Civil Municipal - Feb 2024

the second, virtual instruction does seem to have come along at an opportune time. “During the ’20-’21 school year, we were virtual here in our district,” Harper recounts. “That allowed us to see how the kids would respond. It may not be the ideal way to provide education, but I’m thinking if we can’t do something to get more people involved in education, virtually it may be one of those options where public education will have to go.” Mathis agrees.“I do think that we will see more hybrid education where there will be virtual instruction as well as the option for face-to-face,” she says. “With the declining number of teachers and people who are interested in going into the field, I think that this method will be used to address some of those shortages. Knowing this, we must stay on top of technology. And some of the things that we’re currently doing already incorporate technology within our classrooms.” “For example, our students use Google Classroom and other virtual options to access their curriculum.” (Google Classroom is a free, blended learning platform developed by Google for educational institutions that aims to simplify and streamline the process of sharing grades and assignments between teachers and students. It has approximately 150 million users.) Palmer offers a caveat: “Even if we do the hybrid model, our district will still try to incorporate different social activities for our children with the hope that, if we do go to more virtual learning, our students will still receive the social aspect which will enable them to excel outside of the circumference of our educational system.” Mathis likewise hopes for a “more holistic” approach to education.“I think that we will see more focus on the social/emotional part of education,” she proffers. “That’s a big push now with so many students experiencing mental health issues.You will see more of a focus on that while incorporating academics into it.” INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS 183 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 5, ISSUE 02 HANCOCK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, GA