Why Your Child is Failing Virtual School…and What to Do about It
By: Rob Durham
Tags: High School, Failing And Learning, Virtual Schools, Parenting Teenagers, Parenting Advice

The stats are in my gradebook. A record for the number of F’s. A record number of A’s. Everything in between? …minimal.

I can explain the A’s. Every test, quiz, and assignment is open-book, open-note, open internet. I won’t pretend I can stop a kid from cheating from the comfort of a bedroom. So if a kid didn’t study for the quiz and needs to use a cheat sheet? Have at it! I can’t enforce an honor code with teenagers from a remote location. If a kid wants to find the correct answer, especially in language arts, all that kid has to do is refer to the notes, the book, or something called Google. Getting an A in Mr. Durham’s class has never been easier.

And yet there are so many F’s.

I’m not judging the students or their parents for staying home. I’m envious actually. They get to eat and take off their masks. We don’t. I do not resent my students or their parents for their decision to play it safe.

The frustration towards my virtual students stems from lack of effort. For starters, when they show up late to class (via Zoom) to which my only response is the same tired joke: “Let me guess…traffic?” Unless they specify tech troubles, I’m not repeating myself. Mark them tardy? Sure, but virtual attendance records don’t matter. What are we going to do, ground them?

So why aren’t they acing the open-book quizzes? Sometimes my virtual students won’t even take the quiz during class. I’ve had more than one student admit that they fell asleep and missed it. Too bad, that’s a zero.

I’ve talked with more concerned parents than ever before. Zoom conferences were busy. “Are they not understanding the lesson? Can you give them extra practice? Should I hire a tutor?”

No. That’s not it. They’re not listening to the lesson. In previous years, I’ve battled with students distracted by their cell phones even though I forbid them in class. When they’re at home, I have no control over whether they’re paying attention. So instead, I’m battling for attention with not only cell phones, but also television, gaming devices and the entire internet. So while they’re not participating in class discussions, I estimate they’ve got up to a half-dozen buddies messaging them at any moment.

So why don’t you call on them?

I do. Often. Here are the more common responses:

No response. Just a black Zoom screen with their name on it. “Sorry, my Wi-Fi cut out, what are we doing?”…or I’ll get the same wrong answer that someone else just gave.

Because of the blocked scheduling, students now have more class time to work on assignments than ever before. I can’t lecture for 90 minutes three times a day for five days a week, nor could any teen learn in that fashion. The result ends up being anywhere from 15 to 45 minutes of work time to finishing assignments almost every day. Do they use that time wisely? Of course not, because they’re working on finishing something else called Netflix.

Therefore, almost all of the students in my classroom turn everything in. Virtual students have a much lower percentage of completion.

It’s not a mystery. I get it. When you’re at home, it doesn’t feel like a full-time effort should be given. I noticed my workouts decreasing in length when my wife and I bought a house and began using our own exercise equipment instead of going to a gym. The common theme is self-discipline, and there are quite a few teenagers who don’t have it.

When they were attending school in person, it was up to us teachers to check on them. Often. With some students I have to cruise by their desk every few minutes to keep them on task, especially when they’re using a laptop. There’s a sense of shame in not completing something when we’re in person.

I’m not nearly as connected with students at home. Honestly, I probably don’t know your child very well. He or she doesn’t participate much. I told one mom during a conference, “I have no idea what your daughter looks like.” She couldn’t believe it, but I’m not going to battle with 16-year-olds about turning a laptop camera on and whether or not their Wi-Fi works. Wouldn’t you know it, it always goes out when I call on them. So weird.

I’ve tried putting them in groups on Zoom. You know what I find when I pop into their breakout rooms? Black, muted screens. They won’t even work with each other.

I wear a mask from 8:00 to 1:30 every day. I teach three straight blocks with a 6-minute break between each class, and “break” isn’t the right word as I shuffle to start another Zoom session, load modules, answer questions, check email, say goodbye and hello as kids leave and enter, and then if I’m fortunate enough…I run to the restroom and get in line behind the other teachers.

It’s been a nightmare, so it’s hard to empathize with a kid I barely know who hasn’t even left bed and can’t be bothered to act like a real student. I’ve spent hours, many on the weekend, transferring my curriculum onto online programs like Canvas, so when a student I barely know is so zoned out that he or she doesn’t notice that we’ve spent the last 20 minutes taking a quiz, I’m not wasting my precious plan time to set up a second chance.

So what’s the solution? I wish I had a better one. Parents can’t be there to monitor their children. I prefer they didn’t. It comes down to self-discipline and prioritizing school. If that message hasn’t been engraved in your student’s brain by high school, don’t bother spending a dime of your money on college in the years that follow. You’ll feel as frustrated as I do.

My suggestion? Let your child fail. They’ll need to retake the class, and maybe the second time through they’ll decide to learn the material, or if nothing else, they’ll learn accountability.

The circumstances aren’t fair, but everyone has had to adapt, even kids. Part of the growing process is handling adversity which this younger generation is not known for to begin with. And what greater experience is there than failure?