By Matthew Weidler
Irvington’s hybrid schedule is well underway after having a two-week online period in September to get the new school year rolling. Students and teachers have certainly encountered obstacles along the way but how is the school community adapting to this new normal?
Last spring, students adjusted from in-person to online learning and by most accounts it was a rocky few months to end the school year. Now students are getting used to blended learning, where they attend in-person two days a week and learn remotely the other three, in order to split each grade into two cohorts.
So with all these potential struggles how has the first few weeks of the hybrid going? Aside from the cold temperature in the building and some early technology issues on day one, it seems to already be going well.
When asked how the hybrid schedule was going Trevor Stern said, “I think the schedule is working well and it is an effective way of learning while keeping everyone safe but a one-week-on/one-week-off schedule might have worked better.”
Most students anticipated that learning in the class in a small group would be easier, but the question was whether or not the online kids could get enough attention and focus enough to also be learning.
“It is a lot to juggle — online classes and in-person,” said English teacher Mr. Williams. “Teachers are having to change the way we do things in the classroom so it doesn’t feel like we are excluding one group or the other. I’ve been thankful for the patience and assistance of students in adjusting to the hybrid.”
As we get used to the hybrid schedule there will need to be many adjustments made on the fly. The hybrid model will be something students and teachers will need to continue to adapt and adjust to in these unprecedented times.
