The sliver lining: I know many parents and educators are worried that distance learning is not as good for academics as regular school. That’s probably true for most students, but perhaps there is a hidden benefit down the road. Stay with me as I explain... 1/9

With this shift to distance learning, all of the teachers who hadn’t picked up educational technology training already (and that’s a lot of teachers) are now having to learn a vast new skill set. Online workshops for teachers are packed. 2/9

Teachers are showing up to learn all about how to leverage the suite of tools they’ve had access to for years, but were never forced to use. Many of those tools make learning and assessment much more efficent. 3/9

Once mastered, education technology tools free up teachers to spend much more time on feedback, working with small groups, designing engaging experiences for students, and collaborating with colleagues. 4/9

Digital resources created by one teacher can easily be shared with others, improving learning for a greater number of students. When teachers know how to access these shared resources, they can bring them to their own students. 5/9

This is happening now. Teachers are spending the summer learning to be more effective online teachers. And, yes, online teaching is still probably not as good as classroom teaching, but fast forward to a time a few (or maybe many) months from now. 6/9

When our teachers are back in the classroom with their students again, they (teachers and students) will return with an unprecedented level of skill for using educational technology. 7/9

If teachers and students come back with greater skills for using tech tools for learning, then it is very likely they will continue to use them. We may see our teachers become even more effective at classroom teaching as they leverage the tech they now know. 8/9

I’m suggesting this may be a springboard moment. For now the spring is depressed as we stay home and move learning online, but we could also see that spring expand rapidly when our campuses can safely reopen and students and teachers apply their new skill sets together. 9/9