Back to school is usually met with eager anticipation, however, this year, students, parents and teachers alike are experiencing both trepidation and excitement as students face the classroom once more.
At the start of this school year, the surge in COVID 19 cases in Dominica prevented students from going back to school in the traditional manner; instead, they were engaged in online learning. All things considered; the decision was made to have students recommence the face-to-face delivery as of Monday 7th March, 2022.
The news came as a surprise to many who felt that it was too sudden, since time was needed to prepare themselves and their children adequately. Others felt that it was long overdue and gladly welcomed the move to once again experience a sense of ‘normalcy’.
Many took to social media to vent their concerns, others shared theirs privately. One parent, declared, “Pray tell, how is that going to work out, when I have nowhere to leave the younger one who goes for only three days and I have to go to work for 8.” This was just one of the concerns of parents with young children.
Of course, teachers too, had their misgivings about the resumption of face-to-face classes. A teacher from the Pierre Charles Secondary, stated that, “Evidently online learning has been a challenge and many parents were concerned about what was going on at home… I believe the notice for the resumption of face to face was not done correctly… parents were shocked; teachers were also shocked.”
While some students were apprehensive about going back to the classroom because of their fear of catching the dreaded COVID 19, others were anxious to get to it. A student from the Portsmouth Secondary, believes that, “It would have been better if we attended school earlier in the term, ‘cause as a fifth former, it would help me get back on track…but I believe going back to school will help me become more focused.”
Since students will be back at school on a shift basis, teachers will be employing the blended learning approach in order to carry out instruction. This means that there are days that students will be face-to- face while other days that they will be using the online medium. A closer look at the effectiveness of this blended approach will ensue as the school term unravels.
