Tri-County News

Minnesota schools prepare for distance learning


By Jean Doran Matua, Editor

Since Minnesota Governor Tim Walz announced that all pre-K-12 schools in the state would be closed from March 18-27, teachers and staff have been busy preparing to enter a new frontier of education: distance learning.

Families of these students will have heard by now from their schools and, possibly, from their teachers. Arrangements have been made for providing lunches for students: EV-W offers sack lunch pickup at four locations, and delivery for those beyond those pickup points; Kimball has arranged delivery of lunches.

Both schools have ChromeBooks that are normally used during school. Loan arrangements are being put together to provide ChromeBooks to students who don’t have computers or devices at home that will facilitate distance learning. There will be provision for those families without Internet access as well; this includes homework packets on paper rather than by computer.

Again, this information will be coming to each family from the schools themselves.

Both schools have had to adapt their daycare facilities, also on the order of the Governor, to provide daytime care for school-aged children of designated essential workers (healthcare workers, first-responders, and this group now includes grocery clerks). This generally applies to children from age 3-12. Details will come from each school.

Our teachers and school staff have had eight working days to prepare for a whole new way of teaching for them. It takes a lot more preparation for a “distance” lesson than it does for an in-class one. Those staff with experience doing this have been helpful to those for whom this is all new. They are dedicated to making distance learning work well for all involved.

We don’t know how long this will be needed; it could be weeks, or it could be fore the remainder of the school year. So far, the dates of the last day of school around the state have not been changed. Testing and assessments may be adjusted, and will be based on actual instruction time given (i.e., starting March 30). It is too early to make decisions about things like prom and graduation.

High school sports in Minnesota are on hold until March 30 as well, with no practices allowed during this time, and there are to be no scrimmages or competitive meets until April 6 at the earliest. This likely will continue to evolve.

Patience is called for by all parties as everyone works through the challenges ahead.

Both Arvig and Vibrant (Meeker Coop) have special offers for families in their service areas wanting home Internet for their students’ distance learning.

Arvig: (888) 221-0550
www.arvig.com
Ask for home options for your distance learning students.

Vibrant: (320) 693-3231
www.vibrantbroadband.com
FREE 3 months broadband internet, free standard installation to support e-learning

Check with your child’s school for the latest information, and with remaining questions you may have about how distance learning is going to work for your family. Both schools have special starting pages for COVID-19 and distance learning.

Eden Valley-Watkins Schools
tel. (320) 453-2900
web: evw.k12.mn.us

Kimball Area Schools
tel. (320) 398-7700
web: kimball.k12.mn.us

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