Volume V, Issue 12 (April 10, 2020)

“The harder the conflict, the greater the triumph.” ― George Washington

Vol. V April 10, 2020

Sharing the good news about Longview Independent School District

LUNCH IS SERVED

Mandatory orders issued in Longview Longview Mayor Andy Mack has issued additional orders for precautionary measures to be taken by Longview residents to help prevent the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). These orders were put in place after the number of positive cases in Gregg County rose to 32.

These orders, which expand the previous Shelter-in-Place orders and give additional direction to retail stores, will become mandatory beginning at 11:59 p.m on Wednesday, April 8 for the City and its residents.

“We are grateful for the statewide orders that Gov. Greg Abbott put into place,” Mayor Andy Mack said. “However, for us to be effective in the next crucial weeks to flatten the curve and protect our most vulnerable residents, we must take more aggressive strides locally.”

Meals being delivered Monday through Friday to students

L

ISD’s meal deliveries to district students has gone from three days a week to five. Starting Monday, April 6, Transportation began to make deliveries Monday to Friday from 10 a.m. to noon.

Meals|Continued to page 6

Orders|Continued to page 15

Mayor Mack offers COVID-19 suggestions to community

MACK

THE

On Monday, Mayor Andy Mack posted on Facebook, updating the community about a further 6 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Gregg County. This brought the total of positive cases to 23. The following day, the total number of positives cases was up to 32.

“The City of Longview has been working on a number of things we

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Opinion Buckner

may have to implement if our residents cannot be more disciplined with social distancing,” Mayor Mack said in the post.

For now, he listed 10 suggestions that the community should do.

SUGGESTIONS

• Decide what is “essential” for your life and what is not. Just because the State of Texas has deemed a

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Election Mobile

business “essential” doesn’t mean it is “essential” for you to shop there.

Very few things in life are truly “essential” for survival.

• This is not an extended spring break or vacation for your family.

Please stop treating this as such.

This is a time to hunker down, stay Mack|Continued to page 7

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FBI Social Media

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

OPINION

We must all fight COVID-19 together

By Dr. James Wilcox As always, the health and safety of our students, staff, and community is our number one priority.

To be transparent, we believe it is important to share that Longview ISD has been informed that an employee of the district has tested positive for the Coronavirus (COVID-19).

At this time it is our understanding that the individual contracted the virus through community exposure, as they have not recently traveled to high-exposure locations.

The employee has not been on an LISD campus since prior to the Spring Break holiday or during the recent extended closure and has not been involved in the student meal program or in the distribution of work packets. However, we are pleased to report that the

tinuing to monitor employee has been the situation and is in released from the constant communicahospital and is curtion with local health rently self-quarandepartments. Additiontined at home. Our al information will be prayers and best provided if needed. wishes are with our Let this also serve as staffer for a speedy an important reminder and total recovery.

Longview ISD is WILCOX to heed the warnings of local, state and nationrespecting this individal healthcare officials to stay ual’s privacy just as we would home and avoid gathering with respect yours. In addition, it is a HIPPA violation to share any others.

Please continue to practice identifying information on this social distancing, proper hyperson so please keep that in giene and do not leave your mind if you do know informahome unless absolutely necestion or you suspect. sary during this time.

It is very likely that others Please continue to take in our community, and possibly every necessary precaution our district, will test positive to protect yourself and othfor the virus in the future so ers. please be respectful of personWe will continue to provide al privacy. It is expected that more information through alleveryone act in a professioncalls, emails, our district webal manner and remain calm site, and social media. You can during this time. check back at our website at District leadership is con-

LISD.org/coronavirus or follow our social media channels on Facebook and Twitter.

Updated information from the CDC on Coronavirus can be found at the CDC website, cdc.gov, and the most recent information about Coronavirus in Texas may be found at the DSHS website, dshs.texas. gov.

You can also see the latest public school-related information on the Texas Education Agency website, tea.texas. gov.

Thank you for your support of our district, our schools, our students, and our staff!

Sincerely,

Dr. James Wilcox — Dr. James Wilcox is Superintendent of Schools for Longview ISD. During his tenure, enrollment and test scores have continued an upward trend, and LISD has continued to expand its academic and extracurricular offerings.

‘Now’ is our character revealed in history

By Matthew Prosser Things are very complicated right now. There’s a lot of uncertainty, frustration, and anxiety. Each day it seems like the ongoing story of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) takes another twist or turn. The question keeps coming back?

When will it end? When are things going back to normal? I hear it from colleagues, members of the community, and my children.

I have no answer to that question. I don’t think anyone truly does.

But I think a better question to ask is: “What are you going to do about it?”

Throughout the history of human civilization, men and women have faced tragedy and catastrophe. Within all of our lives, we’ve each known

suffering and loss. But district leadership has I believe a person’s been devoted to maneucharacter isn’t tested vering this moment in in adversity, it is retime. Not only to navivealed. gate through the storm And by that stanwe are in now, but also dard, I am blown away to prepare for our inevby the character of the itable landing... whenLongview ISD comever that might be. munity. We’re in this Sometimes you’re not PROSSER together in everything able to realize how bad from meal delivery to online the storm is until it’s passed. education. So many stories of And once the storm quiets, you our families pulling together, don’t remember how you made of our teachers going above it through, how you managed and beyond for our students, to keep going. You aren’t even of our support staff working sure, whether the storm is tirelessly behind the scenes, over. But one thing is certain. and all the wonderful memWhen you come out of the bers of the community who storm, you aren’t be the same almost daily reach out to our person who walked in. office asking how they can Whatever the ultimate help. It’s truly inspiring. result of this pandemic, it is From the perspective of obvious that our world has someone in the district admin- changed. Things may never istration, I can say that our truly go back to “normal.”

Rather, we may find ourselves in a “new normal.” It’s a regular topic of conversation for us... even during our “virtual” meetings and conference calls. What will the future of Longview ISD be in this new normal?

Again, I have no answer to that question.

But I can say that our hearts and minds remain dedicated to doing everything we can to help our students, staff, and community not simply endure, but to flourish... come what may.

For me, that’s what it means to be a Lobo: to not

just survive, but to thrive.

And we can do it, together.

— Matthew Prosser is an award-winning journalist and photographer. Matthew is a Communications Specialist for Longview Independent School District and a born-again Lobo.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

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Buckner offers free parenting tip phone app Buckner Project HOPES in Longview has implemented a new form of virtual communication with the community and those served by Buckner.

Bright by Text is a part of the growing digital communication trend as children are staying home and move to online learning in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

HEFLIN The app allows Buckner Project HOPES to send a text notification with developmental information, learning resources and parenting tips, all targeted specifically for the age range of children in a person’s household. Texts are offered in both English and Spanish and offer topics such as nutrition, brain development, literacy and more.

An example of an educational text message: “Help your children learn to share. Sit and roll a ball back and forth to encourage playing nice with others.” At the conclusion of the message, there will be a link to a webpage with more detailed information and tips on the topic mentioned in the text.

Information delivered by Buckner via Bright by Text can

free activities, games and resources for parents and caregivers of children prenatal to age 8

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in partnership with help parents as they navigate the current state of social distancing with school closures and at-home learning. Tips and other resources to help teach children skills such as art are sent out regularly to help parents at home with their kids.

