9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

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2 hours ago - Economy & Business

What we overlooked
in the switch to
remote learning
Ashley Gold, Erica Pandey

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Skip to main content America’s rapid and urgent transition to online school
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9/20/2020
America s rapid and urgent transition to online school
What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

has come with a host of unforeseen consequences that

are only getting worse as it continues into the fall.

The big picture: The issues range from data privacy to

plagiarism, and schools are ill-equipped to deal with
them, experts say.

Online schooling is taking a toll on children’s privacy

rules and rights, as the whole experiment depends on
teachers who aren't necessarily trained in technology
and student privacy — and aren't always using
software that has been vetted and determined to be
secure.

Minors are supposed to have federal online privacy

protections under the Children’s Online Privacy
and Protection Act, but it has proven hard to protect
those rights as school districts and teachers have
rushed to set up online schooling during the
pandemic.

The Federal Trade Commission, which enforces the

privacy law, has signaled it will be watching the
education technology space closely but will use
prosecutorial discretion for companies working in
good faith to be compliant.
“We’re trying to take brick-and-mortar school and
shove it onto the internet, and the two things just
aren’t compatible,” Karen Richardson, executive
director for the Virginia Society for Technology in
Education, told Axios.

“Even the most dedicated parent or educator is

going to have a really hard time figuring out what’s
actually happening with their students’ data,” Josh
Golin, executive director of the Campaign for a
Skip to main content
Commercial-Free Childhood told Axios
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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios
Commercial-Free Childhood, told Axios.

The pandemic is moving educational inequalities

online — and creating wholly new inequities.

Remote learning is exacerbating the digital divide

between students as broadband access becomes
even more essential. Zoom school brings
classmates into each other homes, which can put
socioeconomic differences on display.

Experts fear online school will push some students

off an educational cliff as tech issues or abbreviated
lesson plans create a learning gap.

And while richer school districts can employ people

to deal with privacy and cybersecurity compliance
— choosing the apps and other digital products that
best protect students and their data — poorer school
districts can’t.

There’s been an uptick in cheating and academic

dishonesty as schooling has moved online.

While at home, students can look up answers to

online tests or discuss assignments with one
another.
Schools are hiring online proctoring services to
prevent cheating, which comes with additional
costs to cash-strapped institutions and raises
privacy red flags.

There are also the practical difficulties of online

learning that don't rise to the same level as privacy
violations or cheating, but have still confronted
teachers with a whole series of unexpected challenges.

Skip to main content

Jori Krulder, a high school English teacher in
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 Jori Krulder, a high school English teacher in
9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

Paradise, Calif., told Axios she's been surprised by

how much longer it takes to get through lessons
with online teaching. "It's a fine balance between
moving too fast and losing them," she said. "Kids are
struggling with motivation right now."

Beyond that, teachers are missing having the

natural rhythm of their classrooms and being able
to make eye contact to encourage students to raise
their hands and answer questions. Calling out a
question on video is often met with dead silence,
Krudler said.

"Wait time" — the concept of waiting for a student

to answer a question until they feel comfortable
enough to do so — is a victim of online learning, she
said. "There's a long, awkward pause," she said, and
that students will just "wait you out" and not
answer at all over the computer.

The bottom line: Schools have done the best they can
in crisis, but the problems created by online school are
affecting the learning and development of a
generation of students.

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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

Go deeper

Ina Fried, author of Login

Sep 18, 2020 - Technology

Exclusive: Dreamscape, ASU partner

to bring classes into VR

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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

Image: Dreamscape

Arizona State University, which has been at the

forefront of the shift to online learning, is partnering
with VR startup Dreamscape to help make its classes
more cinematic in both approach and storytelling.

The big picture: Shifting in-person classes online too

often feels like a "less than" experience. The partners
hope that a more ambitious digital transformation of
teaching can actually improve on the traditional
classroom.

Go deeper (1 min. read)

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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

Mike Allen, author of AM

Updated 7 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Democrats' Armageddon option

A makeshift memorial outside the Supreme Court yesterday. Photo: Jose Luis
Magana/AFP via Getty Images

Furious Democrats are considering total war —

profound changes to two branches of government, and
even adding stars to the flag — if Republicans jam
through a Supreme Court nominee, then lose control
of the Senate.
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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

On the table: Adding Supreme Court justices ...

eliminating the Senate's 60-vote threshold to end
filibusters ... and statehood for D.C. and Puerto Rico. "If
he holds a vote in 2020, we pack the court in 2021," Rep.
Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.) tweeted.

Go deeper (2 min. read)

Mike Allen, author of AM

10 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Democrats' "just win" option

Photo: Samuel Corum/Getty Images

Polls increasingly point to Democrats winning the

Senate.

Why it matters: Republicans had been optimistic

about holding on to the Senate even if President
Trump lost. But they know they could be swamped by
a blue wave.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)

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9/20/2020 What we overlooked in the switch to remote learning - Axios

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