Pick your poison: Concurrent learning

Pick your poison: Concurrent learning

During the COVID-19 pandemic schools have resulted in different ways of learning. One of these methods is concurrent learning.

For Fairfax County Public Schools, concurrent is splitting people into three groups:

Group A will be going to school Tuesday and Wednesday and do Thursday and Friday online.

Group B will be going Thursday and Friday and doing Tuesday and Wednesday online. 

Group C will be doing complete online. 

The teachers will use Monday for planning while students will be independently working.

Other counties/states that have switched to this model have teachers, students and parents confused and struggling. Many think it will be difficult for teachers to take attendance and answer questions for kids who are online. 

The arrival of winter raises questions about weather: What will the School Board do if it snows while we are doing concurrent learning? Will everybody go online or will they cancel school completely?

Students can choose whether or not they want to go into school or continue virtually. If they choose to continue virtual then they will have the full four days on BlackBoard Collaborate Ultra.

On November 18, Fairfax County delayed their pilot schools because of a surge in COVID-19 cases. The county plans to resume using the concurrent model in the new year.