Dear Administrators, Teachers, Parents, and Students:
Please don’t panic and overwhelm yourself with all of this digital/distance learning. This is a whole new ballgame for most of us and we’re all adapting the best way we know how.
Administrators, please remember that teachers are doing the best they can. Not all teachers are tech savvy and that’s ok. Don’t expect all teachers to fully embrace 20 different learning platforms while utilizing 50 different free educational resources. Remember that teachers miss their students and students miss their teachers. It’s your job as a leader in the building to empathize and simplify this online/distance learning process and ease the minds of teachers while keeping everyone from being overwhelmed with educational duties.
Teachers, please know that what you are doing is just fine. Your main job is to check in with your kiddos and parents and let them know that everything will be ok. It’s not important that every page in the packet gets completed. It’s not important that students and parents spend all day looking at all of the resources you’ve provided. Communicate with admin, parents, students, and NTI designee often, but be careful to not overwhelm them and yourself.
Parents, please know that school administrators and teachers are here for you. We know you are doing the best you can. We also know that internet-ready devices are not always available and that lots of you are still working a full time job. Please don’t overwhelm yourself with all of this NTI work. If you’re overwhelmed and stressed, so are your kids. Watching a movie or playing a game without the distraction of a computer or phone can be just as beneficial as anything in an NTI packet or any link posted to Google Classroom. Your main job is to take care of yourself and love on your kids while ensuring them everything will be ok.
Students, please don’t stress yourself out over all of this NTI work. Just between you and me, it’s probably not going to be graded anyway. The purpose of it is to keep you learning and to keep you active. Please don’t spend all day on technology and don’t worry about getting absolutely everything completed. Help out around the house and enjoy time with your guardians and siblings. You are in the middle of a moment in history that will not soon be forgotten.
To recap, administrators should comfort their teachers and students’ parents; teachers should comfort their students and students’ parents; parents should take care of themselves and comfort their kids; and students should help around the house and do the best they can with their NTI work.
Hope this helps.
This post was originally published on Travis Marcum’s site, MyKillerBlog.