Dear Clairbourn Families,
We are almost done with our first week of remote learning, and I couldn’t be more proud of the dedicated, flexible, and professional teachers we have here at Clairbourn. They spent their Spring Breaks preparing for this unexpected change in their teaching methodology.
The teachers have all tried to anticipate the challenges and have plans in place for handling the potential challenges if they arise. They have learned new software, practiced their delivery methods, and planned for a whole new way of working. They are AMAZING!
Gratefully, we have the resources of several online schools who have given us a huge amount of their knowledge so we can learn from their experiences. One of the things they tell us is, it can take three weeks to find the right pacing, rhythm, and style for any class. So, we ask for your patience, feedback, and sense of humor when possible.
We have also learned that it is important for students to have a blend of synchronous (live class – everyone together) and asynchronous (recorded class – self-paced) lessons during each week. We will fine tune the balance of these for each class in the next couple of weeks.
The other thing we learned is that we need to have a great deal of empathy for the parents who are suddenly thrust into a role of parent/teacher/tech support/spouse/remote-employee. Just as we know it is impossible to fully replicate school when we are in this situation, it is also impossible for parents to be all things to all people. Your work is likely full-time which is now combined with non-stop parenting and family responsibilities.
I know that I only have 24 hours in my day and so do you. So make the choices that are right for the situation you are in. If you have a scheduled conference call for work at the same moment as your preschooler is supposed to be on-line, you have to make a choice. We want you to make the choice that is right for you and to release yourself from any guilt you may be tempted to feel. We are all doing the very best we can, given the circumstances, and we can be proud of that.
The last piece of advice that I have been given is to plan for the possibility of ending the year in a remote format. We can certainly hope for a return to campus this year, but we should plan for the remote learning to continue through June. This certainly is not our desire, but the health and safety of our students and families is of utmost importance to us.
So as we go through this uncharted territory together, I go back to one of my favorite phrases: The difference between an ordeal and an adventure is your attitude. So let’s make the best of our adventure and embrace the new challenges.
Remember, we are all Cougars – Creating Scholars and Leaders with Heart!
Dr. Amy Patzlaff
Head of School