ETHOS • FALL 2020
four presentations to international head of schools meetings about our online schooling, and about our reopening in May. Also, I made sure I strengthened our partnerships with higher education institutions, NGO’s, etc.. I was really pleased to hear from our accrediting body, the Middle States Association (MSA) that we were at the high end of what schools were doing and, in many cases, ahead. Finally, I was invited to moderate and speak on global panels where ACS Athens was highlighted as a leading institution. Meanwhile the changes kept coming and we kept pivoting. Nonetheless, my eye was on the goal and in making sure everyone was on the boat, but also that they were understanding and grappling with the internal chaos via my letters so that they could cope.
References Avgerinou, M.D. (2011). Visual scaffolding for action research training. In M.D. Avgerinou, P. Search, S. Chandler & N. Valanides (Eds.), Visual literacy in the 21st century: Trends, demands, and capacities. (pp. 29-32). Chicago, IL: IVLA. Avgerinou, M.D., & Gialamas, S.P. (2016). The i2Flex methodology: Definition, praxis, and conditions for success. In M.D. Avgerinou, & S.P. Gialamas (Eds.), Revolutionizing K-12 blended learning through the i2Flex classroom model (pp. 135-159). Hershey, PA: IGI Global. Avgerinou, M.D., & Moros, S.E. (2020). The 5-Phase process as a balancing act during times of disruption: Transitioning to virtual teaching at ACS Athens elementary school. In R.E., Ferdig, E., Baumgartner, R., Hartshorne, R., Kaplan-Rakowski, & C. Mouza (Eds.). Teaching, Technology, and Teacher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Stories from the Field (pp. 583-589). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE). Available at https://www.learntechlib. org/p/216903/ Bonk, C.J., Kirkley, J., Hara, N., & Dennen, V. (2001). Finding the instructor in post-secondary online learning: Pedagogical, social, managerial and technological locations. In J. Stephenson (Ed.), Teaching and learning online: Pedagogies for new technologies (pp. 76-97). London, UK: Kogan Page. Dede, C. (2020, March 27). Necessity is the father of transformation. Available at: https://silverliningforlearning.org/ necessity-is-the-father-of-transformation/ Hesse, M.B. (1983). The cognitive claims of metaphor. In J.P. Van Noppen (Ed.). Metaphor and Religion. Brussels: Vrije Universiteit. Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (2008). Metaphors we live by. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.Postman, N. (1996). The end of education. Redefining the value of school.Vintage: Random House. Seitz, J. (1998). Non-verbal metaphor: A review of theories and evidence. Genetic, Social, and General Psychology Monographs, 124(1), 95-119. Available at www.highbeam.com ■
COVID19 – Reflection Of Practices Undertaken In The Elementary School ESL Classes by Dr. Jenny Grigoropoulos, Elementary School ESL Faculty
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any changes have affected education globally in recent years; the most significant and massively altering one is the unfortunate pandemic of COVID19. Within a few hours, our entire educational institution moved K-12 classes online. Meanwhile, all educators were called upon to conduct synchronous and asynchronous instructional meetings with their students to deliver content in accordance with the curriculum and scope and sequence as per grade level and subject area. This situation found my students mature and ready to adapt their learning through our virtual classes. I was prepared to follow my educational methodologies and approaches, as both my students of higher grades and I were already familiarized with online learning through our projects and assignments based on the i2Flex instruction model. I found that fourth and fifth graders were more
