Health officials have extended school closures until April 30th in Riverside County. That reality is making online school a more urgent option for teachers across the valley.

“We’re all doing distance learning and the students are adapting really well the teachers are adapting really well too,” Wes Williams, a teacher at Palm Valley School, said.

Palm Valley, a private school, is one of the first schools in the valley requiring all teachers conduct classes online. Now, public schools are in talks about doing the same thing.

Trina Alesi, president of the Desert Sands Unified School District Teachers Association said there’s been a few obstacles.

“Within our own district the equity issues are for students with disabilities,” she said. “So we need to make sure that they have access to online learning.”

She also said not every student in every district has access to the right equipment or WiFi.

“The state of California is going to have to address that,” she said.

The state has already addressed compensation during this unsure time.

“The governor and the legislators passed legislation that ensure the funding for the school districts that was already in place so there won’t be any interruption with that,” she said.

No interruption on pay and no interruption for Mr. Williams’ students.

“Probably 90 to 95 percent of my students are already done with my work for the next two days,” Mr. Williams said with a chuckle.

For parents with kids at home who don’t have school, experts recommend still keeping the kids on a schedule. One idea is to have them write thank you notes to front-line workers. It’s a kind gesture and they still get to work on those handwriting skills!

Could Online School Become the New Norm?