I. Introduction

In March, OESIS published Sanje Ratnavale’s insightful

COVID SURVEY REPORT

150+ Schools Responding from 35 States

2020

and prescient report, COVID Survey Report 2020: The Pivot Ahead for Independent Schools. It is the result of

The Pivot Ahead for Independent Schools

surveying 150 schools about their short-and long-term plans and developing a prescription for school leaders based on an uncertain future. In the Ten Point OESIS Plan, Sanje makes it

clear that future events should not turn schools upside down,

By Sanje Ratnavale President OESIS Network and specific institutional and programmatic changes will allow our schools to navigate the unexpected without severe disruption. Part II of this initiative report provides a more

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detailed explanation and analysis of the key pedagogies and programs that Sanje recommends. The target audiences for this entire report are academic leaders and department chairs, and the key analyses will speak to those in a position to make programmatic decisions. There are additional materials directed to department chairs and classroom teachers. Those sections will be boxed in light blue so they can be easily identified.

During the past several months, OESIS has interviewed teachers and administrators at independent schools to find out how they handled school closings and their strategies for moving forward with online learning this fall. The responses have been as varied as one might expect in our “independent” community, and they suggest some important questions about how we approach student learning and what we value. In some ways, it seems unfair to ask schools to step back and reimagine learning when most of their constituents are feeling anxious about losing some form of continuity or normalcy. Addressing the short-term issues of keeping the school “open” are of the highest priority. Still, the COVID-19 crisis provides an opportunity to reassess why we exist and what’s really important. We’re seeing that the online world turns the face-to-face world upside down by making time a variable and learning a constant (from Michael Horn’s post on the Christensen Institute blog). What if we did the same with face-to-face instruction? Might we suggest that true project-based learning is substantially asynchronous in nature, and that is why it fits so well in an online setting? It is a perfect example of time as a variable and learning as a constant. This report speaks to the reasons why we should design our programs and utilize pedagogies that make the transition between classroom and online virtually seamless.

We now know these past few months represent the largest launch of online programs in history. What have we seen to date that might support a longer-term seamless transition between face-to-face and online learning?

Increased use of the LMS: While some LMS platforms have added videoconferencing tools, their emphasis is on asynchronous learning, a delivery better suited for the online environment and reflective of more student-directed learning.

New policies on synchronous and asynchronous delivery of online learning: A few schools have directed that academic work will be asynchronous and other in-class or out-of-class meetings with students will be synchronous. The goal is to maintain realtime video contact with students while freeing them to do their academic work on their own schedule (time as a variable).

Example: One Pre-K Montessori class has a daily routine that opens with a 30-minute Zoom meeting of students and teachers. For 15 minutes, the students are encouraged to catch up with each other, laugh, and enjoy themselves. During the final 15 minutes, the teachers explain what the kids will be learning that day and how they might accomplish their goals. Parents are encouraged to join the second segment. Again, the time as a constant piece was for group socialization and planning. The time as a variable or learning piece occurs when it works best for the kids and their families. Going forward, the need to plan for additional openings and closings will be a good chance to identify those programs and pedagogies such as PBL, SEL, and CBE that will make the transitions more seamless. Note that OESIS is not arguing that the above programs

should be implemented because of the current crisis. We have always advocated for these programs in independent schools. The crisis provides still another reason for moving forward. Our overall recommendation is in the interest of being responsive to the needs of learners and the opportunity to distinguish innovative schools in a very competitive education environment.

The structure of this report is to walk you through the case for adopting programs and pedagogies that render the delivery mechanisms to your students a seamless transition and a co-dependent options (both delivery mechanisms operating simultaneously: blended learning). Section II is an Executive Overview, summarizing the key points in this report. Section III looks at common misunderstandings about new forms of learning in an effort to address some traditional objections to rethinking school. Section IV addresses why PBL, SEL, and CBE are not impacted by delivery modes, making them essential practices and programs for schools of the future and cornerstones of the school community. While the current strain of COVID-19 will end at some point in the foreseeable future, these three practices and programs guarantee that the student learning experience will progressively improve. Section V briefly imagines what an independent school might look like in 10 years.