CDC Recommendation
The CDC has recommended “remote learning” be put in place in the event that schools close to contain the spread of COVID-19. While this may sound reasonable, (after all, kids are “on their phones” all the time), this is fantasy filled with Science Fiction surrounded by dreams. The reality, as one of my professors once told me, is that learning is messy.
Remote Learning
Let’s start with “remote learning.” What does this really mean? Students “video conferencing”? Fully utilizing a Learning Management System (LMS)? Students completing “worksheets” digitally instead of paper copies?
Technology in Education
If “remote learning” were the best option, we would have fully deployed it already. Technology certainly has a role in education. Technology takes years to fully develop and vet. Teachers need skills in utilizing technology.
Technology is not the saving force that many propose. Ask Mark Zuckerberg about the $100 million that he spent on education. Ask the many Silicon Valley parents who eschew technology for their kids.
Students
Students are real people. Not widgets. Not statistics. Not plots on a number line. They are real. They are messy. They are different. They have emotions. They have needs. Some of the them have broadband access and powerful computers at home. Some of them have rate-limited cell phone plans. Some access the internet on a four-inch, broken phone screen. Students may know how to access TikTok. They may be Instagram proficient. However, they may not know how to leverage technology to learn.
Teachers
Teachers are really all over the map in terms of technology skills. Elementary teachers may not understand how to teach their students how to use email proficiently. I have heard of a teacher call a Helpdesk because they didn’t know how to bookmark their Daily Agenda (which was done in Google Slides); this same teacher teaches Computer Applications to High School students. There is a perception that “new” (read younger, freshly graduated from college) teachers are “good” with technology. The problem is that they are frequenty “good” like kids; they aren’t afraid to push buttons on a phone or computer, but they don’t really understand how to leverage the tools for learning. This is not all that surprising. These new teachers are really just learning how to truly teach.
Tools
If the guidance on “remote learning” really means effective use of technology to teach, we’ve got a long way to go. There are some schools that are already touting Google Classroom as their “remote learning” tool. There is nothing wrong with Google Classroom. It is a fine tool. Generally, it is liked by teachers because it is easy to understand. Google Classroom largely replicates what schooling has done for the last 100 years. It is really good at “handing out” worksheets and collecting and organizing those. (Full disclosure, Google Classroom has tried to implement some other limited capablities. It can provide teachers with opportunities to provide more accurate and useful feedback. Most of those features are rarely used.) Again, there is nothing wrong with Google Classroom. It has some nice features. In the case of closing schools, it is certainly better than nothing.
We do, however, have much more powerful tools (like Moodle) that could provide students with more online learning opportunities. This takes training though. Online learning requires professional staff to develop new skills, new ways of thinking. That is not easy or quick.
Summary
One of my favorite professors told me “learning is messy”. The longer I taught, the more I realized just how right he was/is. Learning is messy. That is not a bad thing. It just is. Learning is messy. Online learning can’t replace a good teacher. Technology can help good teachers reach and push students to heights that were previously unreachable. Learning is messy. A simple suggestion to utilize “remote learning” isn’t going to change that. That call could be a futile political positioning. That call could be a wake-up call for education to start preparing for the future. Learning is messy. Not just for kids. Learning is messy for all of us.