Message from the Superintendent of Education
In keeping with Governor Lee’s (TN) April 15 announcement and recognizing similar recommendations from Governor Beshear (KY) , all KYTN Conference schools will be physically closed for the duration of the 2019/2020 school year. Instruction will take place through online digital tools and offline activities. Teachers are using the best means possible to continue to deliver quality instruction, albeit in a different way, and, as such, we are counting the days ahead as instructional days. Teachers will take daily attendance via zoom or their preferred method and attendance will be noted as: DL (Distance Learning) in RenWeb. School in KYTN will officially end this year on May 20 as previously scheduled.
The Office of Education and Youth Ministries are collaborating to provide a Virtual Week of Prayer April 27-May 1. Please plan to join us daily from 2:00 PM-2:20 PM Central time on our Facebook page live https://www.facebook.com/kytnED/
Delivering education from a distance is no easy task and would typically need many weeks for training, scaffolding and preparation. However, this global emergency put us in a position where continuity of instruction plans had to be put in place in record time. We are blessed in the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference to have a tremendously dedicated educational team. Our teachers are versatile and mission minded. They have exhibited superb attitudes and willingness to best meet the needs of their students. During the week of March 23-27, 2020, we met daily on Zoom with all of our principals and teachers to provide information and instruction on moving online. President Haley joined the Zoom session on Thursday of training week to offer encouragement and support of these important initiatives. We spent time sharing, informing, and encouraging our teachers as they lead out in this important initiative. These Bi-weekly Zoom meetings will continue until students are back in their physical classrooms.
The Education Department has a private Facebook group set up exclusively for KYTN teachers (KT TEACH.Me) where teachers are asking questions, initiating ideas, and sharing together. I want to personally thank our teachers for all of the measures they have taken over the past several weeks to exemplify such gracious adaptability, kindness, and excellence in this unique season. I am grateful for their dedicated commitment to our students and families.
Our teachers and administrators are connecting with students and families, giving guidance and recommendations, answering questions, and providing instruction.
My expectation is for teachers to be in daily communication with their students to provide support during school hours.
My expectation is that teachers use the highest level of connectivity and delivery mechanisms possible for their students.
Teachers are to be reasonable and creative in finding the best method for students to complete their work.
Grades will be analyzed to ensure that they do not significantly depart from the typical grade distributions in the past year and are similar to the mid-term marks.
We have located and evaluated educational digital and video-based interactive tools to add as resources for student learning.
It is important during this time that we keep our hearts fixed on God’s love and plans for our lives. We know that even in the midst of the unknown, our Father “works all things according to the counsel of his will” (Ephesians 1:11). Psalm 139:16 says, “You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” (NLT). Not a sparrow falls to the ground apart from our heavenly Father (Matthew 10:29). God is infinite and intimate, and he has a plan for each of us. We as a conference team are keeping our students and our families in prayer daily as we continue in this unprecedented season of life. The God who told the wind to be still in Mark 4 is listening to our prayers today. He knows our needs before we do. He still goes before us and calms the storm. God has His hand over our schools, our teachers, our students, and our families.