Learning during COVID-19: LUMIN Schools
Use of online tools during regular school days makes for a smoother, faster transition to distance learning
By: Isral DeBruin
As schools shift to serve students remotely during the COVID-19 crisis, some are emerging as standouts. These schools aren’t stopping at basic worksheet packets and instead are offering students coordinated, school-wide, comprehensive distance learning. City Forward Collective is highlighting these schools to spread best practices and encourage others to keep students moving forward.
For many students and teachers, the transition to distance learning prompted by COVID-19 meant adjusting to an entirely new way of doing school. That transition was smoother for students and teachers at LUMIN Schools, thanks to the network’s “blended personalized online learning” model.
The approach combines traditional teacher-led classroom instruction with personalized online lessons for students. During more normal times, that looks like students using apps like Zearn and ALEKS during the school day as one part of a math block, or at home for extra practice.
When schools closed abruptly in mid-March, those online learning tools suddenly took on new importance. Having them already in place made it that much easier for LUMIN schools to launch distance learning just days after buildings were shuttered. Students and teachers were able to log into familiar platforms, where they already knew how to communicate with one another and engage in teaching and learning.
Today, students log on to lessons at home, and their progress is monitored closely by teachers. Network-wide, about 85% of students engage in learning activities each day.
LUMIN teachers have reported a connection between how often they communicate with students and how engaged those students are in school work. So teachers make a point of connecting regularly with students and parents — sometimes multiple times each day — to provide guidance, answer questions, and teach virtual lessons.
Beyond academics, frequent communications also provide opportunities for educators to assess their students’ physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. Taking a “whole child” approach, LUMIN staff provide timely support based on what they hear from children and caregivers. A significant number of LUMIN students rely on their school for meals, counseling, and social work services. LUMIN and its partners are continuing to provide these services virtually or at a safe physical distance. In partnership with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, LUMIN is distributing boxes of groceries to families in need. Counseling sessions are held by phone. LUMIN staff also work 1:1 to connect families with resources to navigate specific challenges. Recent examples have included unemployment, homelessness, and a cancer diagnosis.
Through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, LUMIN staff, students, and families have responded with creativity and compassion. In some ways, relationships among teachers, students, and parents have never been stronger, staff say.
Teachers and parents are collaborating to help each child navigate their new learning environment. In some cases, teachers have created personalized schedules for families to accommodate specific parent work schedules, or situations where students are sharing devices. Teachers have delivered pizzas to students who complete the most math lessons in their class for the week. They have formed parades to drive by students’ homes. They are recording fun online lessons. Students and parents have responded with messages of gratitude for teachers.
The current school year isn’t over, but LUMIN staff are already well into planning for next year. The network created a task force to think through the many possible scenarios schools could face in the fall. Will school buildings still be closed, requiring a virtual back to school? What health and safety protocols need to be in place? How will LUMIN schools handle unexpected closures?
The network’s leaders are determined to be ready for students in the fall, regardless of what school looks like when it arrives.
FACTS & FIGURES
LUMIN Schools operates four private Lutheran schools in Milwaukee accepting tuition vouchers through the Milwaukee Parental Choice, Wisconsin Parental Choice, and Special Needs Scholarship programs.
Granville Lutheran School
- Grades: K4–8
- Enrollment: 269 students
- Student demographics: 88.1% Black; 5.9% Two or More Races; 5.2% Latin@; 0.4% American Indian; 0.4% White
- Students from economically disadvantaged households: 84.4%
- Students with special needs: 2.2%
- Students with limited English proficiency: 0%
- State rating: Significantly Exceeds Expectations
Northwest Lutheran School
- Grades: K4–8
- Enrollment: 233 students
- Student demographics: 89.7% Black; 6% Two or More Races; 2.1% Latin@; 1.7% White; 0.4% Asian
- Students from economically disadvantaged households: 96.1%
- Students with special needs: 2.1%
- Students with limited English proficiency: 0%
- State rating: Meets Few Expectations
Pilgrim Lutheran School
- Grades: K4–8
- Enrollment: 220 students
- Student demographics: 89.1% Black; 4.5% Two or More Races; 3.6% Latin@; 2.3% White; 0.5% Asian
- Students from economically disadvantaged households: 80.5%
- Students with special needs: 1.4%
- Students with limited English proficiency: 0%
- State rating: Significantly Exceeds Expectations
St. Martini Lutheran School
- Grades: K4–12
- Enrollment: 182 students
- Student demographics: 91.2% Latin@; 4.9% Black; 1.6% Asian; 1.1% White; 1.1% Two or More Races
- Students from economically disadvantaged households: 97.8%
- Students with special needs: 2.7%
- Students with limited English proficiency: 24.2%
- State rating: Exceeds Expectations
2018–19 data from Wisconsin School Report Card system
Isral DeBruin is director of strategy and communication at City Forward Collective. He is a former elementary school teacher and award-winning education reporter.
