Curriculum/Classes
How will science labs work in DLA?
Science teachers will model labs and possibly will have students do simple labs at home.
Distance Learning Teachers/Groups
Who are the distance learning teachers? Are they teachers from my child's same school site or somewhere different? How are they chosen and will we know who is teaching on campus vs DLA?
DLA teachers are District Teachers and may not be from your home school site. Students will be from multiple school sites. You will know your teacher right before we start school when they send their first communication.
Will the distance learning academy student's classes be grouped by school? Or will students from multiple schools make up a Distance Learning Academy classroom? Will you prioritize students together from same school? Will my child have their same counselor?
Students will still have access to their counselor at their home school.
What is the max number of students allowed in a DLA class?
Same ratio as in person courses.
Will DLA teachers act as tutors/supervisors to the students or same as hybrid teachers that teach subjects during the class time?
They are expected to teach.
Cohort Groups
Regarding a pandemic pod coordinating: If parents are interested in forming pods within the distance learning academy scenario, is it possible for coordinated pods to be in the same virtual classes with similar schedules so the pod is learning from the same teacher, subject etc.?
We cannot guarantee this.
Expectations for Distance Learning
What will be the role of teachers in distance learning model? Will they be specifically teaching through the Schools PLP, Apex or UC Scout platform or they will have some other role in the model?
They will be using the online curriculum but also teaching live lessons to the students as well as grading and assessing learning. They may also supplement the curriculum in order to cover all grade/content area standards.
With respect to "live daily instruction" in the Distance Learning Academy, could you please explain what you mean by that? Will this be a PV grade level teacher, actually teaching substantive lessons over Zoom (or some similar format)? Or something else? In other words, will the 'live daily instruction' be similar to teaching in an actual class room. Is a DLA teacher providing additional instructions live, in addition to the video instructions in UC Scout or Apex? Individual instructions? Just a backup for Q& A or admin issues?
Yes, live lessons should mirror a classroom setting. At the elementary level, small group lessons are also taking place.
For a specific class in the distant learning model, how often do students get live online instruction versus watching a video in the Apex or UC Scout program as their instruction (per week)?
Daily
My children are entering 5th and 8th grades and will be doing the Distance Learning Academy. I'm trying to plan for how much and what type of support they will need - academically, emotionally, and organizationally as I work full time. There are many services now offering virtual, at home support but it is very hard to plan. Can you tell me how much homework I should expect them to have? Will it be similar to what they have during a typical in-person year? More? Less?
Similar to in-person.
Participation at Home School Site
Can students in the Distance Learning Academy participate in school sports/teams when allowed? Also choreo?
Students in DLA have access to afterschool activities and sports of their home school.
Can students in Distance Learning Academy participate in extracurriculars or clubs at home school site? (like HS level)
Yes, can also participate in afterschool clubs.
What exactly will be done to try and ensure DLA kids maintain connection with peers from their home school who are in the hybrid model? And connection with their school & teachers?
DLA students/parents will receive communication from their home school and can be involved in home school activities.