending children to school,” said Zarichny. “In those circumstances, at-home learning will be available.”
That will include same addition instructional resources, but the goal is to keep students linked with their usual teachers and classmates at what would be their usual school.
“We want students to be as up-to-date as possible when they eventually return,” said Zarichny. “It won’t be a situation like the spring, where students only had a few hours of work for the week. It will be as normal as possible.”
MHCBE updated parents on Wednesday and more information will be made available about specific school operations on Aug. 21. Parents should contact specific schools regarding the at-home option.
Medicine Hat Public will run registration for At Home Hub from Aug. 15 to 24 so staff can be arranged.
Students will be able to join the program after that date, but can only return to traditional school at four points throughout the year so staffing can be redeployed.
According to a newsletter sent to parents this week, students in the HUB would have a homeroom teacher, classes scheduled for a 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. day, recorded lessons, daily assignments and access to specialized staff dedicated only to the online student population.
“We’re building a program where kids are not tied to the device all day, but are able to return to their teacher who is available to them,” said Davidson.
In-school teachers will manage at-home learning programs for French immersion due to the specialization level. The division is now interviewing its teachers to staff the program.
Both divisions say that minimal staffing changes will be required, though some instructional staff may be added.
That accounts not only for changes in student population, but also teachers that have health conditions and may choose to take leaves of absence this year.
In late July, Alberta Education Minister Adriana LaGrange announced that a return to in-class instruction across the province had been selected as one of three scenarios this fall as students returned after schools were closed last March.
