Op-ed: How COVID-19 can help us rethink the classrooms of tomorrow

Schools across the globe are closing their doors due to worries about the spread of COVID-19, affecting as many as 1 billion students. In Qatar, the majority of K-12 students have shifted to online learning to continue their studies.

The move to digital learning has brought inevitable disruption for local teachers, parents, policymakers, and Qatar’s 350,000 students. But it is also an opportunity to rethink how we teach and assess learning, as well as how we lead schools. As with other aspects of the economy and society, the health crisis is encouraging practitioners and decision-makers to consider the question of how to redesign learning and schools for the short- and long-term.

Schools in Qatar – both private and public –, have been making use of online teaching for several years. For instance, the private school my children attend, Qatar Academy Sidra, has regularly utilized platforms such as Raz-kids, Khan Academy, SeeSaw, Managebac, and Zoom. Public schools in Qatar, which have shifted entirely to online learning following their spring break, have used YouTube channels, and more recently Microsoft Teams and Learning Management System. Now these and other platforms will form the basis for student instruction in Qatar for the foreseeable future.

Home learning can be challenging for parents, schools, and learners. Finding the time and energy to support student schooling at home can be difficult for parents, particularly those who themselves are working from home. Parents may also find it difficult to navigate the massive number of online resources and disparate platforms used as learning tools.

Meanwhile, schools must handle challenges related to curriculum delivery and revamping content for different learning needs. Teachers require specialized training to deliver online lessons and to assess virtual learning development. Yet the sudden nature of the COVID-19 crisis has left little time for such preparation.

Finally, decision-makers must decide which home learning policies to introduce and when, while facing pressure from the media and community.

Despite these and other challenges, however, the need to reorganize schooling as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic presents a rare opportunity to reassess education models from the ground up – to rethink the goals and modes of learning required of our current generation of K-12 students. Introducing this type of learning will entail new responsibilities for parents, schools, and policymakers.

As an educator, researcher, and mother of five children, I too am experiencing the stress of the current situation first-hand. We must reflect on the type of learning that we need during this global pandemic. I am not suggesting adding new products or platforms, because the first days of transitioning to online learning is not a good time to try new products. I am suggesting that parents and educators need to set reasonable expectations for home learning, and to do that is to enable learners to produce content and be active in their education rather than receiving recorded information.

Teachers work together to design and implement rich learning experiences for students that balance screen time with creative hands-on experiences. This can be done by creating engagements that get students moving and thinking, then sharing on digital platforms. There is a positive side to this crisis: to move from the traditional function of providing information into the role of facilitating and guiding learners and avoiding stress and mental crisis for parents and learners.

The roles and responsibilities of the learning community – educators, parents, and students – are:

• Collaboration Great learning happens in groups. By working in groups through virtual spaces and co-creating, learners can strengthen their social and collaborative skills. Learning sessions need to be designed around cooperative learning, problem-solving and divergent thinking. Collaboration should be the central focus for this type of learning because great learning happens in groups.
  
  
• Learning Design: We need to introduce learning sessions that are designed to engage learners, through the use and creation of interactive tools. Each session can be structured through the provision of various interactive tasks, to fit specific concepts and learning goals. Students visualize, cooperate, communicate, go in-depth, and explore themes and concepts during every session.
  
  
• Parental Support: Parents have an important role to play. They need to create a realistic and easy to follow schedule: based on the child's age, school support, and the child's ability to manage his/her learning. For example, for my son, who is 10 years old, I will prioritize supporting him in literacy and numeracy at this period of transition to digital learning.
  
  
• Wellbeing: It is essential to support social and emotional learning more than ever during this time. With confusing media coverage about COVID-19 and conflicting perspectives, we need to not only take care of our wellbeing, but also our children's mental health. Of course, students need to maintain their studies, but there also needs to be time to relax, and have fun. I have taken the opportunity to play board games, sports meditate with my children, and try new recipes with my kids.
  
  
• Community support: Finally, we are all in this together. You are not alone in this journey. Communicate with other parents and share what works and what does not work for you. Reach out to your child's teachers and discuss expectations and concerns. Try some online learning resources and see what works for you and your children. Adults and young learners are facing a complicated and uncertain situation under COVID-19 crisis. This situation is undoubtedly exacerbating mental health issues and implications for learning. So, we need creativity, engagement, collaboration, and redesigning how we teach.

Technology is essential to this new learning reality, but keep in mind that it is just a tool. The real agents of learning are the learners themselves.
And perhaps this crisis will give us the time, space, and innovative mindset necessary to accelerate lasting transformation in our schools and education systems to better support and nurture student learning.

• Forthcoming articles from Dr Alfadala will focus on the work of schools, and the place of policymakers, in shaping the future of education beyond COVID-19.