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Orangeville educators adapting to new school protocols

October 5, 2020   ·   0 Comments

By Paula Brown

The students and staff are in face masks, they’re physically distanced, some are learning over computers. 

The 2020 school year. Pat Hamilton, Principal at Orangeville District Secondary School (ODSS) says, is not the same and is in no way normal. The local high school’s staff have had to adapt. 

“We’ve learned a lot about adaption and the most important thing about teaching is we teach kids – we don’t machines. We teach people. It’s about connection and relationships,” said Hamilton. “That’s been a huge thing, how do you, in a virtual situation, keep your connections with kids? Our staff are really learning, how do I do that?” 

Staff and students opting for in-class learning, made the return to the classroom at the local high schools in Orangeville through a staggered entry starting Sept. 8. It was the first time that staff and students have been together in the schools, since the COVID-19 pandemic closed them back in March. 

“It was good to be able to come back, it was nice to be around people again,” said Deidre Wilson, Westside Secondary School Principal.

Scott Jordan is an English teacher at ODSS, and says that the time away was the longest that he has gone without being in front of students in his over 20 year career. 

“It was like running into an old friend you haven’t seen in a few years, parts of it were familiar and I found the day very emotional to actually be in front of students again,” said Jordan. 

Returning to school, Jordan has been teaching English for in-person classes as well as remotely to students all around Dufferin County. Teaching virtually, he says, has been trickier. It’s slower without in the moment feedback, and has required some learning.

At the same time, adaption in the classroom has also been required. 

“Everybody is in masks and I found that sometimes it is a bit of a struggle to read my students, to read the body language,” said Jordan. “Oftentimes, you can gather from the curl of a lip, whether a student is getting something or not, or if something is making sense to them and with the mask being there you’re really reduced in terms of what you can glean from their body language.” 

Rob Marchildon, a math teacher at Westside Secondary School, also said the masks have made connecting with students hard, noting in some instances he doesn’t know which student has answered a question. 

Despite the limitations of the masks in the classroom, Marchildon says that with the in-class he’s able to see if a student is engaged in a lesson. 

“I can see right away if a kid’s not doing anything,” said Marchildon. “In terms of struggling, I can socially distance walk through and check-in on them.” 

As much as the return to school marked a big day for students, it was also one for the teachers. 

“Teachers really missed their kids,” said Wilson. “It’s not school until the kids show up and so we’re just really happy that we can have some time with them.”

That was a sentiment shared by Hamilton, who said it was great to see students roaming the halls and filling up classrooms at ODSS once again. While there was a sense of excitement, there was also an element of nervousness attached, with students returning to school at a time when COVID-19 cases are on the ride across Ontario.  

““I’m always anxious when students return, but I was a little more anxious, obviously, this time, mostly because of the safety,” said Hamilton. “That’s always in the back of your head, around the protocols and making sure I’m doing my best because I promised parents in the summer, in a couple of online meetings that we had, that I would do my best to keep their kids safe.” 

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