Events and programming offered by Buckner and other community collaborators that are also sent through the app help bring families together and better support parents and children.

“We are excited about using

this system to reach our community,” said Michelle Heflin, director of Project HOPES in Longview. “Bright by Text is allowing us to send developmental information to parents in specified zip codes as well as events happening near them that their kids will enjoy. Our goal is to help the community find what services are available to them and learn how to get involved in the programming such as Buckner Project HOPES.” The new technology will be

used to help raise awareness for National Child Abuse Awareness month during April.

The #TexasKids Bright by Text initiative is spearheaded

by The United Way of Texas and Texas PBS and is funded by the Department of Family and Protective Services. The system is free for all users, and as a member of the initiative, Buckner is encouraging everyone in Project HOPES and the community to enroll.

To sign up, text BRIGHT to 274448.

Balloon Race canceled over COVID-19 concerns The 2020 Great Texas Balloon Race has been canceled.

Chairman of the board Rhonda Bullard announced on Facebook that it would be in the best interest of all involved if there was no race this year.

At noon on Monday, April 6, a live Facebook stream let the world know that hot air balloon pilots would not be taking to the skies over Gregg County this year.

“The Great Texas Balloon Race Officials have decided to cancel GTBR 2020 in the best interests of Gregg County, our sponsors, vendors, pilots, volunteers and attendees,” Bullard said during the stream.

The announcement was made from race founder Bill Bussey’s Longview balloon port.

“Our community has supported the Great Texas Balloon Race for 42 years. We need to be there for the companies that have supported us all those years. And so expecting them, even if we were able at this

around for another forty years,” Bullard added.

Everyone hopes COVID-19 will have run its course by midJune or before, but no one is making that prediction at this point. It’s up in the air.

Bullard said anyone who has purchased advance tickets on line will be automatically refunded to their credit or debit cards.

time that the race would take place, it’s just not the right thing to do this year. We need to not ask for more from our community,” Bullard said.

And as for setting a different date, well the pilots: “Fly in a circuit, for lack of a better word, and so there were no dates available where we could get the same top-rated line and reschedule them this year,” Bullard explained.

Pilots can’t just show up and compete. There is a qualification process that’s:

“Based on their ranking in the national eligibility list that the FAA puts out every year.

And how they’ve finished in other races across the nation, and how they’ve finished in our race the last several years,” Bullard said.

And this year, after four decades, they were finally able to move the date from the heat of July to June 19-21, but even so: “I’m not worried about this year. I’m worried about the longevity of the Great Texas Balloon Race. I want us to be

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

School board election postponed to Nov. 3rd The LISD Board of Trustees election that was set for May 2 has been postponed to Nov. 3. This is taking place to comply with Executive Order GA-14 due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

Terms for Place 2 trustee Ava Weldge and Place 4 trustee Ginia Northcutt are expiring, with both members planning for re-election. Longview ISD trustees are elected to serve three-year terms.

Northcutt drew no opponent, but local attorney Brett Miller has filed to run against Weldge in Place 2.

WELDGE

MILLER

Texas Education Agency updates assessment requirements

By Chloe Bradford CBS19 Around this time of year, most students would be prepping for the STAAR exams or for their end of course assessment.

Governor Greg Abbott suspended assessment requirements for the remainder of the school year. This includes STAAR, STAAR Alternate 2 and End of Course (EOC) assessments.

According to Longview ISD, administrators and teachers may review graded projects, assessment or daily assignments to determine if a student should proceed to the

next grade.

Instead of STAAR, high school students take an end of course assessment. Students

Escape from ‘The Hunger Games’ The Longview Public Library is offering the chance to complete a virtual escape room based off of “The Hunger Games” novel.

It’s something new the library is trying out and potentially

develop for future entries. So, everyone to take the challenge!

The rules are simple: • Head over to facebook.com/ LongviewPublicLib Escape|Continued to page 10

must pass English 1, English 2, Algebra 1, Biology and U.S history courses and its corresponding assessment in order

to graduate.

If a student failed their EOC exam but needs to retake it in order to go on to the next grade level, 11 or 12 graders need to retake their EOC exam. It would then be up to the an Individual Graduation Committee (IGC) to determine if the student would graduate.

If a student had a failing grade before COVID-19, they may or may not be permitted to go on to the next level. The decision is dependent upon the district.

School districts should be contacted for details on how students will be advanced or not advanced to the next grade level.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

2020 SENIORS

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Recognizing choir and band students for their accomplishments

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

MEALS |Continued from page 1

students’ homes. Foster alone makes between 300 and 400 student deliveries a week.

“I think this is a great gesture Students who are already on by the district, the campuses the delivery list, no additional and our cafeteria workers to request needs to be made. continue to serve our students,” If you are new to the meal said Foster Principal Ryan Car- deliveries and make a request roll. “I think it’s still a responsi- for them, it will take 48 hours to bility that we should take owner process and allow the addition ship.” to the daily route. Please send LHS, Foster and Bramlette all meal delivery requests to are all making deliveries to ask@lisd.org with your stu-

dents name, student ID, home campus, and delivery address.

If for some reason a meal has not been delivered by 11:45 a.m., please contact transportation or nhawkins@lisd.org and we will be able to get a meal to you before the cafeterias close.

“We’re out here helping the families that can’t get out,” said Pauliszia Stewart, a bus driver and receptionist at the transportation department. “The kids

are so excited, they run outside when they see the food. It’s really good to be able to help the kids out.”

Curbside meals will still be available for pickup at the following campuses: LHS, Forest Park, South Ward, Ware, Foster, Bramlette, J.L. Everhart and Judson. Pickup times are from 10 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday every week.

What do I tell my kids about the Coronavirus?

The importance of good communication

Talking to Children and Teens is Necessary Whether you realize it or not, your children and teenagers are taking in a lot of information about this new virus. Unlike adults, they do not have the ability to sift through the information and determine what is correct and what is incorrect to develop an appropriate course of action. They are relying on you to do this for them.

The top 5 things to discuss with your kids about COVID-19

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What is it?

Kids can clearly see this situation is making adults worry and because of this it can be very scary to them.

A parent should adjust the amount and type of information they give to their child based on the child's age level.

Follow the Guidelines: COVID-19 is spread through contact with someone who is infected. Remind your child to wash their hands properly on a regular basis and not to touch their face or mouth area. If they cough due it in the crook of their arm.

2

Reassure them: The fear of the unknown can be greater than the known. Let kids know that yes, this is a problem right now but there are many adults working together to make everyone safe.

4

Monitor Media Information: Our televisions, radios and social media feeds are being inundated with information about this virus.

Hearing other talk repeatedly about this scary topic can be overwhelming for kids. Adult supervision is necessary.

Leave the Lines of Communication OPEN: Due to the situation, parents should check in on their kids often. Let them know you are available if they have any new questions or just want to talk about this topic. And remember they are looking to you to be a role model during this challenging time.

Well-being Safety Assessments, LLC 573.451.2151

www.well-beingsafetyassessments.com

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

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COVID-19 U.S. SCHOOL UPDATE Pandemic causes widespread school closures

By Education Week The coronavirus pandemic has forced widespread school closures in the United States in an unprecedented disruption of K-12 schooling.

