Back to school after the lockdown: tips for teachers
PREPARING THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR WITH C3 MICRO-CLOUD
In most of the countries, schools are being asked to open their doors again. But going back to school after lockdown is an experience none of us have had to go through before and it can be intimidating. Students’ experiences of the lockdown may have been very different: for some, it will mostly have been a safe and enjoyable time but for others, challenging or traumatic. For that reason, some of your students may feel now anxious or worried and you, as a teacher, have an opportunity to play a big part in childrens’ lives and help them adjust to the ‘new normal’.
A new school year is always a new beginning. With the return to school comes the return to new routines and certainly, this year, that will take time to adjust to. It can be also a stressful season for you: you must plan the curriculum for the semester and find the best resources to support your curriculum and students throughout the semester. Maybe this year it will be necessary an extra effort to discover new learning methods for more dynamic and interactive classes, so your students be focus and engaged. But remember that this is also an exciting time and another opportunity to truly make a difference in your students’ world in ways we can’t even imagine!
We will share with you some tips that will help you enhance your back to school season.
Get ready for the uncertainty: Over the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has transformed our lives and education was one of the most affected sectors. The lockdown has forced schools to quickly come up with solutions how to continue the learning process through technology but all those were not familiar with technological tools in their classrooms felt many challenges. For that reason get ready – and get your students ready – to use technology daily in your classes so that if homeschooling is needed again, the classes continue as close as possible to normal. If you don’t have an upstream internet connection in your classroom, you can present the C3 Micro-Cloud to your school administration. The C3 Micro-Cloud is a self-contained, cloud-enabled environment that allows the provisioning of content, resources, and management to local students (and teachers) even if they do not always have an upstream connection to the Internet. Content, in the form of texts and other resources, can be centrally curated in the C3 Cloud Control portal by those responsible for curriculum, and distributed to any authorized C3 Micro-Cloud, regardless of where it is, whenever a network link becomes available.
Promote independent research: Encourage your students to take responsibility of maximizing their own learning potential. When they do independent research on a topic they feel smarter, more motivated, and that allows a better retention of knowledge.
Use rich learning content to increase students’ engagement: You can use podcasts or learning videos in place of some reading material to break up some monotony; Khan Academy videos are always a valuable option; or you can always create your own videos and upload them to the C3 Micro-Cloud. There are also many educational games that allow students to apply what was learned in the classroom. You can find pHet Simulations on your C3 Micro-Cloud – your students will get motivated by challenging each other!
Customize the learning experience for each student: By having a wide range of learning materials (videos, podcasts, simulations, e-books, quizzes) you can differentiate the learning methods of teaching according to students unique needs, promoting flexibility and differentiation. Some of your students are more visual learners, others will learn better with learning games and quizzes… So use technology to adopt what results better with each one and you will see your students more motivated then ever!
Work smarter, not harder: Each C3 Micro-Cloud is pre-loaded with an easy to use Learning Management System that provides a way to do class planning. It has several capabilities, such as planning lessons, giving out assignments, tracking results, as well as organizing and serving contents. You can also have acess to applications such as Moodle Portal, with different courses and a calendar to schedule exames or events. Together, these features can really save time and give focus for what really matters in the leararning process – your students!
With the C3 Micro-Cloud, there is no reason not to leverage technology for better results, and a better future. And when the going gets tough, remind yourself that at the end of the day, it’s all about helping students learn and grow. Have a great school year!