Day 13 - Escolástica says "Farewell"
Sunday, April 5, 2020
Dear Reader
Thank you for following the experiences of Aunt Escolástica and her nephews adjusting to ‘continuing education’ / ‘continuous learning’ / ‘home learning’. Thank you for your support and encouragement over the past two weeks. I hope you got as much from it as I did.
I won’t be going on with this journal. This entry is the last. Several reasons, good ones, have brought this on. Here are a couple:
1. We now have a wealth of wisdom, information and resources to aid us with the transition. Escolástica, just one small voice amongst many, will be drowned out.
2. As such, the conceit gets harder to maintain. Like a tv series that has gone on one season too long, the narrative is likely to devolve into soap opera. Not a bad thing in itself, but it’s not what I want for my alter-ego, nor her wards.
My general observation to this point is that we are working it out – kids and teachers, families and schools. I am so impressed with the intensity and determination, the flexibility and consideration, on all sides. The preparedness of kids and community to follow the lead of their schools and teachers, knowing full well that they walk paths barely marked. The courage and commitment of schools and teachers taking those steps.
There are individuals and institutions finding it harder to transition, lacking the support they need. Take the opportunity to bring them closer, when and where you can.
To summarise the advice Escolastica has distilled from multiple sources in the preceding weeks, not necessarily the right advice for everyone, and to be updated and outdated as the transition deepens:
- Start slow
- Keep things simple
- Instil routines that stand in for the school routines. (As the transition continues, the routines of school life will return in new forms.)
- Try different things and different ways and different approaches.
- Have fun.
- If something is not working, drop it. Come back to it later.
- Leverage all those wonderful resources people have generously provided.
- Limit expectations and avoid comparisons. Instead, share what you see working well, in your own orbit and that of others.
- Ensure that kids have time when they can be free from distraction (and are not socially available online). On the other hand,
- Encourage your kids to keep their social lives alive. Find proxies for their ‘normal’ social engagements – the playground, the sleep-overs, the parties, the sports teams.
- If you need help, if your children need help, if someone you know needs help, refer to one of the many support services available
- Exercise. Kids need to exercise. Make it part of the daily routine.
It seems to me the children most at risk in this time of virus are those in their final year of school. These children have been working deliberately and diligently towards an outcome that might seem to have not just slipped momentarily from their grasp, but to have vanished in the haze. We are obliged to re-assure them of the future they deserve, that this won’t be the ‘year that missed out’.
Educators too are working to find an equitable and effective outcome for this cohort of final year students. Reassuring them and keeping them on track and moving through a long tunnel, towards a light re-located around an unexpected bend.
Spare a thought for them.
If you want to go on with this conversation, I’m not that hard to find.
Take it easy, keep smiling, and stay well.
Dear Reader
Thank you for following the experiences of Aunt Escolástica and her nephews adjusting to ‘continuing education’ / ‘continuous learning’ / ‘home learning’. Thank you for your support and encouragement over the past two weeks. I hope you got as much from it as I did.
I won’t be going on with this journal. This entry is the last. Several reasons, good ones, have brought this on. Here are a couple:
1. We now have a wealth of wisdom, information and resources to aid us with the transition. Escolástica, just one small voice amongst many, will be drowned out.
2. As such, the conceit gets harder to maintain. Like a tv series that has gone on one season too long, the narrative is likely to devolve into soap opera. Not a bad thing in itself, but it’s not what I want for my alter-ego, nor her wards.
My general observation to this point is that we are working it out – kids and teachers, families and schools. I am so impressed with the intensity and determination, the flexibility and consideration, on all sides. The preparedness of kids and community to follow the lead of their schools and teachers, knowing full well that they walk paths barely marked. The courage and commitment of schools and teachers taking those steps.
There are individuals and institutions finding it harder to transition, lacking the support they need. Take the opportunity to bring them closer, when and where you can.
To summarise the advice Escolastica has distilled from multiple sources in the preceding weeks, not necessarily the right advice for everyone, and to be updated and outdated as the transition deepens:
- Start slow
- Keep things simple
- Instil routines that stand in for the school routines. (As the transition continues, the routines of school life will return in new forms.)
- Try different things and different ways and different approaches.
- Have fun.
- If something is not working, drop it. Come back to it later.
- Leverage all those wonderful resources people have generously provided.
- Limit expectations and avoid comparisons. Instead, share what you see working well, in your own orbit and that of others.
- Ensure that kids have time when they can be free from distraction (and are not socially available online). On the other hand,
- Encourage your kids to keep their social lives alive. Find proxies for their ‘normal’ social engagements – the playground, the sleep-overs, the parties, the sports teams.
- If you need help, if your children need help, if someone you know needs help, refer to one of the many support services available
- Exercise. Kids need to exercise. Make it part of the daily routine.
It seems to me the children most at risk in this time of virus are those in their final year of school. These children have been working deliberately and diligently towards an outcome that might seem to have not just slipped momentarily from their grasp, but to have vanished in the haze. We are obliged to re-assure them of the future they deserve, that this won’t be the ‘year that missed out’.
Educators too are working to find an equitable and effective outcome for this cohort of final year students. Reassuring them and keeping them on track and moving through a long tunnel, towards a light re-located around an unexpected bend.
Spare a thought for them.
If you want to go on with this conversation, I’m not that hard to find.
Take it easy, keep smiling, and stay well.
Hey aunt escolastica, thanks for sharing your experiences, observations, advice and trial and tribulations 😌 Seems your kids are lucky _ lots of fun, love and learning. We too are experimenting and so far it's ok .. better than I expected...a bit more nudging needed and more opportunities to talk about schoolworrk topics than in past. Enjoyed reading your blog and provided me with an occasional nudge to try some alternative ways of doing things xx
ReplyDeleteBtw, the above was from Jacqui K 😌
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