27.08.2020

Beacon Talks promotes reflection on technology and hybrid education

The first edition of the second season of Beacon Talks brought up a subject that gained enormous importance during the pandemic – and that will continue to be relevant in the “new normal”: technology at the service of learning. Even with the resumption of on-site classes, a hybrid teaching model, combining on-site and online will be maintained by schools.

In order to talk about learning in a virtual environment, we welcomed Beacon’s Educational Technology Coordinator, Zilda Kessel. She is an educator with a PhD in Curriculum and New Technologies in Education (PUC-SP) and a master’s degree in Information Science (ECA/USP). The conversation counted on the mediation of our director Luciana Leite, who brought questions made by the audience during the “Live” , and the lessons and experiences of the school during this stage of studies.

Among the greatest learnings of classes held exclusively online, Zilda highlights the conscious use of technology and the participation of parents in a more immersive way in the school educational process. “Beacon was already inserting technology in the students’ routine. Our virtual learning system has programs that bring together tools that help in pedagogical work, with controls to understand what students see, what they access and how they interact with the proposed activity and with classmates. The fact that we entered homes with remote classes reinforced the bonds with families, being fundamental for the good performance of the proposed activities”.

Another advantage of this online teaching phase was to strengthen the students’ research approach. “It has never been more important for students to be able to say with whom and how they carry out their research and to refine this critical sense in relation to the content they are consuming – and producing. The fact that the school is based on the IB program helped a lot in this investigative character”, completes the educator.

Zilda says that the adaptation process of teachers to this new reality was intense, but with great learning. “It was a race within the first 72 hours, but then, as we went deeper into the strict virtual education, we carried out continuing professional development. It was a collaborative process, so those who were more confident in using technology helped those who didn’t have that much experience. When they actually took ownership of that knowledge, they brought insights regarding their needs, and we developed responses to them. In January, we held the EdTech Fest, an event during which we bring all the new technologies to the school, applying them throughout the academic year, but now it was different: it was not technology that brought ideas to teachers, but teachers brought ideas based on their experiences to share with others. We built a network of educators who help their colleagues to improve online education”.

The educator highlights the proximity with families. “Parents were essential during this period, especially in guiding the school’s actions: understanding schedules, receptivity of content, etc. On the other hand, the school can show how it works: it was the opportunity to explain the processes of literacy, the development of research skills, among others. From the moment the school entered homes, families began to ask more about the learning method, and we also learned to be more clear, and that was certainly essential to bring both sides together. There is an open communication channel that will certainly be more richly explored”.

For Zilda, the learnings from this time of homeschooling was important to guide the next steps and reinforce the school-student-family bond. “Doing things virtually showed us the importance of being face-to-face. We will certainly start to enjoy more every moment: interact, listen, and speak. When students return to school, we have to make it something special! Hybrid education will use the best we have in face-to-face and online teaching. We will have the best of both worlds, and understand what works in each environment. With cooperation, appreciation of experiences and sensitive listening, we will certainly have a richer and more collaborative education”, she adds.

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