How is your program or adult school addressing instruction during the pandemic right now?

Hello Program Management colleagues,

Many adult foundational (basic) skills programs and schools want to know what other programs and schools are doing now. Can you share with us what your program or school is doing?

Are you:

  • Teaching entirely at a distance (remotely)?
  • Teaching entirely in-person as you have done before the pandemic?
  • Using a "pandemic hybrid" model in which students attend in-person, for example two days a week, and remotely and asynchronously the other days? To meet social distancing needs, in this model students in a class are grouped, with each group coming in-person on different days of the week, e.g. a Monday-Wednesday group, a Tuesday-Thursday group, and a (double session) Friday group.
  • Using a Flex (HyoerFlex or BlendFlex) model in which students can choose whether or not, and if so how often, to attend class in-person, and where the online option is live streamed synchronously from the classroom?
  • Using a different model?

Specifically, what are you doing, and how is it working?

Do you know of a state or national database of the models that adult foundational skills programs or schools are using? Would such a database be useful to you?  For example, for K-12 see the School District Responses to COVID-19 Closures database .

Does this K-12 database offer you any ideas that you think are worth trying with your program or school?

David J. Rosen

Comments

Since the beginning of the California (Los Angeles County) lock-down, Lynwood Community Adult School has offered classes remotely via video conferencing.  For the first 3 months, we were all winging it!  During the back to school professional development, the PD topics were focused on supporting teachers through more remote instruction.  In addition, our district provided expectations for synchronous and asynchronous instructional time.

It was difficult for everyone at the beginning, but as it became clear that distance learning would last into another school year, I believe that our instructors embraced (or at least adapted) to the new instructional environment.

I am not yet aware of a state or national database (other that the example shared).  I believe it would be helpful to see what other adult schools are doing.  Even if there are technology or local agency limitations, there is always something to learn from other agencies.