NEENAH, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Teachers and students are preparing to go back to school this week.
But the way teaching and learning this school year looks is sure to be anything but normal.
Desks and seats pushed to the side and an empty classroom, with just a teacher, a laptop and some new additions you wouldn’t normally see.
“My classroom looks a little different this year, obviously,” said Coolidge Elementary School 5th grade teacher Kelsey Noskowiak tells FOX 11.
“I have my smartboard area setup, I have an iPad stand to be able to record lessons that way, a microphone, so that kids can hear me, my computer so yeah, that kind of stuff.”
That’ll now be a common scene at schools in the Neenah School District that has opted for a hybrid approach, offering both online and in-person education.
Some teachers in the district are going to be teaching online, but they still have to report to their buildings and teach from inside their classrooms.
“So that the kids feel like they’re a part of that classroom community, and they feel like they’re at school, even though they’re learning from home,” Noskowiak said. “It’s gonna make that atmosphere feel like it’s more of a school environment for them, instead of me sitting in my living room, and recording that way!”
This time around, instead of teachers stocking up on school supplies, like pencils and paper, many are investing in new technology to try to enhance the virtual learning experience.
“I’ll be doing a lot of recording of lessons, things that way, screen sharing via Zoom, if I need to, so having that visual for the kids is going to be super, super important,” said Noskowiak.
Neenah Schools gave parents the choice between in-person learning or virtual learning.
About 80% chose in-person, but the district still had to make some changes to accommodate the other 20%.
“We’re treating the virtual like it’s almost a school of its own,” said communications manager for the Neenah Joint School District Jim Strick.
“It has its own principal, the kids are totally separate, there’s no back forth or anything like that, and they aren’t running concurrently, either.”
But whether they’re teaching online in an empty room, or instructing before a class of students, teachers on both sides are facing the same challenge – getting to know their new learners.
It’s why some, like Noskowiak, have prepared by getting a jumpstart on that already.
“I setup live Zoom meetings with the families last week. I ask the kids to share a little bit about themselves, and we talk a little bit about what this year is going to look like, and just talk about how we’re going to be able to make the best of it!”
The Neenah Joint School District will be back in session, starting today.
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