End of Term 1 - an abrupt ending and uncertain future.

Day 4: End of Term 1 - an abrupt ending and uncertain future.

Term 1 Holidays has been brought forward to March 30 - April 14. Originally scheduled for April 9th (week 11), the school holidays were shifted to week 10 by MOE as a response to COVID 19. School closure was in effect in week 9.

An abrupt ending to Term 1, everything has taken a huge halt and I have had to adapt (literally overnight) to a 'new normal'. Online learning - an uncharted ocean that I had never really opened up to - I have now become accustomed too.

Google Classrooms is a space that I have ventured into. My senior students have not posted any comments - that is OK, I am new to this and I do not expect them to be comfortable with it as I am still trying to find my feet with this. However I have found that this is a great and easy app to use. Like social media, this acts as both a information hub but also a forum for student and educator to comment and interact. This is yet to happen (I am hopeful) but what I am enjoying about this is that I am able to share different articles and readings, post questions, post my recommendations on what they need to do with assessments (the list goes on) and it is there for the students.

My Google sites  has been a place where I refer my students to for course program content, assessment criteria .... however it is quite a formal setting and I feel that I use it more than they do. I like the Google Classroom arena - it is less traditional in the way it functions and it is more inclusive and interactive (well the hope is that my students and I can interact online with this!). I look forward to using this and more efficiently in my teaching practice even more so once we are given the clear to return to work.

In the meantime, I am going to continue to try and make this 'new normal' a meaningful experience for all of my students. Both staff and students have had to adapt to this complete change in routine overnight. A nation in lock down, this abrupt shift in lifestyle can ignite all levels of anxiety, doubt and discomfort.I thought about my students today and how many of my senior students are working to support their families, that the last thing on their mind is doing assessments and that their priority is to ensure that their families are taken of. A somber and humbling thought.  I hope that my students and colleagues can use this time, now that we are on holiday, to rest, regroup, re-connect and reflect. Term 1 2020 is a term that I will never forget and I am hoping that term 2 will bring some type of normalcy, familiarity, routine and structure in what will be a 'new normal' for everyone.