School closures in the charts refer to the shutdown of physical buildings and traditional, in-person instruction. All information is current as of Tues-

day, April 7.

For more information see Education Week’s detailed coverage of each state’s closures and full coverage of the novel Coronavirus and its impact on schools, at edweek.org.

15 states and 2 U.S. territories have ordered or recommended school building closures for the rest of the academic year.

MACK |Continued from page 1 at home and do YOUR PART to stop the spread of the disease.

• Choose one person in your family to go to the store when you have a need. There is no reason for an entire family to be going to an “essential” store. Leave your children at home with another adult if at all possible.

• Wash your hands.

• Be the parent. Do not allow your children to have “playdates” or “hangouts” with their friends. This includes playing with neighborhood children in the street. Take this opportunity to bond as a family. You will never get this time back.

• Just because you “can” does not mean you “should”. Let that sink in.

• Yes, you still need to be 6 ft apart and in groups of less than 10.

• Do not get together with anyone outside of your immediate family.

• Wash your hands.

• Pray for your country.

“There are many people who have had to close their business — FOR YOU. Many people have lost their jobs — FOR YOU. Many people are still having to go to work to bring you ‘essential’ items to your family — FOR YOU. Many elderly are locked inside, lonely and sad — FOR YOU,” Mayor Mack said.

“Please step up your PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY and do not look to the government to tell you what is best for you.”

For more information about what a “mandatory ShelterIn-Place order” means for you, please go to LongviewTexas. gov/COVID-19.

School closures due to Coronavirus have impacted at least 124,000 U.S. public and private schools and affected at least 55.1 million students.

Texas has issued a state ordered closure on 3/23/20.

The state has a total of 8,909 public school with 5,360,849 enrollment.

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• LISD schools earned 40 total distinctions on state accountability ratings, an increase from 34 earned last year, and the highest in the region.

• Each year HUNDREDS of out-of-district students transfer INTO into Longview Independent School District, citing “education opportunities” as their reason.

• International Baccalaureate project partners with “We Help Two” and sells “funky socks” to help supply legs and feet to amputees all over the world.

• Brand new partnership for innovation with East Texas Advanced Academies which will bring new funding and ideas to public education.

• Three campuses with national STEM certifications (Judson STEAM Academy, Bramlette STEAM Academy, and Ned E. Williams).

• Largest FREE public Montessori school (for 3-to-5 year-olds) in the Nation. Provided free of charge to Longview area children.

• Partnership with Longview Chamber of Commerce to help foster community partnerships and mentors for Ware students.

• Went totally ‘green’ on all building projects resulting in a $200,000 award from SWEPCO for energy conservation • Graduates matriculating to EMT, Cosmetology, welding, Culinary Arts, Meat and Butchering programs nationally.

• Eight-week Montessori training for other districts in Texas hosted by East Texas Montessori Prep Academy • Award-winning Theater Arts program with a director who has been with the district for more than 50 years.

• Raising Highly Capable Kids parenting class in partnership with Longview Chamber of Commerce.

• Horticulture Program harvests own bee hives to sell honey, wax, and wax products at FFA shows.

• LIFT program annually paying out close to $1 million in staff bonuses for improved testing scores.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

• Hosted Adjunct Fair for SFA to help employ Adjunct staff in Longview and through Longview ISD. • Purchased multiple pieces of strategic real estate, without increased debt, for future expansion.

• Every year of Superintendent Dr. James Wilcox tenure the LISD budget has been “in the black.”

• Local corporate partnerships with Eastman and Komatsu and Longview Manufacturing Academy.

• Hosted “Axe”epted East Texas meet and greet for area students attending SFA in Fall 2019.

• Lobo Band continuing their string of 69 consecutive first-level honors at State Sweepstakes.

• Bramlette STEAM Academy as National Capturing Kids’ Hearts national recognition/award.

• Partnerships in education with UT, SMU, Texas Tech, SFA, KC, Letourneau, and UT-Tyler.

• “Playing for Keeps” childcare program for students with children, as well as LISD staffers.

• May 2019 hosted first LHS CTE Signing Day for students going to college or workforce.

• More than 100 teachers earned Project Based Learning certifications in Spring 2019.

• Multiple graduates with offers to Ivy League and other prestigious universities.

• Lobo University to help prepare students and parents for life after high school.

• 36 students graduate with Associates Degrees (50 projected in class of 2020).

• Longview ISD middle school students earn “Duke Scholar” honors every year • LISD farm-to-table program, partnering with local farmers for cafeteria produce.

• Award-winning elementary, middle school, and high school choir programs • Perfect scores on PSAT as middle schoolers from Foster Middle School.

• Only free public K-12 International Baccalaureate program in the world.

• Fall 2018 LHS donated more than 400 coats to KLTV’s Coats for Kids.

• Summer backpack program to make sure kids get fed year-round.

• Signing Santa to help deaf ed students communicate with “Santa.”

• Culinary Arts CTE student-led catering program began Fall 2018.

• Only International Baccalaureate program east of Interstate 45.

• More than 500 LHS students were taking dual-credit last year.

• 116 incoming Freshman applying for dual credit courses.

• State and National Technical Student Association winners.

• Orchestra offered at elementary, middle and high school.

• Named 2018 School Board of the Year from Region VIII. • More than 30 teachers with national STEM certifications.

• Wall of Honor honors Veteran alumni and their families.

• LHS music students annually perform at Carnegie Hall.

• Privatized custodial services to save taxpayer dollars.

• Gold Standard Award yearly for financial transparency.

• Less than 2 percent dropout rate at Longview High.

• Class of 2019 earned $8.5 million in scholarships.

• 236 unduplicated seniors with dual credit hours.

• Over 6500 hours of college by 2019 graduates.

• 6,531 semester credit hours for dual credit.

• Award-winning high school art program.

• 2018 UIL Academic District Champions.

• Class 6A State Football Champion.

• 2,601 Workforce hours earned.

• National Welding Champions.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

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MOBILE PHONE FUN Fun-filled educational apps to fuel children minds

By Stuart Dredge The Guardian The closure of schools across the world has left many parents in the sudden, unexpected position of being home-school teachers. Schools are providing support where they can, but there are also still plenty of smartphone and tablet apps that can be used as part of learning.

It may be tricky to get some children to see these devices as good for more than TikTok and Fortnite, but the positive side is that the best learning apps are interesting enough to — perhaps with an initial nudge — engage children.

Here are some apps that may get parents off to a good start.

The “younger children” apps are most suitable for preschool and early primary kids, while the “older children” apps are more for later primary and early secondary age.

FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN

Khan Academy Kids — (Android/Apple/Amazon — Free) Khan Academy is a free collection of education courses for all ages, but it has an app specifically for two to seven-yearold children that focuses on maths, reading and social and emotional skills. It has a large and growing archive of learning videos, digital books and simple but engaging exercises.

Montessori Preschool — (Android/Apple/Amazon — Subscription) For very young children who’ll be missing out on some of the formative teaching at preschool this year, this beautifully crafted app could be a great help. From maths and phonics to music and early coding, its

include tracing the letters to learn their shapes for (non-AR) writing.

colourful exercises never feel dry or dull. It requires a monthly subscription.

