Returning to School Under Level 2: My journey at the moment

The question that has been asked recently is, what will teaching and learning look like on returning to school? Have our students gained independence that transfers back to school? How do we teach our learners? In what format? Everyone knows that we can't go back to what it was before lockdown. Do we replicate our successful moments online back at school? I know that I have learnt a lot about online teaching and learning. My colleagues have had to work hard at it just like me and from observation of their teaching online, they have a natural 'knick knack' or 'pitter patter' talk which keeps the online audience fixated. I have had a support teacher observe me and vice versa for them. We debrief on what worked, the high and low parts, which students were engaged in the work. One teacher has taught and the other watched the chat box for any relevant comments and passed them on to the teacher.

 The implications from this, is that we have developed our own protocols for online learning that suited our teaching delivery and our online learners. We took bits and pieces from teachers on the internet and Youtube. We started in the first week teaching with a passive audience and then as they(learners) and we the teachers became more comfortable we started to transition to use an interactive approach as we'd discovered that our learners weren't being engaged. We up skilled ourselves very quickly from mediocre looking Google slides to ones that involved students being able to interact with the slides and explain their learning at the same time. Google Jamboard has been a great help especially in maths in division exercises and for students who loved seeing other students work. DMIC maths suits this app as students can explain their learning for all to see.

 Our basic core skills have come from Manaiakalani and our Te Arahura Cluster in Ōtautahi. Teachers and students at Rāwhiti School have responded well and have learnt as we went along. Our learners have really surprised us with their drive and creativity to their blogs, to their work and for the 'challenges' that have been gained from online. They have kept themselves busy and in the first few weeks some became 'slaves' to their laptop as they were trying to draw a fine line or balance between how much needs to be done. Our basic safety messages were to take breaks and that not all work had to be finished in one day and that it was okay not to do any work and spend time with their families. 

The one thing that stood out for me was balance in personal and work life especially from home. I realised that sustainability was the order of the day if I was to come out of the 'lockdown' mentally and physically intact. Seeing my colleagues and students each day put things more into perspective and made me think 'He waka eke noa', yes we are all in this together and possibly have improved our personal and work life in the process.