MEMPHIS, Tenn. —
Shelby County Schools parents, students, and teachers are sounding off about how virtual school is going, two days into the semester.
More than 95,000 students are starting the semester online.
The first day, the district received 5,700 calls to the parent help line. 80% of students with computers powered up for school..
Parents Local 24 News spoke with seemed to think, under the circumstances, the school year is off to a good start.
"There were some hiccups. There were some internet issues on both sides," said Liz McKee, a Grahamwood Elementary parent.
McKee said the first day of school for her 4th grade daughter and 2nd grade son went smoothly.
"I feel like they had an insurmountable task and there was no way to please everyone, but they have done a wonderful job," said McKee.
McKee isn't alone. A check of online message boards found parents, students, and teachers talking about virtual schooling being a positive experience.
On Reddit, a midtown teen wrote, "12th grader here. It went great. Had a couple of connection issues but nothing that didn't get resolved."
Another person wrote, "Teacher here. I think it went surprisingly well."
A parent commented, "Parent of a 7th grader. So far so good."
Of course, there were a few blunders. One parent wrote, "My son's teacher doesn't seem to understand how to mute her microphone. So we all hear her talking sh*t about the 10-year-olds."
McKee says while the first two days went well, she wonders what will happen in the future.
"I think it's going to get more difficult. Right now, it is a novelty. The kids haven't seen the faces of their classmates and other kids, a level of excitement exists," said McKee. "As days become weeks and weeks become months, it's going to be a little more difficult to sustain that level of excitement."
McKee said she worries the kids will get tired of the virtual learning, and added, there are some things are hard to learn sitting in front of a computer.
"These kids are in school to learn their ABCs and 123s, but they are also there to learn how to interact with other people."
Keith Williams, spokesperson for the Memphis Shelby County Education Association, said there were some bumps, but there are always issues at the beginning of the school year. Williams said he heard of some spotty internet problems in some parts of town and added some teachers report their classes were overcrowded.
"I don't know if more students showed up than they expected, or they are understaffed. I don't know, but we are working on that," said Williams.
SCS denied Williams claim that some classes were overcrowded.
Despite those issues, Williams said most teachers have done their best to adapt to virtual learning.
SCS Spokesperson Jerica Phillips said when school began Monday, 90% of students had picked up their laptops. Of that, 80% logged on for class. 5,700 parents put in requests for help. There is also a situation room for administrators to call for questions and help at each school.
"This is going to be a journey, with a lot of rough spots but you take those journeys one step at a time," said Phillips.
Phillips said this is a monumental and historic opening for the district and it is to be commended.