Hopster — (Android/Apple/Amazon — Free) British company Hopster describes its app as “educational kids’ TV”. What that means is a collection of familiar cartoons and shows including the likes of Sesame Street, Bob the Builder, Thomas the Tank Engine, Fireman Sam and Pingu, accompanied by fun learning games on topics such as maths and phonics. It will even remind kids not to binge on too many episodes in a row. It requires a monthly subscription.

Teach Your Monster to Read — (Android/Apple/Amazon — $0.99) This usually has a cost, but has been made free owing to the school disruption. No matter how you feel after a couple of days of home-schooling, the titular monster isn’t your child.

Instead, this gets children to create a monster and then teach it to read – a great way of learning themselves.

World of Peppa Pig — (Android/Apple/Amazon — Subscription) This is one of a growing number of subscription-based children’s apps – seen as a more trustworthy model than in-app purchases and/or ads.

Aimed at preschool children, it’s another collection of learning games, but also has videos, picture-making and songs from the TV show. It requires a monthly subscription.

YouTube Kids — (Android/ Apple — Free) After a rocky start when some non-child-friendly videos made it through the filters, YouTube has worked hard to make its official children’s app something parents can trust. It includes a dedicated learning category collecting great videos about science, nature, space and other topics.

Dr Seuss’s ABC: AR Version — (Android/Apple – $5.99) “Big A, little a. What begins with A?” Well, augmented reality does, for a start. Dr Seuss’s inimitable alphabet book has been turned into an AR app, with animated characters appearing in the room around your child. The learning aspects

ScratchJr — (Android/Apple/Amazon – free) Scratch is the programming environment that a lot of children will be familiar with already from school. ScratchJr is an app version designed for five to seven-year-olds, although older children can have fun with it, too. It uses coding blocks to create programs for games, animation, music and other creative tasks.

FOR OLDER CHILDREN

Google Arts & Culture — (Android/Apple – free) Field trips and museum visits may be out of bounds for a while, but Google’s Arts & Culture app at least has virtual tours of more than 1,200 museums and galleries. Children can look and read as well as curate their own lists of favourite artworks to share.

Mimo — (Android/Apple – subscription) There are a number of great learn-to-code apps out there for children, but Mimo is one in particular that feels most connected to the world of professional programming. At a cost of £8.49 a month, it offers quick but interesting exercises in languages including Python, Java and Swift.

Apps|Continued to page 19

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

FBI issues warning over ‘hijacking’ of online classes

By Valerie Strauss The Washington Post The FBI has issued a warning to the public about the “hijacking” of online classrooms and teleconferences after it received reports of disturbances by people shouting racist and threatening language and displaying hate messages.

Concerns about online security have been rising as most of the nation has moved to online education, with school buildings closed to try to stem the spread of a novel Coronavirus that has stopped public life around the world. Schools have rushed to put together online lessons and programs, sometimes without strict security filters.

The FBI said in its new warning (see in full below) that it has received multiple

reports of conferences being disrupted by pornographic images and other inappropriate things, while two schools in Massachusetts reported intruders signing into online classes.

In one instance, a high school reported that an unidentified person dialed into a class being held on Zoom videoconferencing software and interrupted a lesson by yelling a profanity and shouting the teacher’s home address. At another school, an online class was disrupted by someone who was visibly displaying tattoos of swastikas.

Last week, saboteurs using “racist and vile language” infiltrated and disrupted online classes held by the University of Southern California, my colleague Nick Anderson reported. The trend, which some

have called “Zoom bombing,” is the intentional disruption of a class or a conference on the Zoom platform. Zoom has emerged as the most popular teleconferencing choice for K-12 schools and institutions of higher education during the pandemic.

The University of Texas at Austin is investigating a racist incident in which someone disrupted an online meet-

ing on Zoom among students, staff and faculty, President Greg Fenves said Monday.

It occurred during the first Zoom meeting for the school’s Heman Sweatt Center for Black Males, according to a tweet from the center.

Fenves denounced the “reprehensible” and “racist Zoom bombing” of the meeting and said he will increase online security for all staff.

ESCAPE |Continued from page 4 rary and click on the Google Form link.

• Anyone can play; either with friends or as an individual.

• Complete as many times as you would like.

• Patrons will read along and follow the story and clues to solve puzzles in order to escape the Hunger Games arena.

• Scroll to the bottom of each page and click the “Next” button.

• If a puzzle is solved wrong, click on the “Back” or “Next” button to try again.

• While having read or watched “The Hunger Games” can help, it’s not required.

Have fun, and as the quote goes, “May the odds be ever in your favor!”

IT TAKES ALL OF US TO SAVE LIVES!

If we work together, fewer of our friends and family will be affected by the coronavirus. Hospitals won’t be overloaded, and lives will be saved.

Learn more at www.texas.gov/covid19

DO YOUR PART TO KEEP FELLOW TEXANS SAFE! 6 Feet

PRACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING If you must go out, avoid public spaces and keep your distance.

KEEP HANDS CLEAN

Use soap and water for 20 seconds or use 60% alcohol hand sanitizer.

CLEAN & DISINFECT

Disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces often.

STAY HOME WHEN SICK

Call your doctor if you have fever, cough or shortness of breath.

DON’T SPREAD GERMS

Don’t touch your eyes, nose or mouth. Cover a cough or sneeze using your elbow.

SYMPTOMS OF COVID-19

WHY IT’S DANGEROUS

Symptoms may appear any time between 2-14 days after exposure.

Most of us will be fine. But, if we allow the virus to spread, many people who don’t have to could die.

30% 56% 10% No Symptoms

FEVER

DRY COUGH

Moderate Symptoms

Hospitalization

SHORTNESS OF BREATH

BY STAYING APART NOW, WE CAN ALL BE TOGETHER AGAIN FASTER!

4%

Hospitalization + ICU

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

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Teacher group ask Governor to close schools for school year

By Anna M. Tinsley Fort Worth Star-Telegram Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has already closed schools through the beginning of May. Now the Texas State Teachers Association is calling on him to go ahead and cancel school for the rest of the school year, as a growing number of states — including New Mexico and California — have done to try to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“Disease experts expect this pandemic to get worse, maybe much worse, in Texas before we see any relief, and the governor must take these steps now to protect millions of school children and the adults dedicated to serving and caring for them,” Noel Candelaria, president of TSTA, said in a statement.

“A comprehensive, statewide school closure order is necessary because the outbreak is expanding across the state, and we don’t know which counties it will strike next. Leaving this decision to

individual districts creates unnecessary confusion and stress across Texas.”

In Fort Worth, where schools have been closed “until further notice” because of COVID-19, the school year currently is scheduled to end May 28.

Abbott on Tuesday, while putting in restrictions geared to keep Texans safe, extended school closures until at least May 4.

¡SALVAR VIDAS ES UNA TAREA QUE REQUIERE DE TODOS!

Biggest remote teaching concerns we need to solve

By Torrey Trust EdSurge With the rapid spread of COVID-19, educators across the country and around the world have been tasked with shifting to emergency remote teaching—a move from in-person to remote classes made necessary by pressing circumstances.

