Bellevue School District (BSD) Superintendent Dr. Ivan Duran and other district leaders hosted an online forum to answer some submitted questions from families about the future of education during the COVID-19 pandemic on March 19.
With schools closed until at least April 24, the Bellevue School District is looking into different ways to keep kids learning while also remaining safe.
“These are remarkable times for our schools, our community and for our nation,” Duran said. “I know that I speak for all Bellevue School employees when I say that we miss seeing our students and families in our buildings.”
Duran said the district is focused on finding new ways to teach students in response to the pandemic.
“Today we are all learners,” Duran said during the forum. “Our staff, our students, our families and our entire community. We are all learning a new way of life that we have never faced before.”
During the forum, deputy superintendent Eva Collins said teachers have been involved in learning how to provide learning opportunities to kids during the school closures.
Collins said teachers are working to be creative so students don’t end up spending hours everyday in front of screens doing schoolwork.
“We’re learning as we go, and we’re going to be revising as we go,” Collins said. “You’ll probably see changes week to week and (families) will have opportunities to give us feedback as well.”
Up until this point, learning has been optional for students, but Collins said they eventually want to get to the point where kids are expected to participate.
According to the BSD website, families can request laptops and wireless hotspots from the BSD technology department. The request form is available on the BSD website.
While assignments aren’t being graded at this time, Collins said BSD teachers are planning on giving feedback on some assignments.
If a student is struggling with online learning, Collins said there will be opportunities for them to get help from teachers during the week.
Parents looking to learn more about the offered learning opportunities and other services can visit the BSD website at www.bsd405.org.
