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South Marshall Middle School math and social studies teacher Brad Darnall is no stranger to digital learning. He’s always attempted to use technology and unique methods to reach his students. But the onset of the coronavirus pandemic last year meant a change in instruction that Darnall never could have imagined. It’s also a change for which no one has a timeline.
“I don t guess anymore. I used to try to make predictions.I quit doing that because I m never right. I don t know how long these situations will be taking place. It s just a matter of us adapting to what we can and making the best of it,” Darnall said.
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Anderson, 13, said she has gone to school in-person for the majority of this year. She and other students are required to wear masks inside at all times, and she has all of her classes with the same group of students, compared to a pre-pandemic schedule in which she had different people in every class.
Anderson said she’s glad to be back in school for the last semester of the year because Non-Traditional Instruction (NTI) was never her favorite way to do schoolwork. She’s part of the “Explore” program, which is mostly online and allows Anderson to work at her own pace. She said her curriculum hasn’t changed due to the pandemic, only the parts of school that involved close contact with others.