May 30th 2024.
Parents in New York City are expressing their frustration with the Department of Education after being asked to participate in a remote learning simulation with their children during summer break. The DOE hopes to use this exercise to improve their system's ability to handle remote learning, following a disastrous technical failure on a snow day back in February of 2024.
Families have been asked to voluntarily log into their school's online platform on June 6th for a non-instructional activity during a designated time slot. Administrators stress the importance of widespread participation, stating that the more people involved, the more accurate and useful the data will be. However, according to the New York Post, this latest request has only added fuel to the fire for parents who are still upset about the winter incident.
One parent, Alison Devlin from Manhattan, expressed her surprise, saying, "I didn't even know about this. But I won't be participating." Another mother from the same community shared her frustration, stating, "I don't think my son will participate because he's wrapping up his senior year, and we don't have time for this nonsense." Starita Boyce Ansari, a parent of a high school student in Manhattan, suggested that instead of focusing on remote learning, the DOE should invest in remote tutoring, particularly for schools in public-housing areas that often lack support compared to schools in more affluent neighborhoods.
The faculty has also raised concerns about the remote-learning simulation. English teacher Adam Bergstein from Forest Hills High School in Queens called the decision "asinine" and reflective of the DOE's broken bureaucracy. "To assume students will log on to a computer for no pedagogical reason is not only a waste of time, but also unproductive for everyone involved," he stated. A middle school teacher from Brooklyn, who preferred to remain anonymous, called the DOE's decision to change a day designated for professional development into a remote learning test "misguided and a waste of resources." They added, "It sends the message that the DOE doesn't value the professional development they offer and would rather have us test a system that will have little impact on the rest of the school year and will have to be retested in September anyway."
The DOE's decision to conduct this remote-learning simulation stems from the February incident when Chancellor David Banks assured families that the system was prepared for virtual learning on a snow day. However, when thousands of students tried to log on, they were met with technical issues and error messages. At the time, Banks pointed the blame at IBM, stating that the company responsible for handling authentication was "not ready for prime time." Banks is now urging families to participate in the remote training session to ensure that they are better equipped for future remote learning situations. "In a world where extreme weather conditions are becoming more common, it is crucial that our school system is prepared to switch to virtual learning," he stated in a recent press release. "We are encouraging every family to participate in this test so that we can be sure they are ready to go remote if the need arises."
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