If you have some how been living under a rock these last seven months and have avoided knowing the impact the Covid 19 pandemic is having on the economy, then you only need to spend a few minutes looking at the digital school signs in your community to see how things have changed:
- Athletic contestants are postponed or cancelled.
- Schools are operating on modified schedules, dividing students into two groups and having them report on alternate days.
- Administrators are desperate for substitute teachers, custodians, and bus drivers.
- Students and staff alike are reminded of the mask requirements to enter buildings.
- Early dismissals and days off school are announced so that teachers who are navigating hybrid classrooms have more time to plan.
- Teachers in some communities are being praised for their hard work and innovation.
It is not just digital school signs, of course, that are messengers of these difficult and changing times. Church marquee signs announce additional and expanded food pantry times, municipal signs on government buildings indicate shortened hours and days when they are closed, and scrolling marquee signs on closed movie theaters are empty. Everywhere you look, in fact, it is difficult to avoid the sings of the struggles American is facing.
Digital School Signs Continue to Communicate to Parents Changes to Schedules and Calendars
As teachers, administrators, and students prepare for the cold and flu season, it is unlikely that there will be any move to return to normal in the classrooms across the nation. Fortunately, teachers are known for their innovation and parents continue to hope that these very different months will still provide academic challenges and excitements for their children.
In some parts of the country, however, it is difficult to deal with the fact that students are not attending in person classes and that many parents are having to change their already modified work scheduled to accommodate supervising children while they learn from home. For this reason, of course, there are many places that are offering alternative school learning environments for children of parents who are in the health care field or other lines of work were working from home is not an option.
As many as 71% of people admit that they often look at the messages on roadside billboards, both traditional and digital combined. It is likely, then, that even though things are far from normal, parents and students alike are looking at digital school signs for some indication of normalcy. And while these signs might be announcing that parents teacher conferences will be online this year, it is important to note that communication still matters. In many ways, in fact, communication may be more important than ever before. Looking for some. signs of normalcy will allow education to continue. And while so many classes are now meeting on line rather than in person, it is important to note there are some significant gains being made. With the hard work of classroom teachers across the nation, there are likely even some recently developed methods that will continue long after the virtual classrooms have closed and students are again learning in person.
Outside of the educational setting, there are many other ways that digital and traditional signs are used. In fact, as many 85% of a business’s customers live or work within a five-mile radius of its location. That is why it is important to know that people will get the latest information that they need from the signs of businesses, schools, churches, and government offices.
No matter what kind of life you live, it is unlikely that you have been able to avoid the ramifications of the health pandemic caused by the Coronavirus. Fortunately, with the help of new procedures and habits, many businesses and its workers are able to continue their overall goals of connecting with customers. For schools, that have students rather than customers, staying in close communication remains more important than ever before. Keeping parents up to date on numbers of confirmed cases and percentages of students and staff quarantining is just one of the latest ways that school districts are keeping their buildings as safe as possible. Communication will always matter to parents.
