From staff reports
Pennsylvania educators and students are facing challenges with public schools closed for the remainder of the academic year, but Redbank Valley High School teacher Mike Fricko is ahead of the learning curve.
Fricko, who teaches English and broadcast journalism at Redbank, has completed the Online Instruction Endorsement through Clarion University.
“Most any teacher can teach online, but the Online Instruction Endorsement provides the proper background for effective online instruction,” said John McCullough, chair of Clarion’s education department. “Teachers who complete the endorsement have learned methods, techniques and resources specifically designed for the online learning environment,” McCullough added.
Fricko is prepared to teach – and his students are prepared to learn – via remote instruction, because he had incorporated online resources into his face-to-face lessons prior to the pandemic closing schools.
“I already used so much of the technology in my daily setting that it was an easy transition for my students,” he said. “Many of the sites/apps that I used in my traditional classroom have expanded their free/basic service to now include the premium features. It has made instruction in my English classroom a bit easier to facilitate.”
Communicating with students is vastly different and simple lectures can’t be the norm, the press release said.
“Teachers are discovering that communication is much more important and challenging with online teaching,” McCullough said. “There are fewer facial and body language cues for teachers to recognize during their lesson, so teachers must closely monitor written and verbal interactions for understanding. Instruction must include very detailed, step-by-step lessons and assessments.”
Another challenge in transitioning to online education is the increased amount of time it takes for lesson preparation, grading, and communication, McCullough said.