5 ways to bridge the gap between in-person and online learning

Before the pandemic hit, our district was rocking right along and getting ready to go on spring break. Like many other districts around the country, we never went back to school after March 13.

We had just four days to transition to online learning, help our families through the transition, and also provide a sense of normalcy for our students. We immediately started food deliveries, getting devices to students who didn’t have them, and helping to connect the 2,000 (out of a total of 14,000) families that didn’t have Wi-Fi access.

In retrospect, I’d say we did a pretty good job during the transition period, which spilled over into April. We learned a lot during that period and then came back to school in the fall. At that point, 63 percent of the student body restarted face-to-face learning and 37 percent remained online. We gave parents the option between the two, and today about 72 percent of our students are back on campus.

5 success tips for districts

With about 27 percent of our student body learning online, we’ve had to make some adjustments to accommodate our more diverse learning styles. Here’s how we’re bridging the gap between online learning and in-class learning during the pandemic.