HO_032620

6 | March 26, 2020 | the homer horizon news
homerhorizondaily.com
LTHS gets good response in early days of e-learning
Will O’Brien
Freelance Reporter
4
The classrooms of
Lockport Township High
School may be empty,
but its students and teachers
are still doing plenty
of learning as the school
community adapts to a
fully remote education experience.
The school’s last day of
normal operations was-
March 13, when Gov. J.B.
Pritzker ordered all Illinois
schools closed in response
to the outbreak of the CO-
VID-19 virus. Teachers
and students were allowed
inside Monday, March 16,
to collect books and other
materials but have since
followed District 205’s
emergency e-learning
plan, which is focused on
relearning and enhancing
lessons covered earlier in
the school year.
Lockport Township
has information on the e-
learning plan prominently
displayed on its www.lths.
org. Teachers, guidance
counselors and high school
staff are all available to
students and families with
questions.
Students are being
asked to be online every
school day, during which
they’ll receive assignments
from teachers via
email and Google Classroom.
Teachers are also
using tools like Hangouts
Meet, Google’s videoconferencing
program, to
carry out lessons.
Many of the school’s
teachers are already adept
at using such tools, said
Kate Fahey, an instructional
technology specialist
responsible for helping
teachers utilize technology.
Some were already
practicing the “flipped
Pictured is an empty classroom at Lockport Township High School. The school’s last day of normal operations was March 13. Teachers and
students have since followed an emergency e-learning program. Photo Submitted
classroom” teaching style,
in which students watch recorded
lectures for homework
at night and come
to class the following day
prepared to engage.
District 205 implemented
a 1:1 technology initiative
six years ago, meaning
all students are given a
laptop at the beginning of
the school year.
“It’s going well so far,”
Fahey said. “The first day
was a little hectic, but students
are attending and
showing up and we’re really
seeing that everyone
still wants to be engaged
in a face to face way.”
In addition to posting assignments
and holding office
hours, teachers are being
required to respond to
student and parent emails
within 24 hours.
The two-campus high
school began preparations
as the COVID situation
began to pick up steam,
quickly pulling together a
task force comprising administrators,
department
chairs and teachers to develop
the e-learning plan,
said Lorie Cristofaro, assistant
superintendent for
curriculum and instruction.
“We were in good shape,
having both the technology
we need and the capacity
to properly use the
tools,” Cristofaro said.
“The whole team was super-responsive
and have
really shown their commitment
to the students.”
As of Thursday, March
20, Lockport Township
had Monday, April 6, set
as its return date, though
district officials said the
date could certainly shift,
as could graduation.
“We can’t speculate on
the future but are actively
trying to keep our Porter
families informed to the
best of our ability in this
very challenging time,”
Janine Wheeler, the district’s
director of public
relations, said via email.
Lockport Township has
3,789 students and 445
staff. Though the district
has increasingly embraced
technology in recent years,
it did not have a full e-
learning program in place
prior to the COVID outbreak,
Fahey said.
The unprecedented
times, though uncertain,
are allowing teachers, students
and parents to see the
full possibilities of digital
tools, she said.
“That’s definitely the
silver lining,” she said.
“The teachers and the
students have risen to the
circumstances and are
making the best of it. So
much of teaching is about
building relationships, so
we’re working hard to help
teachers maintain them.”
The district’s online explanation
of the e-learning
program says the curriculum
will help students develop
skills that will come
in handy later, in college
and in their careers.
Cristofaro said the district
will continue to assess
the situation and adjust
as needed so the rest of
the school year can go as
smoothly as possible.
“We’re doing everything
we can to best respond to
what all our stakeholders
are saying,” she said. “Just
like everyone else, we’ll
continue discussing, planning
and thinking for the
future.”