Returning to School?

"Wuhan jiayou! Zhongguo jiayou!" A commonly heard
refrain of encouragement for Wuhand and China in the
fight against COVID-19.

Life has settled in to the new normal for us now. We basically are housebound, going out for walks usually in the evening (always with our masks on) but generally feeling like we are on a staycation without the fun aspect of a vacation. We are able to get the food we need and have stocked up a bit just in case food gets scarce, but for now it doesn’t look like we will be facing any shortages.

The real challenge right now comes with the future. How bad is the virus really? How long will this last? When will school begin again? When will life return to normal? What will that normal look like? And this provides us a look into the cultural window of living in China. 

So, as it stands, all schools are shut down by order of the government, and schools will reopen when the government deems it safe. Then, they will give us a one-week notice that we need to get back to school. If that sounds a bit authoritarian, well, it is, and it illustrates one of the major differences between life in the States and life here. School officials are dependent on the government to set the holidays (and travel days for them) and the government may wait until a few weeks beforehand to inform the schools. That has driven me crazy, but I’ve accepted it; however, in a situation like this, it means that no one knows anything. We have no idea when school will re-open and the school officials don’t either.

Fahrenheit 451? No, workers fumigating for the
virus.This occurred throughout the city this
last weekend.
(Photo downloaded from WeChat.)

The craziness extends to our lives too. Since the outbreak occurred during the Chinese Spring Festival (which is about a five-week vacation) many people were traveling, and many of my expat colleagues traveled out of country. After the seriousness of COVID-19 was realized, they were told not to return to school until further notification. Well, that notification came today, which is all well and good; however, this was from the school officials not the government and it doesn’t recognize the situation people are in. Most countries are strongly recommending against any non-essential travel to China, and most airlines have canceled their flights to China, which leaves these teachers stranded. The officials are most likely trying to get a jump on the 14-day quarantine the teachers will face upon their return, but most students will also face the same quarantine. Why the rush? Who knows.

The entrance of communities are restricted. People who
wish to enter must have their temperature taken and
present ID and a paper showing they are a resident.
(Photo downloaded from WeChat.)

So, how do we handle education in this situation? Well, online instruction, right? But, again, the system works a little differently over here. On February 13, we were told by our department to prepare the first four weeks of classes with lesson plans and a syllabus and a method for online delivery – and to have them ready by February 16. (Our term wasn’t supposed to begin until February 24, so we were technically still on vacation.) Oh, and there were no online learning platforms, apps, or funds provided to get this done. Just the demand and expectation. It was a scramble, but most of us came up with a plan, and since this is something I have a lot of experience with, I put a lot of time and effort into it getting it right.

A subway train running empty at midday.

Then, just yesterday, we were informed that the administration decided to cancel all online teaching by foreign teachers. Neither of these decisions allowed us any input into them, and that also is China. The boss makes the demands and the worker is expected to comply usually without any input. Then, we were also informed that the missed classes would have to be made up, probably pushing school into July. This hasn’t set so well with the Westerner teachers, so we pushed back and online classes may be back on the table.

As for Emily, her school also is shut down, but she was supposed to begin February 17. She was initially told she would not receive any online education, but just recently was informed she would have some online learning and was given an app to use – an app that is entirely in Chinese. So, she is trying to get that figured out to see what is required of her.

A mall entrance, open to the air but not to the public. People are
directed to a few select entrances at which their temperature
is taken before they are allowed to enter.

The long and short of this situation is that the strain of COVID-19 stretches far beyond the social isolation and daily inconveniences we are experiencing. The changes and uncertainty of my job and Emily’s schooling make it difficult to plan activities and difficult to find motivation to do things we know we need to do. We are taking advantage of the time to rest and to grow, but it really feels like we are in a holding pattern waiting to land. I just hope the plane has enough fuel.