This quick move to emergency remote teaching has left educators scrambling to figure out how to use digital tools, online resources, and apps to continue their teaching at a distance. Unfortunately, across the board, educators have not been prepared to teach well with technology, let alone teach remotely with technology.

While the authors of the 2017 National Educational Technology Plan recommended that, “every new teacher should be prepared to model how to select and use the most appropriate apps and tools to support learning and evaluate Remote|Continued to page 14

TSTA also called on the governor to make sure that all students — including those with special needs — can still receive lessons “in a safe and secure manner” while schools are closed. And the group asked the governor to make sure that teachers and school employees will continue to get paid and get health care benefits.

“Educators, as always, are dedicated to their students, even under extremely difficult and trying circumstances, but they must know that they will have the resources to meet their own families’ needs during this emergency,” Candelaria said.

TSTA also called on the governor to: make sure schools keep distributing free meals “in a safe way;” ensure that school districts are fully funded; guarantee paid sick time for any school employee impacted by coronavirus; waive teacher appraisals this school year; and help districts best serve students with special needs, those who are economically disadvantaged and those who are learning English.

Si trabajamos juntos, habrá menos de nuestros amigos y familiares afectados por el coronavirus. Los hospitales no estarán llenos, y se salvarán más vidas.

Aprenda más en www.texas.gov/covid19

¡CUMPLA CON SU PARTE PARA PROTEGER A SUS COMPATRIOTAS TEXANOS! 6 Pies

MANTENGA MANTENGA LAS DISTANCIA SOCIAL MANOS LIMPIAS Si tiene que salir, evite lugares públicos y mantenga su distancia.

Use jabón y agua por 20 segundos o un desinfectante de manos con 60% de alcohol.

LIMPIE Y DESINFECTE

QUÉDESE EN CASA SI ESTÁ ENFERMO

Desinfecte a menudo objetos y superficies que se tocan frecuentemente.

SÍNTOMAS DEL COVID-19 Los síntomas pueden aparecer en cualqier momento 2 a 14 días después de haber estado.

NO PROPAGUE GÉRMENES

Llame a su médico si tiene No se toque los ojos, la nariz ni la fiebre, tos o dificultad para boca. Si tose o estornuda cúbrase respirar. con la parte interna del codo.

¿POR QUÉ ES PELIGROSO? La mayoría de nosotros vamos a estar bien. Pero, si permitimos que el virus se extienda, morirá mucha gente que no debería morir.

30% 56% 10% Ningún síntomas

FIEBRE

TOS SECA

Síntomas moderados

Hospitalización

DIFICULTAD PARA RESPIRAR

¡SI NOS SEPARAMOS AHORA, PODREMOS ESTAR JUNTOS MÁS PRONTO!

4%

Hospitalización + UCI

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

Analysis: Digital divide with consequences for Texas Coronavirus has forced Texans online for education, commerce, work and entertainment; but a third of the state’s residents don’t have broadband in their homes

By Ross Ramsey The Texas Tribune When Anderson County told residents not to assemble in groups with more than 10 people, officials got some pushback from churches. County Judge Robert Johnston said that was partly because residents wanted to meet on Sundays like they always have, but it was partly because they don’t have a way to meet online. “A lot of this county has no internet service,” he said.

Many jobs can’t be done from home. That often includes work that could be done remotely — if only the computers and networks were available. And it’s a particular problem in rural Texas, which lags far behind the rest of the state in access to the internet that many urban and suburban Texans take for granted.

It’s a problem in metropolitan areas of the state, too, but for a different reason: Computers and broadband are expensive.

At times, not having broadband is just an inconvenience.

It would be nice to have Netflix or Hulu, maybe, but not essential. But when the people running your city or county tell you to stay home and work from there, or when the schools close and offer classes only online, internet access becomes a necessity.

Most of the state’s households — 94%, according to a preliminary report from Connected Nation Texas, a nonprofit focused on broadband access and adoption in the state — have access to at least a minimum level of broadband internet. That’s about a half-million households without access,

according to Jennifer Harris, the organization’s state program director; about 440,000 of the Texas households without access to broadband are in rural Texas.

Access just means internet access for someone who wants it. The numbers on how many Texans actually have broadband are much lower. Only 65.6% of Texas households have adopted broadband, Harris said, citing numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. The other 34.4% includes rural, suburban and urban Texans — anyone with access to broadband who doesn’t subscribe to it.

That leaves around one Texas household in three without a connection to the communications network that makes it possible to work from home — if your job even allows it — or to take part in online education being offered since the pandemic shuttered the state’s public schools. We’re 38th among the 50 states in broadband adoption.

Some of the solutions are creative. WesTex Connect, an internet service provider in Abilene,

has set up free Wi-Fi hotspots in parking lots next to football stadiums, at the Abilene Convention Center, in Clyde, in Merkle, at the Farmer’s Co-Op Gin in Stamford and next to a lumberyard in Stamford. More are on the way, the company says, for anyone with schoolwork to do, bills to pay, whatever requires internet access.

It’s great that the company is doing that, and a shame that it’s needed. Commerce and public education depend on internet access right now. In normal times — remember normal times?

— someone without internet or a computer at home can go to a public library to get online.

That’s true in cities and in small towns.

At the moment, internet is a necessity, a requirement for anyone who wants to stick with public health advice to stay at home, and also needs to get an education or work from home — not to mention paying bills, ordering groceries, catching up with friends and seeking entertainment.

The digital divide is not a new

story, but it’s newly pertinent at a moment when real interactions among people are limited and virtual interactions are vital.

Some of this is about access.

There are places — the woods of East Texas and the empty expanses of West Texas — where internet and even cellphone service are unavailable. Most of those are rural.

More of it is about adoption in places where access to broadband is available but where, for a variety of reasons — high prices, personal preferences, whatever — Texans aren’t connected to the virtual network that makes it possible for a social culture to weather a sudden, shocking change in how we talk and interact.

The pandemic has moved Texas online for education, commerce, health care and entertainment. But relying on that broadband network to keep us stitched together while we stay at home to keep the new Coronavirus at bay leaves about a third of the state’s households at an unsustainable social distance.

What does the stimulus package mean for student loans

By Summer Lin Fort Worth Star-Telegram Student loan borrowers will get a break on their payments due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Coronavirus Aid and Economic Security Act, or the CARES Act, pauses payments at no interest for most federal student loan borrowers through Sept. 30, media outlets report.

The CARES Act, the $2 trillion stimulus package signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27, also allows those who made a payment on or after March 13 to get a refund, Forbes reported.

The package pauses involuntary collection of student loans, including tax refunds, Social Security Benefits and garnishment of wages, according to Forbes.

People who want student loan forgiveness under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program or income-driven repayment (IDR), each month during the pause will act as though a payment was made for loan forgivness, according to US News & World Report.

If you want to still make payments during the period, you can continue to do so, according to US News & World Report.

