Local Schools Begin Live Online Classes

On Monday, May 4, Wallingford Public Schools (WPS) made the switch to live online classes in addition to implementing a new pass/fail grading system. These changes came a day before Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont’s announcement to officially close all public schools in Connecticut for the rest of the academic year.

Before the switch to live classes and the pass/fail grading system, students were assigned classwork and homework through Google Classroom and received grades on each assignment through an application called PowerSchool. Now, virtual classes are being held over Google Meet, with each class expected to meet for approximately 20 to 30 minutes each week. This switch gives students the opportunity to interact with their teachers and peers during school hours, as opposed to a complete reliance on asynchronous work.

Mrs. Dana Blasczyk, a fourth-grade teacher at Pond Hill Elementary School, said, “We are required to hold only two live sessions as our morning meetings or afternoon check-ins. We are not required to teach a full lesson during these times. They are not mandatory for students to attend either, but rather provide an opportunity for students to see the teachers’ faces, connect with their peers, and ask any questions that they may have.”

With the switch to live classes, teachers have had to quickly restructure their classes to fit a live, online learning environment. Mrs. Blasczyk said, “Teaching [online] is much different than that in the classroom. We have had to teach and familiarize ourselves with many online tools in order to present our lessons to our students.”

Although the new system of distance learning has been beneficial for some, these changes have affected students differently based on their personal learning style. Both students and teachers have experienced obstacles presented by the newly-implemented virtual learning environment.

Alyssa Pallatto, a junior at Lyman Hall High School, said, “I do not find the live classes beneficial. Some classes have only a few kids that show up, and the class contains the same information as a video they could have posted. The recorded video lectures or lessons are helpful because you can go back and replay them.”

In regards to the new pass/fail grading system, Pallatto said, “I am very upset about [pass/fail]. Junior year, obviously, is the last year to really boost or maintain grades before applying to college. I am doing the same amount of work, if not more, for fewer grades.”

Mr. George Giacco, an eighth-grade teacher at Dag Hammarskjold Middle School, also said that the pass/fail grading system has negatively affected the structure of his class. “Before pass/fail, students were responding better and doing better work,” he said. “They seem to lack interest in the grade now, which directly affects lesson presentation.” Without grades, students are becoming less motivated to learn, placing a heavy burden on the teachers. 

Mr. Giacco added, “Some students [are] opting to fail one or two lessons because the whole trimester will be pass/fail.”

Still, WPS teachers are trying their best to accommodate this new system of learning. Aside from helping students learn, teachers are also trying to keep students’ spirits high as they are isolated from their peers. 

“Teachers miss [their students] very much,” said Mrs. Blasczyk. “[But] we will all be in our classrooms, shaking hands, smiling at one another, and enjoying real connection before we know it.”

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