Remote Learning Guidelines

Dear Students and Parents: We wanted to reach out and provide some guidance about remote learning during this recently announced additional time to our closure, as Governor Baker has closed all schools until at least May 4. When we first left on March 13, following guidance from the Commissioner of Education, we anticipated the three week closure would suffice, and our learning resources, at the time, were considered to be a method by which we would provide continuity of learning and prevent regression in the interim period away from UHS. We shared that there is simply no replacement for the in-class magic that happens with teachers every day; we wanted to provide a variety of ways for students to engage with us over the course of that time, while maintaining connections. However, our latest direction is that we are now going to be out longer, and we now must transition from the “provision of learning resources” without any true measure of accountability to a more specific schedule that will have some required assignments for students to complete, while continuing to focus on the connection between students, staff, and school. As we pilot remote learning over these next three weeks, we hope that we will be returning to school at the end of this time away. If not, we will have laid the groundwork for a lengthier closure, the continuation of learning, and more required work that goes beyond optional resources. In short, students now have work to do in order to ensure that they make progress. For the next three weeks, the weeks of April 6, 13 and 27, our intended schedule from UHS will be:

• Monday: Teachers will post all work/practice for the week by 10am, as well as the target skills through which students will be assessed, using our schoolwide learning expectations. Although we are aiming for 1-2 hours per course per week, teachers may provide resources or extension activities for students who are interested in moving beyond the assigned work. Students should check Google Classroom for updates. For example, an AP course may provide students with a practice prompt, review from earlier in the year, and a practice test - with the expectation one is “required” and the other(s) something for students to address as time permits. Parents will receive a Google Classroom update by 10:30 a.m. on Monday. We’ve asked teachers to post work at that date/time so that we do not overwhelm your inboxes throughout the week. Teachers will also link their assignments to a master document for the week that will update on the district website. Parents who wish to receive an email with the assignment for the week may reach out at any time via email to the teacher.
• Tuesday and Wednesday - Students should complete the work/practice that was posted on Monday for each of their classes. On these days, teachers will schedule block-specific meetings, tutorials, or check-ins with their students. To avoid overlapping with other teachers/courses, we’ve set up a schedule for teachers to hold virtual meetings with their classes. (see chart below). Teachers will, during these next few weeks, share with students in advance the goals of those online meetings, which will serve as both a check-in and opportunity to work on whatever assignment is posted for the week.
• Thursday - Students should continue completing the work/practice that was posted on Monday for each of their classes and reach out to their teachers should they have questions and/or need assistance. Teachers will be using this day for professional collaboration with each other and can also host individual or small group meetings with students who request.
• Friday - Students should “turn in” their work from the week by the end of the day on Friday. Teachers will provide feedback about their work and keep track of the completion of student work in iPass so that students and parents can check on their progress - at this point, we are assessing against the schoolwide rubrics, which will help us gauge pass/fail standards as we move forward. Throughout the week, teachers will be available for virtual office hours. They will notify students of when and “where” this is taking place. Additionally, we are linking remote learning norms here and attaching them to the email being sent home. A visual look at the schedule for students is:
  
  We realize this will have an impact on assessment and accountability. Collectively, our goal is for all students to put forth an honest effort toward completing assignments that will focus more on skills than new content, and for those assignments that encourage the introduction of new content to be handled with patience. Most importantly, the goal is for students and teachers, together, to use this opportunity to keep making progress and to stay engaged with learning. We also plan to assess this schedule after three weeks to see if it is something we should continue, or if revisions are needed - or if we are, hopefully, back to school. At that point, we will have more guidance on what the quarter and semester’s grading scales will look like. There will not be any expectation of students being online for six or seven hours every day, trying to replicate the school schedule using online means. Our estimation is that students will be provided about an hour or two of work per course, but that some students may request additional resources or work in specific disciplines. All students are required to submit work on a weekly basis for each class. That said, we understand that family situations are varied and that many of our students have different responsibilities, so we urge students and parents to be in touch with teachers, find some time to complete school work, participate in class meetings, and communicate with us if there are any challenges for which support is needed. That communication enables us to be flexible on a case-by-case basis. We will be meeting regularly as a whole faculty and within departments to ensure that we are meeting the needs of students. Students who have support from special education liaisons and support personnel will have additional outreach from those individuals, and we will also have our school counselors at the ready to deal with any other challenges that may occur. All teachers will be available via email each day during school hours, and, by request, there can be additional sessions scheduled to work with individual teachers. We are still awaiting an update on MCAS from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The grade 8 and 10 ELA tests have already been preempted, and we will notify you of any updates that may come our way. Finally, we realize that this has perhaps the most significant impact on our seniors. As I shared last week in our Town Hall meeting, we remain as committed as possible to providing as many of the normal senior events as possible. To hear the seniors’ thoughts and questions, we will be scheduling a virtual meeting with the seniors, which we hope to conduct this week. We will be in touch with them directly. We are all committed to supporting all of you during these difficult times. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can offer any assistance. Sincerely, Mr. Rubin