22 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY MAY 18-24, 2023 www.montereycountyweekly.com cent of third- through sixth-graders were proficient in English, the same as district-wide. In math, SCVA is 5-percent behind the district average, at 15.6 percent compared to 20.4 percent. AVA doesn’t have test results yet since it is in its first school year, but Franzell says the academy’s teaching approach is different from the other 12 schools in the Alisal district—it’s more project-based learning. “If we’re not engaging with students with what they’re wondering and curious about, we’re doing them a disservice by just teaching what the curriculum is putting in front of us,” he says. Even proponents of virtual learning voice concerns about a need for human interaction. Parents say that when their kids transition from in-person to virtual learning they miss their friends, but eventually, they adapt to their new environment. And they note that conditions in 2023 are different than in 2020; during shelter-in-place, contact was mostly limited to one’s household. Now, kids can meet up with friends after-school and attend events. Virtual learning now is more of a hybrid simply because the world is more open. Deneen Guss, Monterey County superintendent of schools, says the pandemic was an eye-opener for parents who found some silver linings worth keeping. “Everyone has realized that there are options, and parents and kids and everyone in this world need options—in how you access your academic program, or even the doctor,” she says. Some parents of virtual students say their children have found social contact sometimes even more meaningful than pre-pandemic. Ali says during shelter-in-place, her kids missed their friends, but once they reunited, they told her, “We don’t really have anything in common anymore.” Now she takes her children to the Salinas Aquatic Center or the park where they interact with other kids. De La Mora says there are regular gatherings. “We reach out to other parents and arrange play dates,” she says. “I don’t ever remember having anything like that in the actual school setting.” Some parents worry that kids spend too much time in front of a screen, but Núñez counters: “If we are going to talk about the future, most jobs are in front of a computer.” Franzell sees virtual classrooms as the future: “Our model is very much based on 21st-century skills,” he says. “[Students’] questions and wonders and connections to their prior knowledge is what’s driving instruction. It’s very much like how scientists do their work.” With big changes, he sees this direction as one worth continuing to invest in: “The world is shifting and changing, especially with things like AI and technology. How do we use that for good?” For some families and students— those with special needs, or who were not excelling in a traditional classroom—virtual learning may indeed be the future. But Guss believes that even as virtual learning models proliferate at the college and graduate level, the needs of K-12 students are different. “College-level students more and more tend to want to take online classes,” she says. “It either works for their schedule, or they have the convenience of being able to take their classes from home, and they save money on transportation.” For younger students, who are “still building those social and emotional connections,” Guss says human interaction is “critical to our development.” And while online education at all grade levels is increasing, Guss doubts K-12 classrooms will move fully online. More than three decades ago, she remembers hearing a presentation in which the speaker predicted all education would be online. “That was the prediction 30 years ago and as you can see that didn’t happen,” Guss says. “Yes, it is an option. It’s available, but it’s not always the most preferred option by all individuals. “Is it the way of the future? I don’t know. It’s always going to come back to what is the need of the learner.” “WE’VE BEEN TEACHING THE SAME WAY FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS. WE NEED TO CHANGE IT.” THROW YOUR FOOD SCRAPS AND YARD WASTE IN THE GREEN CART. If It Grows, It Goes! Recycling food scraps can protect our community. Learn more at: Obtenga más información en: svswa.org/residential/foodscraps Reciclar las sobras de comida puede proteger a nuestra comunidad. ¡Si crece, al bote verde va! Donate your extra items from California State University, Monterey Bay (CSUMB) move-out to Goodwill Central Coast at our donation stations on campus from May 8 through May 23. HELP YOUR COMMUNITY & THE ENVIRONMENT DURING DORM MOVE OUT SEASON!
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