Home Based Learning during the Circuit Breaker Period

Home-Based Learning during the Circuit Breaker Period

(Reflections of an educator during the pandemic)

2020 is a year that would be etched deeply in my memory for a long time to come. A year where everything that was once familiar was all gone in the blink of an eye. CoVid-19 had posed extraordinary challenges to all teachers and students.

When Full Home-Based Learning (FHBL) commenced, it was imperative to create a sense of community amongst Crescentians to stave off the feeling of isolation that could arise during the Circuit Breaker period. The class committees were empowered to plan for bonding activities during the holidays. Concurrently, the Level-wide Inter-Class Challenges were used to gamify self-care. It was really touching to see Crescentians sharing their lives and homes with us as they shared pictures of family baking sessions, zoom bonding sessions with their friends or simply sharing their talent with us.

In Semester 1, the fatigue experienced by teachers as they had to quickly implement many of the safe management measures to keep COVID-19 at bay was almost palpable. In hope of encouraging our colleagues, we organized ‘The Gratitude Challenge’ where students expressed their thankfulness for the effort put in by the teachers to create engaging and effective lessons and caring for them. Crescentians rose to the occasion and penned many heartfelt tributes to their teachers.

To provide further socio-emotional support and fostering camaraderie amongst colleagues, the “CGSTEACHERSHELPTEACHERS” padlet was created. It was truly inspiring to hear of the ingenious ways that various teachers tried to continue to build rapport with their students and adjust their lessons to engage their students online.

Although the virus may be formidable, it was no match for the indomitable human spirit in Crescent. The many other student initiatives that were created by Crescentians to encourage one another to stay safe and stay healthy were a testament to that. Though it may be a challenging year, together we will emerge stronger as long as we continue supporting one another in the Crescentian family.

Written by: Li Xiaoping (Year Head/Lower Secondary)