Dr. Maria Avgerinou and Ms. Sophia E. Moros
Maria D. Avgerinou, Ph.D. is the Director of Educational Technology and eLearning, at the American Community Schools (ACS) Athens (Greece).
Sophia E. Moros, M.Ed., is the Elementary School Principal at the American Community Schools (ACS) Athens (Greece).
Sessions
Redesigning a drastically new approach for teaching and learning within grades JK-5 required immediate attention to all constituents’ needs, including students, faculty, and parents, in order to maintain educational continuity in a functional and safe online learning environment. This work describes the 5-Phase Process designed as an action research-based, disruptive intervention to transition from the traditional, four-walled classroom into a virtual classroom, thus transforming learning experiences, routines, and perspectives in the Elementary School at the American Community Schools (ACS) Athens, Greece. This emergency shift oc- curred simultaneously with the professional development needs of in-service teachers, and was guided by research-informed best practices of virtual teaching, and effects of online learning for students between ages of 3-11, while bearing the state of emotional and financial stress of all constituents. While the 5-Phase Pro- cess is still in effect, preliminary results are shared, while implications for practice and recommendations for further research are considered.