MANNINGTON, W.Va. (AP) - Glenn Beal has a daughter in fourth grade and another one in fifth grade who have been in the blended learning model this school.
Beal, a bus driver for Marion County Schools, said while his kids have always been good students, this new kind of learning presented a new difficulty, particularly his daughter in fifth grade daughter.
“I was struggling to help my daughters, who had always made honor roll,” Beal said. “When we got her first report card, it had three ‘F’s; it affected her, she cried for hours and broke out in hives.”
Beal spoke to some of his work colleagues about the issue, and within about a week, they started a new homework helpers program at the Mannington Elks Lodge to help kids in every grade level in any school get extra help and catch up on school assignments.
Angela Maset, a nurse at Fairview Elementary, was the main organizer of the program, and said that since the program began offering help each Tuesday and Thursday since Dec. 15, the sessions have reached capacity almost every time.
“Everything seems to be going good, and if they remain distant for an extended amount of time, we are going to extend it out until they do go back to school,” Maset said. “As long as there is a need for the kids, that is what it’s about.”
When she came up with the idea, Maset then asked the Mannington Elks if they could use their lodge for help sessions. She then talked to principals and both working and retired teachers and potential volunteers from around Marion County who could help the kids if they attended the program. She said kids of all grade levels have attended and many have since completed their school work that was assigned to be done over the winter break.
“The parents seem to be extremely happy,” Maset said. “They have been good at checking to see what they are accomplishing, and bringing us anything that needs caught up on so we can catch them up on anything that they have missed.”
Dennis G. Hayes, secretary of the Mannington Elks, said he was happy to donate the space to the program because the organization already has partnerships with several area schools involving sports and extracurricular activities.
“We are a community-oriented organization, a family-oriented organization,” Hayes said. “We are partners in education with Blackshere, we are partners in education with Mannington Middle School; if they ask, we donate money to them. We take care of our kids and we take care of the families in our community the best we can.”
Beal has been present at many of the sessions, and said he has seen the once-struggling students progress and get completely caught up on their assignments.
“Seeing the children come in here, the first week we had 37, some of them didn’t even know how to log in,” Beal said. “And seeing my own child progress and get all of her work caught up like her math, she is 100 percent better than what she was before at the start of this.”
Beal said he believes not going to a physical location for school could be hurting many students’ motivation, which may be why they are struggling. He also said the routine the kids have in the blended learning model is so drawn out that many can’t remember the lessons they learned the week before.
“In the regular school year, they study something maybe Monday and Tuesday, Thursday they review it and Friday they test,” Beal said. “My daughter said ‘Dad, this year we study something on Monday, we aren’t here to review it Thursday and take a test Friday, so we have to retain that from Monday to Monday, and I am having a hard time.’ So I think there’s a lot of different aspects to why the kids are having such a hard time with this.”
Savannah Hixenbaugh has a daughter in third grade, and said she agrees not having a physical learning space could be hurting her daughter’s education. She has been taking her daughter to Homework Helpers from the beginning, and said it has helped her get a better grip on how to help her learn at home.
“It was just overwhelming because my daughter is at home, so she was like, ‘I don’t have to do work I’m not at school,’” Hixenbaugh said. “It was definitely getting her into a routine and just not understanding how much I was to help her, how much I needed to back off. It’s hard because when she struggles I want to just help her and do it, but that’s not what a teacher might want.”
To maintain social distancing guidelines, Maset said, she has had to turn away students who arrive to sessions too late. However, she said that lately, there have been fewer students attending the sessions because they have finished their school work, so now could be a good time for students to register so they can complete their work yet.
She said she is concerned for everyone’s safety, but she is also concerned about keeping the kids’ education at the forefront because they are the future leaders of the world.
“Everybody’s health is my number one concern,” Maset said. “However, these are our future doctors, nurses, bus drivers, school teachers, aids, and we also want to give them the best chance chance to keep their education going and not get behind.”
Beal said he has seen a positive shift in his daughters’ education since taking them to the Elks Lodge. The volunteers of the program have brought his kids back into an encouraging learning environment that is optimal for getting work done, and he recommends it to anyone else struggling to help their kids.
“I think this is giving them a perspective of, ‘You can do this,’” Beal said. “From a parent’s perspective, I am so glad that all these ladies stepped up to do this and the teachers and all volunteers; I think it is making a huge difference in all these kids’ lives.”
Homework Helpers is a free program at the Mannington Elks Lodge that runs from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday through next week, with potential to expand further, according to Maset. To register a student for a session, call 681-443-9821.
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