In times of great change & upheaval, it is hard to stop, watch & listen but often, this is when we discover something about ourselves & our world we would have missed. Every day is a PD day. #myPDtoday

It’s been a week like something from a science fiction story. The details are similar for many. The closing of schools, universities, stores, and eventually all non-essential services. Fear of hospitals not being able to handle the impending surge of sick yet some continue to ignore the pleas to stay home and isolate. It’s been like listening and watching something one could only imagine. We are facing the largest challenge in our modern times.
There were times this week as I sat reading and listening to different commentaries on the COVID19 virus that I wondered what it must have been like for others who lived during times of great upheaval and challenge. What it might have been like as their world began to change from daily routines to suddenly being thrust into a world of change, filled with anxiety and unknown. How did they experience the growing political tensions, the pointing of fingers and growing anger, the changes in peoples’ lives as society closed down, as fear began to set in. Did they have those who continued to discount the severity of what was happening? How did they manage without all the connection? Was it maybe better in some ways?
All this is still new to many of us even though in other parts of the world they have been living with this reality for months. As society shutdowns and business, education, medical, and other services shift to mobile and online to deal with the change, there is this surge to make changes. As I wrote earlier,
Unfortunately, too many are taking this opportunity to push their agendas, platforms, biases, and in some cases, their displeasure with the decisions that have been made. Yes, many of the situations will not be ideal for learning. Yes, there is going to be many obstacles as many teachers and schools aren’t prepared. Yes, there will be mistakes and a great deal of opportunity for "I told you so".
In a rush to shift and change, to get schools and learning online, people are looking to replicate school in the home with all sorts of schedules and different options for learning. Of creating schedules of ‘classes’ that children are to follow or ‘activities’ to do.
But it’s not the same.
It’s a different environment. There are different needs. It isn’t school.
That doesn’t mean there can’t be great learning opportunities but this is new territory. Yes there have been parents who have been home-schooling for decades. Yes we have had online learning and people, myself included, have been delivering online learning for years but this is new. It is the full scale, complete shift from a face-to-face environment to online. It is akin to taking all the personal forms of transportation off the road and having every single person take public transit. Yes it can be done BUT it will require some time to make changes. And the system that we have, which worked in the reality of the past, will not be fit for the reality of now.
Taking time to stop, watch, and listen is going to be an important step in this transition. Rushing to get things in place, to replicate what was taking place in schools doesn’t allow time to transition to this new reality. It’s not just a change in what people do, it’s figuring out how to combine home living with home learning. To create structure in a new way that doesn’t include socialization, school routines, and facilities and personnel. To find ways to create connections with curriculum — and to explore how curriculum might change.
The rush to avoid "losing the year" has the possibility to create even more stress and anxiety. We seem to be forgetting that all this is happening in a state of unprecedented changes which is requiring almost everyone to make changes to their lives. Children aren’t going to quit learning because they don’t have access to online programs, Zoom sessions, online reading tools or other sources of learning. In fact, it may help us to see just how much learning many children do outside of school with the tools that are available. It will definitely expose the huge gap in access to online and other resources for students with special needs and their families, people in poverty, and people who lack the resource of time. We will be asked to face these in ways we have not been asked.
Where I am from, our schools and education system is taking time, a full week, to stop, watch, and listen. I don’t know if it will be enough time but it does have us pause and take a step back. As I watch companies and districts all over rush to shift to online, I wonder if this is moving too fast. This isn’t moving a few students to a new way of learning. This is moving entire families to a new way of life! People are dealing with a myriad of changes which will cause all types of stress and anxiety. We do have time to make these changes. Instead of trying to recreate the old over again, maybe we need to pause — take a moment to see how we might create the new.
We have time to Stop, Watch and Listen. In fact, it could be exactly what we need to do.