ALIEF, Texas – Monday marks the third day of the new semester in Alief Independent School District. Right now, all classes are online.
The district’s superintendent, HD Chambers, said while there have been some bright spots with the virtual learning model, navigating this new normal has also exposed some areas where there’s room for improvement.
Interaction between students and teachers
Three days into the new semester and educators recognize that it’s going to take some time for students, parents and teachers to get comfortable with the rhythm and flow of the school day in a new learning environment.
“From literally from waking up, what time I do things, the classroom that my family has created for me in my home,” Chambers said.
Student engagement
Teachers are laser-focused right now on finding the best ways to monitor their students to make sure each one is participating. Chambers said student engagement has never been more important, especially when it comes to measuring their success.
“It’s not just that, the students are engaged. It’s that students are demonstrating that they are mastering the content that the teacher is teaching. One way we can measure whether they are mastering that or not is through their engagement,” Chambers said.
Student registration
Chambers also said in another area, he wants district leaders to improve upon student registration.
“We have gone to great lengths to identify students who have either moved into our community or who’ve been living in our community and making sure that they know to register for school. The one area I want us to keep improving upon is making sure that we’ve done everything in our power to reach families and let them know that Alief ISD is in school now,” Chambers said.