Angels Camp, CA…Teachers and school staff abruptly entered the world of virtual teaching this March. The Calaveras County Office of Education (CCOE) stepped up to give teachers and staff immediate help to navigate distance learning during the Stay at Home order.

CCOE partnered with the San Joaquin County Office of Education to provide Google trainings, headed up by CCOE’s Technology and Curriculum & Instruction Departments. These trainings were slated to begin later in the year but instead were quickly set in motion to offer much-needed support. “We literally were able to have the first training created and completed in two weeks,” said Karen Vail, CCOE’s Assistant Superintendent of Instructional Support Services.

Trainings started on April 22nd and concluded on May 22nd, serving over 60 school staff across Calaveras County. The training materials remain accessible through a Google classroom created for these sessions. “We now know we can continue to offer ‘just in time’ help for our districts’ staff who need it,” said Vail. “Feedback from the training recipients has been positive,” she expressed, “they felt the trainings help them understand the Google education platform.”

Recent training session were offered as one session courses. Moving forward, additional multi-session trainings will be offered in collaboration with the California Collaborative for Education Excellence (CCEE) and Computer Using Educators (CUE). These multi session trainings began May 28th and will run through June 9th, with multiple days for each training session. Additionally, trainings will be recorded and available for school staff not able to attend and for future reference. “The intent is to provide access to trainings and resources for school staff to deepen the learning needed for possible use of distance learning in the future,” reported Jared Hungerford, CCOE’s Director of Curriculum and Instruction and Adult Education Coordinator. Hungerford also stated that “CCOE continues to provide supports and services to our districts to strengthen education for all students in Calaveras County. Moving forward, we want to continue to provide services that align with current challenges educators and students are facing.”

Calaveras County Superintendent of Schools Scott Nanik added that “CCOE will continue to support education in Calaveras County to ensure that quality instruction is provided to all students. Clint Close, Director of Technology, commented that “many of our teachers will return next year with new tools to help their students learn no matter what obstacle is placed between them.”

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