The plan doesn’t include private student loans or give any student loan forgiveness, according to Forbes. Senate Democrats wanted a student loan forgiveness plan that would forgive $10,000 for federal student loan borrowers, Forbes reported.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

Page 13

Ed leaders: $13.5B for K-12 relief ‘not enough’

By Naaz Modan Education Dive The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act that passed 96-0 in the Senate late Wednesday night provides $30.75 billion in emergency relief funds for the U.S. Department of Education. Of that, approximately $13.5 billion would be used for ​ K-12 emergency relief grants and an additional $3.5 billion would be reserved for governors to use and distribute based on local need.

Steny Hoyer, the House majority leader, said late Wednesday the House would consider the full stimulus bill Friday, and President Donald Trump said he would immediately sign the full package when it reaches his desk.

Under the Senate CARES Act, U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos would be required to approve and distribute the funds within a month of receiving state applications for funds.

$13.5 billion is nowhere near enough for sustained support through what could be months of closures.

ADVOCATES: ‘MORE HELP’ NEEDED

States would have flexibility in how they use the funds, and possible areas of spending include, but are not limited to: Cleaning and disinfecting supplies.

Purchasing 1:1 devices and internet service for students without laptops and WiFi access.

Training and professional development.

Addressing the unique needs of low-income students, those

with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities, students experiencing homelessness and foster care youth.

Ensuring services like meals and special education continue during closures.

Providing mental health services.

The final amount is part of a comprehensive stimulus package, but legislative analysts and education associations say the

“While this is a first step forward, we need a lot more resources than what we’re currently getting,” said Chip Slaven, chief advocacy officer for the National School Boards Association.

Education organizations, including the NSBA, had requested billions more in funding.

In 2009, the Obama administration passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act stimulus package following the 2008 economic crisis. That legislation included approximately $77 billion for schools, a “significantly larger amount of money” compared to the $13.5 billion that is in the CARES package.

The $77 billion at the time was put to use even though students were still physically in school without the threat of a pandemic.

Reader Report: A family heals together amid Coronavirus closings

By Adam B. Giorgi Daily Yonder

sun set in the evenings and making plans to camp in the backyard once the weather Last week, we invited Daily warms up. We’re talking Yonder readers to tell us how about daddy more and enthe spread of Coronavirus is afjoying the wonderful memfecting their lives and communities. While we are working to ories we have of him. We’re provide you the latest news and learning to say “please” and information on the rural im“thank you.” We’re finding pacts of the pandemic, we also ways to help others in our recognize at this moment of incommunity, whether it’s creased uncertainty, isolation, a weekly outing to a famiand fear, that listening will be essential too. That’s why we ly-owned restaurant for a are encouraging you to connect take-away dinner or making When I heard last week down. The school my chilwith us and share your perspecdren attend hasn’t provided cards for nursing home restives, concerns, and needs relat- that schools were closing, I was more concerned with any distance learning or vir- idents that could use some ed to the Coronavirus.

One Yonder reader who how on earth I was going tual learning programs, but cheer.

We are very much looking answered the call sent a report to manage with three littles I’m perfectly fine with that! I from their home in rural Wishome all day, and less constocked up on crafts, and the forward to a time when life consin. Our team was inspired cerned with actually catchchildren are spending more goes back to normal, but we by the story and wanted to are also enjoying this gift time outside. We’re gluing share it with our readers. Their ing the virus! But then I started to think, what if this googly eyes on sock puppets we have right now. We are entry follows below: was us FINALLY getting our and making porcupines out praising God for his goodThe past year and a half ness to us, and we are allowchance to slow down a little? of pine cones. We’re learnhave been very challenging ing him to use this time to What if this was an opporing how to compost, we’re for my family. My husband heal us and make us more tunity to set aside the busy- planting seeds for spring was diagnosed with a rare like the people he intends us ness of our daily lives and gardens, we’re collecting form of colon cancer in Deto be! take time to rest? What if rocks and sticks. We’re cember of 2018 and after a As our rural reporting on we could finally find time in watching the deer forage in year of fighting, he lost his coronavirus and COVID-19 the day to talk, to share, to the apple orchard from the battle in November 2019. continues, let us know if you heal together? What if this comfort of our living room.

My three children and I have a story or perspective to was exactly what we needed We’re cuddling in bed toshare, as well as any needs or faced a long winter of hard concerns you’d like us to keep at such a crucial time in our gether each morning and work, adjusting, mourning, lives? enjoying homemade break- in mind as part of our ongoing and plowing through daily coverage.

And so, we are slowing fasts. We’re watching the life.

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

Online college courses could see relaxed regulation

By Danielle Douglas-Gabriel The Washington Post Colleges and universities would have an easier time rolling out new models for online programs, while a wider variety of higher-education providers would have access to federal student aid dollars under regulations advanced Wednesday by the U.S. Education Department.

More than a year in the making, the proposed rules governing distance learning arrive as thousands of colleges pivot to teaching online to stem the spread of the Coronavirus on campus. The migration has exposed inequities in the ability of colleges to serve their students remotely that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos says underscore the need for reform.

“This current crisis has made crystal clear the need for more innovation,” DeVos said Wednesday in a statement. “Fortunately, we started work last year to develop a new set of standards that are responsive to current realities, that embrace new technology … and that expand access for students to the flexible, relevant education opportunities they need.”

The secretary had backed a far-reaching overhaul of the regulations governing online learning, but the proposal was tempered by a panel of higher-education experts that spent months negotiating the new rule last year. The group reached a consensus last April, ensuring the department would have to include most of the language agreed upon during negotiations.

Leah Matthews, executive director of the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, who served on the negotiating com-

mittee, said she is pleased with the rules released Wednesday, as they “really captured the conversations over the sessions.”

She said the rules provide much-needed clarity on what counts as substantive interaction between students and faculty in an online setting, which can determine a program’s access to federal student aid dollars. Instructors must provide at least two forms of interaction, such as leading group discussions or offering feedback on assignments, to comply with the new regulation.

REMOTE |Continued from page 13 these tools against basic privacy and security standards,” this has not come to fruition.

In some teacher preparation programs, pre-service teachers are not provided with any opportunities to engage with technology in meaningful ways. Other programs provide a standalone workshop or course about education technology. Meanwhile, fully infused programs, in which education technology is embedded across the curriculum, are rare (see Arizona State University’s Program-Wide and Program-Deep Technology Integration Curriculum). Similarly, higher education faculty have limited or no opportunities to learn how to teach with technology, including how to find, evaluate, adapt and use technology to enrich learning.

As a result, the majority of educators were completely underprepared to design remote learning experiences with technology when states and districts started closing schools for COVID-19. While one benefit of this shift to emergency remote teaching is that teachers around the world are stepping out of their comfort zones to learn new technologies, the use of digital tools, apps, and resources without thoughtful consideration and evaluation presents a number of concerns for student learning, particularly in regards to privacy and student data, accessibility, and the

digital divide.

PRIVACY AND STUDENT DATA

During these pressing circumstances, many educators are curating and sharing digital tools, strategies, and tips for remote teaching with their networks. Businesses and organizations are providing free access to digital tools and apps for teaching and learning (see THE Journal’s ever-growing list of Free Resources for Schools During COVID-19 Outbreak).

Pop-up social media spaces and hashtags, such as #remoteteaching, #CovidCampus, and the Educator Temporary School Closure for Online Learning Facebook group, feature numerous posts and discussions about digital tools, resources, and apps for remote teaching. In fact, there are so many digital tools, apps, and online learning resources being shared, some educators are feeling overwhelmed.

