NAIS - Trend Lines: Communicating School Value When Learning Is Online

This past spring, schools adapted as quickly as they could to truly unprecedented circumstances. Closing physical campuses and rapidly moving teachers, students, and parents to an online learning environment was perhaps the greatest challenge that many heads of school had ever faced. Many parents expressed gratitude as schools pivoted, solidified logistics, and achieved a steady state of functioning. School leaders, however, still grappled with one challenging group: parents who struggled to reconcile online learning with their expectations of what a school should be.

Some of this, of course, was born of sheer disappointment and anxiety. Adapting to the new reality has been difficult for everyone in school communities. But this undercurrent points to something bigger—a strategic challenge and opportunity for school leaders to clarify and reiterate in a more meaningful way how their school is delivering on its mission. And as schools have started the new school year looking different than ever before—many in a hybrid mode, a pedagogical design that allows for maximum flexibility between online and on-campus instruction—it’s especially critical to deliver this message.

The outer trappings of teaching and learning may have changed this fall, but the core of what independent schools do is still the same: create transformative growth for students. That means school leaders need to direct attention to schools’ essential work in spite of the change in modality. Parents and students must not only set aside their expectations about what “school” looks like, but also understand and expect that “school” itself will vary depending on the day, the campus, and the community.

Most parents remember learning in teacher-centered classrooms, and that model often defines their understanding of rigor and challenge. Parents forget that there was, even in their experience, a lot of independent learning time in the classroom—whether reading a chapter book or trying out a hard math equation for the first time. Schools are increasingly implementing learner-driven pedagogies. Online learning illuminates this gap in understanding between parents and educators.

School leaders need to consistently articulate the specific ways in which their online learning components deliver on the value proposition of their schools throughout the school year. Large group video calls in which a teacher talks while a group of students listen “looks like” the stereotypical school, which is part of the reason so many parents call for synchronous learning. School leaders need to explain that learning takes many forms; when students are deeply immersed in a teacher-designed activity, receive feedback from their teacher, and grow intellectually, that’s teaching, whether or not the teacher and student are in “class” together.

Key Messages

So how can school leaders communicate that “we’re still us” while explaining what school looks like this fall? How can they communicate their school’s value proposition regardless of the teaching and learning model they’ve adopted?

The essential theme for communication about “school” in 2020–2021: Lead with safety, then start and end with “why.”

Don’t wait for a final product to communicate your process. Share your planning with parents and be transparent about what is still unknown. You lose control of the narrative when you say nothing. Instead, explain the scenarios you are preparing for and how the school experience and teacher-student connection will be fostered in each one. And make it clear that iteration will persist throughout the year; when we’re transparent about our process, we model adaptability for our community.

Affirm that the primary focus is always on the safety and well-being of the community. You cannot say this too many times. Highlight and link to the key information, resources, and outside health and safety experts you’re using to inform research- and data-driven decisions. Make clear how often you will update the school community, and provide access to previous communications.

Just as classrooms are designed differently across grade levels, hybrid learning models need to be responsive to the developmental needs of learners. Supporting students’ emotional health and well-being is of paramount importance; in the pandemic, social and emotional well-being have become more precarious. This year, we need to put Maslow’s hierarchy before Bloom’s taxonomy—students and teachers need security and connection to learn and grow.

In describing the academic program for the fall, start with mission and values. Then make a point of linking your mission to your programmatic decisions. Are you starting the school year with one division on campus? Use your mission to explain why. Are you putting cameras in classrooms? Use your values to explain why or why not. Your families chose your school for a reason. They need to see that the mission, values, ethos, and culture remain the same, even as the mode of school is different.

Keep relationships at the center of learning on and off campus. Parents choose to keep their children at your school because of the relationships the kids have with the teachers who nurture, challenge, and inspire them every day. These same relationships are crucial in an online environment. In both contexts, the relationship between student and teacher is the primary indicator of a student’s success in class. This principle holds true particularly in helping parents understand how the student-teacher relationship is central to the learning process. Share how your school is fostering and strengthening the ties that allow students to grow and learn in the most developmentally appropriate ways.

Explain, and then live, your school’s commitment to equity in your hybrid program. The COVID-19 pandemic has magnified inequities at every level of our society, and that’s been reflected in the microcosms of our schools. It’s essential to articulate that your school is committed to ensuring every student can access the full range of resources and assignments for hybrid learning, and that the program is sensitive to the wide range of families, contexts, and communities you draw from. Because circumstances may change swiftly, all families need to know what services and support you offer and whom they should contact for assistance. Your hybrid learning program is not effective if it can’t be accessed by every student.

When explaining what learning looks like, bring parents into the “why” and “how” of your work. Parents are your partners in new ways, particularly with the youngest learners, and school programs have become increasingly transparent to them. When parents don’t understand how assignments achieve objectives and outcomes, they may make inaccurate judgments about the school’s quality, competency, and value. Are there gaps in your curriculum that will become more apparent or subject to scrutiny? For example, has the recent widespread public acknowledgment of racial injustice inspired your school to make changes in the curriculum or other programs? Acknowledge that you’re addressing systemic issues in making such changes, share your objectives and information about your decision-making process, and communicate how you plan to sustain the work.

Schools must candidly acknowledge that there are challenges and benefits to learning online, just as there are on campus. Introverts often thrive in online discussions; students who flourish in the social context of the classroom may struggle to find motivation on their own. But just as in the classroom, students need multiple avenues for participation and engagement and grow best when myriad perspectives are present.

You Are Still You

Sharing that your value proposition remains in place can be a challenge when parents and school leaders are operating on a different set of assumptions about how—and what—children should learn.

If this kind of communication feels daunting, remember that you have skills to draw on. As a school leader, you’ve informed the school community about programmatic changes before (albeit probably not on this scale). You likely have changed how math is taught or updated the health curriculum. Rely on the expertise you have on campus and seek outside guidance if you need that perspective. Families want to understand that this is still the school they chose for their child. You have the expertise, empathy, and vision to reassure them that even when learning looks different, the heart of your school is still strong. Schools that not only make commitments, but deliver on them will not only serve their students best, but also be ready for the future that lies ahead.