Ossining Schools Meet Parents’ Need for Tech Support

Adjusting to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a major undertaking for teachers and students. It has also been challenging for parents who are not familiar with the technology the Ossining School District uses, who have children just entering the educational system, or whose first language is not English.

To help bridge any gaps, Ossining offered a series of online webinars in English and Spanish, as well as eight in-person sessions (with precautions, masks and social distancing) for those who wanted additional help.

The OUFSD Tech Page also has links to Help Desk forms in English and Spanish, family technology resources, the webinars and more. Students and parents/guardians can fill out a form online, send an email or call a phone number for help with logging in, Google and Google Classroom and Google Meet basics, email, Flipgrid, connecting to WiFi, and using the Clever app, which provides a secure, single sign-on to access Ossining’s elementary-level platforms.

“The idea and the challenge of this was to be able to get directly to our families that have the greatest challenges accessing technology, helping students at home, etc.,” said Dr. Brian Alm, Ossining’s director of secondary teaching and learning.

All but one of the sessions had the maximum of 20 people attending, with between three and five facilitators for each one, he said. Teachers and other staff members volunteered to help with the workshops.

The district has been getting many tech support requests and is planning a future in-person session in collaboration with Neighbors Link, Dr. Alm said.

“As long as there’s ongoing need, we’re going to try and keep doing this,” he said. “Just like students need repetition, parents need repetition.”

Brookside School dual language teacher Adriana Frega said the technology sessions were an important empowerment opportunity for families. “Every parent wants to do the best for their kids,” she said. “Our parents are trying to do what’s best with what they have.”

For everyone involved in switching from in-person to remote learning, technology use has been a learning curve. The district has provided students with Chromebooks that have all the applications necessary to participate in classes, check assignments and grades, and get other information.

Some parents in Ossining do not come from a place of privilege, Ms. Frega said. Some may not have a personal computer at home, or they may be accessing everything via their smartphone. “I have parents who have never touched a computer in their life before,” she said.

Ms. Frega said she provided a lot of technical support to families in the spring, in addition to teaching. Offering the webinars and in-person sessions has given parents and guardians the background they need to assist their children. “Now, it’s all about leveling the playing field and looking at everything we do with an equity lens,” she said.

Marcela Briones-Levin, the district’s parent coordinator, said there was a wide range of experience and familiarity with technology. The parents and guardians who attended the sessions were motivated and eager to learn. “The workshops were very much needed, even for people that know how to manage technology,” she said.

Parents familiarized themselves with Google Classroom, other Google programs the district uses, Chromebooks and logging into WiFi, which can be different from their home computer.

Ms. Levin said the training in Google Classroom would have been helpful to her when her son was at Anne M. Dorner Middle School. She used the parent portal, but did not realize at the time how much more information was available through Google Classroom.

Brookside School dual language teacher Olga Bravo also said technology was a challenge for many people in the spring. Parents and caregivers are better prepared now to help their children because of the training, particularly for the youngest children, who need the most support, she said.

“They were eager, they wanted to learn,” she said of the in-person sessions. “They said, ‘I just want to be there and I want to help my child and I want to support them.’”

The in-person workshops provided opportunities for one-on-one help, Ms. Bravo said. In some cases, a grandmother or another adult who was going to be with children during the school day attended.

It starts the year off on a good note, with everyone connected and on the same page, Ms. Bravo said. “I think it has made such a difference to give that support to our families,” she said.