With this rapid push to remote teaching, educators may be jumping into the use of digital technologies too fast. Educator Eric Butash noted that, “as many parents, teachers and students take to virtual conferencing tools for the first time, they are zooming into a ‘digital Wild West’ fraught with as many risks as rewards.”

Butash is right in pointing out the risks involved in this

quick shift to using digital technologies. Without training in how to evaluate technology for teaching and learning, educators may not be aware that they should be reviewing the privacy policies and terms of service of all digital tools and apps before determining whether to use them in their practice. They may not be aware that their use of these technologies might violate students’ privacy rights and put them in unsafe situations.

With Zoom, for example, students might experience harmful or obscene visuals during “Zoombombing”—internet trolling during video conferencing. They might experience cyberbullying through the chat feature, by logging into the Zoom room before the teacher arrives and being harassed by classmates, or by having classmates take photos or screenshots of their face during a Zoom meeting and use it in a harmful way. They might give away information to the teacher or classmates about their living situation when they are asked to show themselves on their webcam. They might also have their location data and IP address tracked without their knowledge.

While Zoom’s K-12 privacy policy offers more protection to students who login using their school email accounts than traditional users, this policy also allows the school to sign away the privacy rights of students.

That is, Zoom can still collect

personally identifiable information, information about a student’s school including its location, information about a student’s device, network, IP address, and internet connection, and information about student’s use of and actions within the Zoom platform.

Zoom does state that it complies with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and the Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). However, it puts the onus on the educators to ensure that the use of Zoom is in compliance with these policies. For instance, if educators set up a Zoom meeting that is open to the public (whether they mean to or not), they risk having uninvited visitors joining the meeting and identifying students or Zoombombing. If educators post a screenshot of their students on social media to show off their virtual teaching, that is a serious violation of both FERPA and COPPA. Additionally, when educators record students’ faces, names, and other identifiable information on Zoom, that video or audio recording becomes an educational record. As EdSurge has recently noted: “Any images or recordings that include students’ faces or names make these materials an ‘education record’ according to FERPA, which has strict rules around how photos and videos can be accessed, stored and shared.”

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

The Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) has been closely monitoring the status of COVID-19, which changes daily. As you are aware, there have been an abundance of school closures across Texas. We wanted to provide you with some updates regarding statewide training, data collection requirements, and efforts to support schools during this time. To check out these resources, go to txssc.txstate.edu/featured/covid-19.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The Texas School Safety Center (TxSSC) has been responding to the numerous inquiries from schools as they work to respond to COVID-19. We have noticed there are many common questions surfacing as school districts deal with the implications caused by COVID-19. We have created a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) webpage to address the most commonly requested resources and information from the Center during this crisis, and it will be updated as needed.

RESOURCES

We created a COVID-19 resource page several weeks ago that is updated weekly with new information, links, and other pertinent guidance being provided from state and federal agencies for schools. In addition, there are TxSSC templates for creating a multi-hazard emergency operations plan annex for communicable disease and information for creating a continuity of operations plan for schools. The resources can be accessed by clicking the link below.

The TxSSC is offering technical assistance with communicable disease/health annexes as part of your multi-hazard emergency operations plan. Since many school districts have already implemented closures, and many others are in a state of preparation, we are available to assist any district that needs assistance with the review, or preparation of, a communicable disease annex. For technical assistance requests, please email TXSSC_EOP@txstate.edu. We acknowledge that schools are navigating an unprecedented situation, all while trying to maintain instructional continuity and provide basic needs to Texas students. Your leadership through this time is commendable and helping to ensure the public health of our communities.

ORDERS |Continued from page 1 Under the orders, businesses are required to: • Businesses must assign safety monitors who will be responsible for implementing CDC-recommended protocols.

• Retail stores will be required to reduce how many people are allowed within the store. This would be equal to 5 persons per 1,000 square feet, or a maximum of 450 people.

• Retail stores will be required to implement line restrictions to better maintain social distancing.

•Retail stores will be required to establish hours reserved only for vulnerable populations.

•Retail stores will be required to establish purchase limits on high demand items like toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies.

• Playgrounds at city parks are closed, but parks remain open.

Mayor Mack has asked that people voluntarily do the following: •Residents are encouraged to follow a voluntary curfew from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. People con-

ducting essential business will be exempt from the curfew.

• Residents are strongly encouraged to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth when out in public. However, please refrain from using medical-grade masks, so they may be reserved for healthcare workers and first responders.

• Households should limit the number of people going to retail stores. Choose one person in your family to go to the store when you have a need. There is no reason for an entire family to be going to an “essential” store.

Leave your children at home with another adult if at all possible.

Gov. Abbott’s statewide GA14 order limiting non-essential business remains in effect for Longview.

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

Will COVID-19 bring the end of language teachers?

By Erin Richards USA Today Every day, Massachusetts seventh-grader Kaylyn Wilson takes a break from doing homework online and opens an app on her phone for a half-hour foreign language lesson.

“The boy has three green bikes and an egg,” the 12-year-old announced to her family in French at the start of her third week using the mobile app from Rosetta Stone, the language-learning software giant.

Wilson doesn’t yet need to study a language for credit. But during the school shutdowns to contain the Coronavirus, her father saw Rosetta Stone advertise free accounts for students – an offer other language-learning software companies have made as well. Wilson decided to give it a go.

“I really like learning French, and it doesn’t feel like a chore to me,” she said.

Kaylyn Wilson, 12, works through French exercises at home in Massachusetts on the Rosetta Stone app. Many language-learning software companies have offered students free accounts during school shutdowns to contain the Coronavirus.

As children nationwide settle into weeks and months of remote learning, educational technology companies are having a heyday, marketing their products as must-have solutions to keep students with internet access connected and engaged.

Few were poised to do so as well as language-learning software companies, which have spent years honing the digitized, per-

sonalized, gamified experience of a self-paced education.

Programs like Rosetta Stone, Duolingo, Babbel, and Kahoot! have been used in schools for years, with a catch: They’re usually paired with a teacher.

The tools could supplement foreign-language and English language instruction, but a few schools quietly used them to fully replace a certified educator that was too hard to find or too expensive to hire.

CEOs of the companies have long stressed their software isn’t meant to supplant educators.

But with hundreds of thousands of new users logging in from home, a global test – at least for this corner of online learning – is underway: Just how well can students learn on their own, through software, without a teacher?

And how much will this digitized education experiment change learning once children eventually return to tradition-

al classes?

“I do think that this is one of those watershed moments,” said Matt Hulett, CEO for Rosetta Stone. The company has added 10,000 to 20,000 new users each day since it dropped subscription fees.

Hulett wouldn’t share exactly how that translated to specific earnings, but he said the first quarter of 2020 stood to be a strong one for Rosetta Stone’s consumer business, made of school and student accounts and adult subscribers.

“We believe that teachers and technology are intertwined,” Hulett said. “We don’t believe there’s a self-learning trend that’s going to replace teachers.”

But in this unusual time, marketing materials position the products as the home-schooling solution for the coronavirus epidemic.

