"The mood was different from other school closings. The children were reserved, you could see their concern. No one cheered exuberantly, because they were of course aware of the issue", tells jutta aumuller, head of the johann-baptist-graser elementary school in eltmann.
What happens next?
After the closure of all schools until after the easter vacations, the heads of schools and kindergartens in the district were at first at a loss. No one knew how the next few weeks would unfold. Aumuller: "we have no experience in such situations and have to shimmy from day to day. The situation can change any day."
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The situation is relatively clear for the teachers. "The teachers are on duty, but that does not mean that they always have to be at school. You are now faced with the challenge of developing and implementing learning opportunities for schools", explains aumuller. She says it's not efficient to put 20 teachers in one room. "They end up infecting each other. Many of them also have children of their own and have to take care of them in some way." the planning, also for the time when the schools are open again, could partly be done more effectively from home.
Working materials for schoolchildren
The prasenzbetrieb rests, but: "nothing there, vacations", says heribert jager, principal of the hofheim middle school. What is announced now is extracurricular teaching with work materials for the schools. Nothing can be controlled or checked; of course, all exams and schoolwork have been canceled for the time being. Schools now need to take responsibility and show discipline. The lessons go on. The conditions and materials? This will become clear in the next few days.
Under principal philipp arnold, the ebern secondary school has become a recognized "digital school" and a pioneer is equipped with high-tech and already has a sophisticated concept for digital education. Every teacher and schoolchild can find out more about the business tool "G-suite" log in with personal access and edit teaching materials. Those who do not have their own laptop or PC at home were equipped with the school's own hardware before the school enrollment. What has long been used for training purposes is now facing a real practical test.
The time of the lesson cancellation, no matter how long it will last, should not be wasted; mutual accessibility should be guaranteed.
The friedrich-ruckert-gymnasium in ebern, a reference school for media education, is now also building on digital media. The school uses the internet portal of the bavarian ministry of education "mebis", to provide teaching materials to schools. There will be a weekly schedule, explains principal martin pohner. The director gave his students a wish for the next few weeks: "the most important thing is that you all come back healthy after the vacations!"
The regiomontanus grammar school in habfurt also wants to keep children up to date by e-mail and provide them with learning material.
Only limited supervision
But many parents are faced with the problem: where to put the children? Emergency care is being set up at schools and kindergartens in the habberge district for kindergarten children and schoolchildren in grades 1 to 6, according to a statement from the district administration office. If necessary, the school must be contacted in advance (by phone or e-mail). There are also the conditions to ask for. The same applies to the hours of care and the question of possible transportation by public transport.
Schoolchildren are insecure
Sophia Heub does not need supervision. But the 20-year-old is also affected by the closures. She is training to be an educator and is currently a student at the fachakademie fur sozialpadagogik (academy for social pedagogy) in habfurt. "We had important exams in the next few weeks, in may is already the deadline and then there was the exam period. You naturally worry whether everything will work out the way you think it will", she says. With more exact information, how it goes on for it, it can count only starting from monday. Until then, she enjoys her free time.
"Of course I was happy to have the day off from school, but you know what goes by the wayside", she declares. "Her free time is also being severely restricted because so many stores are closing as a precaution or events are being cancelled. I will use the time to summarize the material so far, do a little something about the bad conscience."