Beginning a new school year is exciting—but this year has become increasingly uncertain with the increase in COVID-19’s Delta variant. Teachers and staff will require predictability and support as they continue to navigate the uncertainty.
Your Advisory Program After an Emergency School Closure
In an earlier issue of Ideas & Perspectives, we discussed how to maintain your advisory program during a school closure. The following article provides advice on how to handle your program after such an event.
A Positive Faculty Culture Can Help Prevent Teacher Burnout
The impact of COVID-19 feels relentless. Whether your school returned to campus this fall, is conducting learning online, or is using a combination of the two, stress is imminent. Teachers can especially suffer from this stress as they balance new methodologies for instruction with their own family concerns. You must be able to recognize when a teacher may be reaching a level of burnout.
Your Advisory Program During an Emergency School Closure
When your school closes for a sustained period during an emergency, as School Head or Division Head, you must make many prudent programmatic and other adaptations to serve your school community and its strategic interests. The continuity of your middle and upper school advisory program may well be interrupted, put on hold as you focus on fundamental academic and other needs deemed more important than advisory. As an educator of adolescents, do not neglect the distinctive integrative benefit advisory provides to students’ departmentalized academic lives.
What to Evaluate When Choosing a Learning Management System
There are many LMS available, each with its own features and problems. Here’s what you should know about choosing the right LMS for your school’s needs.
Mergers: Creating Excellent and Efficient Leadership Teams
Previously in I&P, we discussed the potential benefits of a merger between two or more schools. Should you take this route, as Board Chair and School Head, you will have the ultimate responsibility in selecting the leaders as the schools merge.
Scheduling Concerns for the 2020–21 School Year
Distance learning requires a modified schedule to meet the unique needs of remote education—you cannot simply mirror your on-campus schedule for distance learning at home. This article provides some insight on how to plan your schedule for the coming year.
Helping Your Teachers Avoid Burnout During the COVID-19 Crisis
As a school leader, you must understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on your teachers. From transitioning quickly to distance learning to the unknowns of the 2020–21 school year, burnout is possible (if not probable). You should know what to watch for, and how to respond if you see that your teaching staff needs additional support.
Revising Curriculum and Assessment As COVID-19 Continues
The crisis-driven transition to distance learning was a major disruption in the 2020–21 school year. However, it also presented an opportunity to reimagine traditional education. If you haven’t already, consider redesigning your academic program to subscribe to a student-centered, outcome-based education model, rather than delivering a standards-based education.
How Should Schools Assess Students Within a Blended Learning Environment?
We anticipate that many schools will use a combination of online learning and on-campus instruction—blended learning—for the 2021–22 school year. If your school is among those considering blended learning, what grading system will you use? We outline our suggestions below.