The COVID-19 pandemic has changed things around the world. Most kids around the country are either not going to school or they’re trying to use e-learning experiences to keep learning. It’s great that so many kids have access to e-learning, but these distanced learners might struggle in an environment that they aren’t familiar with. How do you approach grading kids during these times and should you be more lenient than usual?
Some Kids Will Struggle
It’s important to understand that some kids will struggle with e-learning for various reasons. There will be kids that find it hard to concentrate on schoolwork while they’re at home. Not everyone has a quiet home environment where they can focus on their studies. This can lead to issues and it’s good to be understanding of complications.
Also, some kids will struggle to access e-learning experiences due to issues with technology. For example, some kids might not have WiFi at home or they might have older computers that don’t run things as smoothly as they would like to. This could lead to inconsistent experiences between different students and you have to try to understand this. It’s necessary to be accommodating to students who are having issues during this trying time.
Helping Kids with Feedback
Feedback is still going to be an important facet of helping kids to learn. If you want kids to be able to grow and improve, then feedback is a necessary component. Most school districts are telling teachers to grade things like normal while being more lenient than usual. Kids might need more time for assignments than normal and you might have to work with them to ensure that things are getting done.
Grades Are a Touchy Subject Right Now
Grades are a touchy subject right now in many ways and it’s unclear what grades will appear on transcripts. Is it fair to grade a student poorly during this pandemic when there are extenuating circumstances? The truth is that many school districts are still discussing these matters and a consensus has not been reached. It’s likely that the topic of grading will be a hot-button issue for quite some time as this pandemic stretches out.