SCHOOLDEMIC

Four families across the nation adjust their lives to a new normal as the pandemic shut down schools in 2020.

STORY SYNOPSIS:

In 2020, Covid-19 ravaged through our nation and began shutting down cities one after another. As cases rose, hospitals were overrun, cemeteries maxed out, and schools began closing their doors to their students in an effort to curb the spread of the disease. Some believed schools would be closed for a few weeks and that things would go back to normal in a few months; however students and families began realizing they had to adjust their lives to a new kind of normal during the age of this pandemic. For students, families, and teachers one thing echoed true through all this uncertainty: schooling and education will never be what it once was. Schooldemic will follow the lives of four different families from different parts of the country who all have varying experiences with remote learning.

CHARACTERS:

Anthony Patterson, Baltimore, MD

Mr. Patterson, a middle school history teacher, takes the viewers through his mental state when schools were first shut down and how we had to adapt to the new realities of teaching.

He incorporated topics of current events and how our history can teach us about our present climate. He began teaching students about self-care, self-love, and mental well being. He learned more about his students and their home lives. At the same time, he struggled being home with his two daughters and wife who was also working from home. All four of them had to find ways to adjust to this new way of working and to allow everyone to have their own space. Despite these struggles, Mr. Patterson walked away from the school year remembering why he loved teaching and the roles teachers play in the lives of their students.

Michelle Saparbaeva, Hollywood, CA

Michelle, a second grader, who was going back to school in a hybrid form, will shock the audience with her witty and matter-of-fact way of speaking.

She is aware of her lack of friendships and it is evident that she finds comfort in speaking of rodents and video games rather than making friends of her own age. We will see how the pandemic affected Michelle’s social interactions and the concerns her mother has for her. Noticing that Michelle has lost many friendships during the pandemic and worries that having her older sister as her only friend will be detrimental to her, Michelle’s mother decided to send Michelle back to school despite the safety concerns. Though Michelle is still struggling with her friendships, it is obvious to the audience that Michelle enjoys being back at school rather than being remote. Through following Michelle and her family, we will see how even young kids are affected by the isolation caused by schools shutting down and how families try to find ways to mend that isolation.

J’Den O’Neal, Irmo, SC

We will meet J’Den, a high school student who has been completely remote since March 2020. J’Den was able to find enjoyment through remote learning.

Considering himself to be very intelligent, J’Den was already used to pushing his own learning and did not find it difficult to push himself when content was not engaging during remote instruction. Being isolated from his friends, he was also able to find passion elsewhere like gardening, creating hair products, and cooking. J’Den will show the audience that remote learning was not perfect for him. He found the content to be unengaging, boring, and lacked the tactile part of learning when they are at school. He explains how communication from his teachers were irrelevant and oftentimes he would complete an assignment without his teacher’s support. However, J’Den looked at this as an opportunity to do more and grow his interests even further. He would complete special projects and share with his teachers. He explains how doing so helped him understand his teachers more and made remote learning slightly more enjoyable.

Lacora Montague, West Palm Beach, FL

Coco, a mother of four school aged children who had to navigate being a working single mother and also providing support for her four children with remote learning.

With Coco’s story, the audience will learn that remote learning impacted families just as much as it impacted students and teachers. Coco, who was working, ended up losing her job when she could not go to work while also supporting her kids who had to be at home. While dealing with unemployment she also had to deal with 4 different teachers, different online platforms, and had to figure out how to help her kids with content she did not fully understand. When she did find a new job that allowed her to work remotely, she had to find ways to put her kids to work in different areas around the house while she worked. She explains to the audience that her first priority was getting her kids back to school as quickly as possible. Regardless of all the struggles Coco had during the first part of the pandemic, she was able to learn a lot more about her own kids; something she knew she would not have learned if they were not all forced to be at home together.