Reopening School: A complex and welcome challenge

Having children on campus this week has given us a real lift as we head into the holidays. 

Secondary school students have been coming and going on campus to use some facilities for a couple of weeks now. But having Elementary students running and laughing on the playground in the afternoons has brought back memories of what school was like before we were forced online. It has been particularly fun to watch students, teachers, and parents who know each other online meet in person for the first time.

While we are unsure as to when we can welcome all of our students back to school for classes, having students on campus has sharpened our focus on preparing for that day. Reintegrating students back into classroom learning is a puzzle that we have been waiting to put together since we went online back in March. 

As a school, we are prepared. Our campus is safe and our units of study are mapped out to be adapted for the return of students. As I am sure you will appreciate, there are many other factors that are beyond our control that need to fall into place for us to welcome all students back into classrooms. These factors will also dictate to us how we are able to re-open and add a degree of complexity to the puzzle. 

We are no strangers to complexity! Schools are used to dealing with complex problems and there have been more of those this year than ever before. Complex problems are different to complicated problems.

Complicated problems are hard to solve, but they can be solved with rules, processes and systems in a very hierarchical structure. Landing a rocket on the moon is an example of a complicated problem. 

The rigid structures designed to solve complicated problems do not work well for complex problems. Complex problems involve too many unknowns and interrelated factors to be able to reduce any solution to rules, processes and systems. Teaching and learning throws up many complex problems which require an adaptive approach to problem solving. We can prepare and plan for complex problems but we always must be prepared to adapt our plans to account for circumstances that are beyond our control.

In dealing with complex problems, our school will always revert back to ‘What? Why? How?’ thinking.

What do we want to do? We want to welcome students back onto a safe, compassionate, and connected campus.

Why do we want to do it? It is clear from what has been going in the playground this week, our students love being together at school. This week, a Grade 2 class provided me with their arguments for opening school. Every single student mentioned that they want to be with their friends. 

How can we do it? As for any complex challenge, this will always depend on the circumstances that we need to adapt to. We need to adapt the innovative thinking and practices that were developed online for use in the classroom and put aside some online practices that will no longer be effective in a classroom environment. And, as always, we will need to balance an academic focus with a focus on the physical and social-emotional wellbeing of each student.

Reopening our campus is a complex challenge that is welcomed by all of us – we have been waiting since March and already have multiple plans that we are ready to adapt. We want our students with us and seeing some of them back on campus gives us the energy and motivation to adapt yet again to circumstances and constraints that we will need to work within to make that happen.

Kinni, Theodore. “The Critical Difference Between Complex and Complicated.” MIT Sloan Management Review, 21 June 2017, sloanreview.mit.edu/article/the-critical-difference-between-complex-and-complicated/.

CALL FOR CHRISTMAS MESSAGES 

I am emailing on behalf of the ISY HS Community Action Education group, which is a group designed to initiate positive change in our communities.

As the holidays approach, we would like to send out letters to an old age home in Yangon, and we were hoping that you could help us share this with your students.

This event will be occurring until December 18, and will involve ISY community members writing or typing letters for the old aged on this Padlet. Please encourage your students to leave a message.

Thank you so much,

Sammy, on behalf of the ISY HS Community Action Education group.