The arrival of COVID-19 and the ensuing global pandemic has forced alot of industries to rethink how they provide products and services to their customers. The delivery of education has been no exception. Last March we saw a mass closure of schools worldwide and when it came time for schools to think about re-opening, decisions on how curriculum was to be delivered to students varied from continent to continent, country to county, and province to province. Here in BC, as September approached there were many discussions on when, how, and even if students would return to school in person. Eventually, parents were given the option of face-to-face, blended, or all online.  

I think… 

From what we learned in class, it seems that the discussion around access to learning and flexibility around modality has been in the works for a long time. Many believe that on-line learning is not as effective as face-to-face although some would counter with that there is no guarantee face-to-face learning any richer. Some argue a blend of both could benefit many learners. I think that in discussions such as this, it is important to remember our biases that cannot help but impact the way we consider we think and feel. There is no doubt in my mind that if modality became more flexible in education, more people would have the opportunity to access learning in the way that best suited their own individual needs. 

I know… 

The pandemic hit my family particularly hard – my husband lost his job, we sold our house, uprooted our family, said goodbye to our wonderful community and moved closer to family. In the midst of it all, I was accepted into the UVIC Post Degree-Program for Elementary Education. I am so grateful that the University moved my entire program on-line because if that had not been the case, I would have missed out on the opportunity to further my education and achieve a lifelong dream of becoming a teacher. I got lucky a global pandemic forced academic institutions to pivot and offer their programs online. But what about those who were not so fortunate as I was?  

I wonder… 

The biggest thing I wonder about it how modality and flexibility around access to learning will look when things go “back to normal.” Are e-blend and on-line options here to stay? Or will education institutions back to what we would consider normal and all those students who actual did better in some sort of blend of face-to-face and on-line be forced to learn in environment that doesn’t suit them. What about mature learners who have work and family responsibilities that inhibit them from taking university classes because of the way they are scheduled? What about those with health problems who can’t attend in person?