“In light of the current COVID-19 situation leaving millions of kids across the U.S.

PUBLIC NOTICES Virtual LISD Board meeting set April 13

The board meeting set for Monday, April 13 will be virtual. We will be hosting this on Google Hangout for our board members and administrators at 6 p.m. We will also stream to Facebook Live for anyone that does not have a LISD email. The live stream will also be recorded and posted for playback.

Public comment will be taken through ask@lisd.org.

Members of the public may access this meeting (with their student’s LISD email address) via Google live stream: bit.ly/LISDmeet04132020

LISD accepting competitive requests for proposals for Contracted Educational Services

Longview Independent School District (LISD) is accepting competitive requests for proposals for Contracted Educational Services for the 2019-20 school year and under the guidance of EDGAR and approval of funding made available for services to be rendered. Awards will be considered NON-EXCLUSIVE, ones by which multiple vendors may be designated as suppliers for the goods and/or services covered under the terms of the contract for the duration of said contract. Contracted Educational Service providers will be used on an as-needed basis throughout the District to provide services to students and staff. Please contact Sheri Broadwater at 903-381-2260 to obtain a proposal packet, or download one from below. Proposals must be addressed as follows: Attn: Sheri Broadwater, and clearly marked “#2001 CS-RFP-CONTRACTED EDUCATIONAL SERVICES.” Proposals will be accepted throughout the school year on an ongoing basis until 4:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 30, 2020, at the LISD Education Support Center, 1301 East Young Street, Longview, Texas, or mailed to P. O. Box 3268, Longview, TX 75606. Longview ISD reserves the right to accept or reject any or all of the bids submitted in the best interest of the District. For more information, go to lisd.org.

doing their school work from home, the global language & literacy company, Rosetta Stone, is stepping up to help provide those work-from-home parents some relief,” the company announced in press materials after it dropped subscription fees for students.

Language education experts praised the companies for providing free resources with no strings attached. But they’re concerned an increased reliance on software in lieu of real teachers – in virtual or traditional settings – could check the box for proficiency without giving students all the tools to read, write and understand a new language.

“How you can use language in a limited, computer-based environment is one thing,” said Howie Berman, head of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. “But once you’re out of that environment, can you actually use the language in a real-world setting?”

Attention readers, do you have a friend or loved one who was a Lobo that has recently passed? We would be honored to pay tribute to them in The Longview Voice. Please send the obituary and mug to ask@lisd.org.

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

How to teach social-emotional to children learning at home

By Arianna Prothero Education Week Tens of millions of students are dealing with massive upheaval to their educations and daily lives with their schools shuttered indefinitely to thwart the spread of the Coronavirus.

Add to that fears over a pandemic that could sicken them or loved ones, students now more than ever need strong coping skills to adjust to this new reality that will likely, for many, extend through the end of the school year and beyond.

But should social-emotional learning really be a focus for educators right now as they scramble to figure out how to teach their classes remotely?

And how can educators even continue to foster students’ social-emotional skills when they aren’t in class together?

To answer that first question, yes, said Marc Brackett, a professor at Yale University and the director of its Center for Emotional Intelligence.

Social-emotional learning is critical to managing anxiety at this time, he said.

“Because if you don’t know how to deal with the lack of control of your future, or the feelings of uncertainty that you’re having, your brain is going to stay in a constant fight or flight mode,” he said. “And if our brain is in fight or flight mode, then it’s not in learning mode.”

To answer that second question—about how to teach social-emotional skills remotely—EdWeek talked to experts to ask what SEL skills, exactly, schools should be encouraging and how teachers can do it.

Simple Things Teachers Can Do One place to start, said Brackett, is to try a technique

he calls psychological distancing.

Teachers can encourage students to stop thinking about themselves and instead ask: “‘Well, what would I do to support my best friend who was telling me they were really worried about the Coronavirus?

What would I say to them?’”

Brackett said.

“And all of the sudden, they start thinking about all of these strategies that they would use to be compassionate to someTeach|Continued to page 19

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

SPOTTED ON SOCI AL

THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020 APPS |Continued from page 9

TEACH |Continued from page 17

Elevate: Brain Training — (Android/Apple – subscription) Elevate is one of a clutch of quality brain-training apps (see also: Peak or Lumosity) full of mini-games designed to sharpen your memory, maths skills, focus and other mental skills.

Like those other apps, it uses a subscription, but with a week’s trial to test it out.

one, but that they may not use for themselves.”

Students should examine what they are saying to themselves—consciously or not— inside their heads and to ask themselves, ‘is their self-talk helpful?’

“It’s about doing [something], as opposed to being in your head all the time about it,” Brackett said.

Many educators are already trying out different tactics to teach or infuse social-emotional learning into their remote lessons, said Karen VanAusdal, the senior director of practice at the Collaborative of Academic and Social Emotional Learning, or CASEL. “It can be simple things, such as sending daily notes, or, as some educators are doing, morning meetings with their classes where they can build community and do check-ins with young people to see how it is going,” said VanAusdal. For younger students, some teachers have been reading books

Simply Piano — (Android/ Apple – subscription) If music lessons have gone out of the window, Simply Piano is one of the best app alternatives. It helps children (or adults!) to learn songs and then listens to their playing on any real piano or keyboard to give feedback. Two courses are free, but then it charges a subscription – pricey for an app, but not so much for piano lessons.

Women Who Changed the World — (Android/Apple – $2.99) This is a history app focused on a range of famous women who “helped us to understand our world better, and to make it a better place to live in”. Rosa Parks, Marie Curie, Malala Yousafzai and Amelia Earhart are among the women profiled through animation and storytelling.

Duolingo — (Android/Apple – free + in-app purchases) Duolingo isn’t just a fun and popular way to learn languages that children already study at school. It covers more than 30, including Arabic, Hindi, Hebrew and Welsh. It’s well designed, rewarding short daily sessions of practice. It’s free, but in-app purchases remove ads and unlock some extra features.

aloud to their students virtually and then reflecting on the social-emotional skills of the characters in the books, said VanAusdal.

For older students, VanAusdal recommends teachers ask students to examine the social-emotional attributes they’re seeing in leaders right now and to ask students how those qualities are helping the country through the crisis.

Some SEL skills educators should be highlighting in others and fostering in their students, said VanAusdal, are self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and responsible decision-making.

SHOWING KIDS TO REDUCE RISK

Examples for when those skills are necessary abound, said Catherine Bradshaw, a developmental psychologist and professor at the University of Virginia Curry School of Education and Human Development.

“Kids may have a lower risk

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of contagion so they have to be mindful that while they may not get sick, they have to wash hands to reduce other people’s risk,” said Bradshaw.

“So that’s a clear opportunity to understand how their actions and choices affect others.”

It’s also important to keep traditions and build supportive environments even when the class is scattered well beyond the classroom walls, said VanAusdal.

“Keeping up rituals, like a spirit week,” she said. “Have students wear crazy socks and take a picture of it and send it in.”

VanAusdal said she has seen several examples of principals and teachers making videos of supportive messages and sending them to their students.

Those are also ways to reach students who may be struggling to connect because they don’t have a computer or internet access at home, said VanAudal.

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THE LONGVIEW VOICE — April 10, 2020

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