Center for Education excels with E-Learning

Little City’s ChildBridge Center for Education is adapting in remarkable ways to the COVID-19 crisis. 

As students have been unable to come to the school building, the staff at the day school has found creative and engaging ways to keep students sharp and focused on improving their skills during the pandemic.

 In fact, launching e-learning sessions has led to more focused one-on-one teaching and a closer relationship with the residential staff in the homes so students are receiving a more encompassing and consistent learning experience throughout their day. 

“The home staff is the glue that connects us right now,” said Meaghan Grap, an instructor at the school. “I can’t put into words how cool it has been to see. They’re rock stars. One of my students was doing laundry at the home, which blew me away. That wouldn’t have happened if we weren’t working together.” 

School Therapy & Clinical Coordinator Jessica Kingji said while launching the e-learning curriculum has had its challenges, it has been an eye-opening experience as to how effective it can be for students. As the staff get increasingly comfortable with the new approach, teachers have been able to make key adjustments such as more flexible lessons for students based in The Coleman Foundation Home and more planned out lessons for those in Larry’s Home. 

But no matter the specific approach, Jessica said students have shown a level of engagement and focus that at times surpasses what students display in the physical school building. Even housemates who are not students at the school have engaged with lessons from time to time.

 “The students crave this one-on-one attention, and in a classroom, you have to engage in a different way,” Jessica said. “It was overwhelming at first, and we need the homes to be honest with us and give us feedback and they have. The residential and the school staff have a new found appreciation for each other. We’re realizing the things we are capable of together.” 

School principal Phil Siegel said the school is actively disproving the dangerous national narrative that special education funding should be reduced during the COVID crisis because those students are unable to learn through virtual lessons. 

He said if anything, students on the autism spectrum and with developmental disabilities can have new pathways to learning unlocked because of the sensory elements e-learning allows. In one case, he saw a video of one of the lessons where Meaghan was able to keep a student engaged and focused without getting distracted for 19 minutes – a feat even students outside of special education rarely achieve. 

“You can see this student totally engaged with what Meaghan was doing the whole time. For any student to stay engaged that long is a great achievement. These teachers can make that happen and it is such outstanding work,” Phil said. “The residential staff and parents and guardians for our community-based students have really stepped up. They’ve been such great partners with us in facilitating this learning.” 

The e-learning program has gone so well the school plans to try to expand lessons to include multiple homes at one time in some cases and potentially expand some lessons to the adult residents. When students are allowed back, the school also plans to continue e-learning in some form because of the great outcomes it has already produced.