Speaking recently to the issue on A Chat With The Community with Chief Education Officer Connie George, he said: “The teachers, they themselves are excited being able to interact with their students. It is not the same to being able to interact online as it is in person.”o

“They are a bit overwhelmed because they have to teach the same thing in the morning and in the afternoon, but they feel like it’s more beneficial for them as a teacher to give their students that interaction, to see where they are, to address any needs or issues that they may face, they can address right on as opposed to online where they cannot see the child. So they have the opportunity now to dive in and see what’s needed,” he said during the programme aired on January 20.

Meanwhile, he outlined several benefits to the model.

“One of the major benefits I would say, an increase in ed-tech using technology in education in school and out of school. We have seen an increase in collaboration and communication with our parents. We are able to send out emails to our parents, give them notifications through WhatsApp, through Google Classroom, things of that nature. So there is an increase in communication with all our stakeholders in the system.”

He said students are also showing heightened interest in school due to the incorporation of technology.

“The students are very happy; I think being in lockdown and staying at home for so long, humans are interactive beings, so to have that opportunity now to socialize with their friends and teachers, they are happy in that regard. They love the aspect of using both online and in person.”

Todman further mentioned that on days where traditional learning takes place, the smaller classroom sizes are enabling teachers to have a one-on-one with students who require the extra attention.

“We would like more time obviously to make sure that concepts are consolidated and that students learn. The only drawback I would say is the time. We are accustomed of having six to seven hours of teaching time per day, but to have it cut in half to three and a half hours is a bit taxing. Besides that, there are more benefits than there are flaws,” he shared.

Chief Education Officer Connie George admitted that there are flaws in the system; they are “moving towards improving as we go on.”

Hybrid learning is a mixture between online instruction and traditional learning, and it was brought on following the onslaught of the Novel Coronavirus Disease pandemic, to ensure that learning continues.