Is remote learning a COVID fatality?

Has the pandemic killed remote learning?

The initial pivot to remote learning in 2020 did not go well. The rapidity of the instructional switch alone made it unlikely that this would be a seamless transition. However, the surprise was in learning how many logistical problems were involved in its implementation.

Were teachers properly trained on delivering remote instruction? Was there a reliable platform to deliver these services? Did students have the hardware necessary to receive the instruction? How would working parents monitor and manage the learning from home?

Yet, the only question that needs to be answered now is what have school districts done to fix it.

Eighteen months later, there was optimism for a 2021-2022 school year. In-school learning would once again become the full-time norm. Remote learning would become a part of pandemic history. That was all pretty much true until the school year started. Now, the rising positivity rate for COVID-19 has resulted in the unexpected cry from some for an immediate transition back to remote learning. However, only a handful of Long Island districts selected that option. But is it time once again to take remote leaning off the shelf and prepare for implementation?

Remote learning maintains the needed and critical consistency of instruction so important to the student learning process. Whatever happens with the positivity rate of the omicron variant, the likelihood of new variants to follow, or some other situations from snowstorms to hurricanes to impassable roads, districts need to have a remote plan in place.

To do that, districts must first start by answering the aforementioned questions. Addressing the social-emotional concerns of students also is essential. Teachers and parents alike should establish a consistent routine for learning remotely. This helps students in managing the possible stress and anxiety of transitioning to remote.

Additionally, students need to be heard. Encourage them to share their feelings or have them keep a "Feelings Journal." Teachers should develop activities where groups of students work together remotely to cooperatively complete activities.

Since that first rollout of remote learning, some parents have begun returning to work. This is where it is essential for parents and teachers to discuss a flexible schedule of instruction with time as a variable. Independent work could be assigned absent the parent, with new work presented in an alternative but suitable format (video) when the parent is home. Another option might be to designate a caregiver (family/friend) to monitor the at-home instruction when the parent is not available.

School districts are in no hurry to implement remote learning. Remote learning is costly. Home instruction requires more support, not less. This includes counseling and mental health services, tutoring, and other academic intervention services. These additional personnel services are expensive. Labor on Long Island is not cheap. Keeping schools open safely is fiscally advantageous.

The next tangible concern is the February recess, especially with students returning from vacations in regions with high positivity rates. The only option for school districts is to prepare for effective remote learning.

Well, there is one more option, an unpopular one but perhaps the best one: Cancel the February recess and require students to remain in school.

Philip S. Cicero is a retired superintendent of Lynbrook Public Schools.