During the COVID-19 crisis, schools have had to transition to online instruction. Although this is simple in more urban areas, in central Pennsylvania it is easier said than done.
“This has been a big challenge for us. You don’t have to go too far out of Clearfield or Lawrence Township to have (Internet) service availability drop off,” according to Clearfield School District Superintendent Terry Struble.
Some homes that do have service still have dial-up. In addition, in many families with one or more children and parents working from home, students may be competing for the Wi-Fi connection, he noted.
Having the right equipment was another hurdle. Clearfield Schools gave 70 to 80 laptops to the seventh- and eighth-graders. (Senior High students already have laptops supplied to them.)
Students without Internet availability were encouraged to go to the Joseph & Elizabeth Shaw Public Library or the Bigler YMCA where they can use the Wi-Fi in the parking lot to download or submit their work.
They are giving only two assignments a week that can be submitted via computer or at drop boxes at the school.
Even with all these options, “the reality is that in some families this is not going to happen,” Struble said.
With this in mind, the school has changed their grading to an “S” for participating and if you don’t, you are not graded. They considered using a pass or fail system, but then decided it wasn’t fair to the children to say they failed when it was a matter of lack of access.
The final grades for students will be based on their grades from the first three nine-week grading periods. If the 7th- to 12th-graders participate, the satisfactory grade will be averaged with the others as 100, which will help struggling kids to pass.
“The grading is designed not to hurt students, but it can help them.”
In the Curwensville School District, computers were issued to students in fifth to 12th grades.
“We are trying to do computer-based learning completely,” said Ron Matchock, superintendent of the Curwensville Area School District.
Students can access the school’s Wi-Fi from their parking lot where they can download their work and then come back later to submit it.
But they are also providing hard copy packets of information that are delivered at bus stops each Monday on the two-hour delay bus schedule.
Students from Kindergarten to fourth grade are receiving enrichment packets of instruction that they do not need to return. Their teachers are communicating with the students through Zoom, through cell phone apps and on the phone.
“We reach out and interact as much as we can,” Matchock said. Their grading system has also changed. “We are not assigning grades because of the limitations.”
They are using a simple complete, not complete system and the grade point averages will be based on the first three grading periods.
If this stretches out into the new school year, Matchock said they will need to get computers into the hands of more students and set up more hot spots for Wi-Fi.
“Our goal is to have a Wi-Fi hot spot in each township,” he said.
Matchock said right now they can’t even buy mobile hot spots because they are needed all across the world. Their district does have some on back order.
Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District Superintendent Dr. Gregg Paladina said students in sixth through 12th grades already have laptops issued to them but the elementary kids do not.
So, they are also delivering packets to students in elementary school at their bus stops every two weeks.
The high school students are working through an online curriculum with some teachers using Zoom instruction.
Paladina said the challenges with remote learning in this area “are real” because some don’t have any broadband access and may not be able to get to a place with Wi-Fi.
As with the other districts, P-O is only issuing a participation grade for the same reasons that not everyone has Internet access. Their final grades will also be determined by their work during the first three grading periods.
“In the future, they will have to get access to the Internet,” Paladina said.
Currently they are working on applying for grants that could help with this limitation.
In the Moshannon Valley Area School District, Superintendent Dr. John Zesiger was a bit prepared for this.
“We had positioned ourselves to have a lot of online curriculum, so we did this right away,” said Zesiger.
Students stay in contact with their teachers through Google Meets using a phone or computer.
Those without computers are able to interact with their teachers through a phone number. They receive packets of information and can follow along on the phone with students who are watching the session online.
Special Education students have separate meetings with their teachers twice a week.
Teachers are also available by phone for students needing help.
Because parents may have more than one child, the teaching sessions are “spaced out” so they do not overlap, he said.
Grading is simply “participated” or “no grade.” No one is failing here either but they are rewarded for participating. Their final average will be the average of the first three grading periods.
Mo Valley received help in the form of a Continuity of Education grant, which purchased Chrome books and mobile hot spots.
They are looking to set up Wi-Fi at local businesses or community buildings. Currently one of the spots is at the school’s bus garage.
This situation has “definitely had some challenges.” Fifteen percent of the students do not have reliable Internet service and some had no devices to access it, Zesiger said.
In DuBois, Superintendent Wendy Benton said they have “provided approximately 290 hotspots and 1,500 Chromebooks to students in need to support our continuity of education plan through planned instruction.”
For their grading, the first three quarters will be 28 percent each of their final grade with the last grading period only accounting for 16 percent.
In addition to providing instruction, schools are tasked with supplying food to students and that has continued.
Matchock said Curwensville Schools are providing breakfast and lunches delivered at the bus stops on Monday with supplies for two days, Wednesday with supplies for two days and Fridays for three days.
Initially they tried providing food at the school, but not all families could get there.
“We knew families that needed food were not getting it,” he said. The buses are now reaching more families.
The P-O Schools have had a big helping hand from the Mo Valley YMCA who “just jumped in and did it,” according to Paladina.
The Mo Valley YMCA’s Anti-Hunger Program is feeding kids at 24 stops in Centre and Clearfield counties.
“They have a great organization and volunteers,” said Paladina thanking them and their organizer Mel Curtis.
Struble said the school food service people in Clearfield have been preparing breakfast and lunch for 500 kids a day and served 10,000 students in April.
The food service workers are dedicated to completing their mission of serving the children, he said.
Their distribution efforts have been assisted by the Clearfield Salvation Army.
During this challenging time, Struble wanted everyone to know they are “thankful for everyone in Clearfield for support from the parents, students and the teachers. It has been phenomenal.”
“We don’t see it all the time, but people are making face masks, helping with meal distributions and checking on neighbors.
“When we need to rise to the level of caring for others, we do.”