Students thriving in Alberta's first virtual designated special education program

Having 18 students in two grades with four teachers makes Rundle Studio sound pretty small, but it's starting off that way on purpose. Officials are trying something new by using what was learned during the pandemic when students couldn't attend classes and had to continue learning at home.

Rundle Studio started in September 2021 by taking Grade 7 and 8 students that were on the waiting list at Rundle Academy.

John Wolf is the school's principal and one of the teachers, and says from the beginning it had only hosted classes online.

"All of our students at Rundle Studio have a diagnosed learning disability," Wolf said. "All of them have struggled in some way or another with their education and they're looking for that extra support that they need and we're able to provide that for them."

Because the school is virtual, students from all over the province can benefit from the program. One student enrolled isn't even in Canada.

"We do have one student whose father happened to be transferred to Saudi Arabia," said Wolf. "So they paid, they joined, they love the school and they're continuing that education there."

Wolf says many of his students have had no confidence for years because they had such a difficult time in conventional school where they couldn't understand why they weren't able to learn like their classmates. He says for those students, taking classes in the comfort of their home is beneficial.

"They can reduce the cognitive load, they're not anxious about what others are saying about them or worried about what's happening in the classroom," said Wolf. "Reduce the distractions around them and they're able to concentrate on what is really important: their education."

Danna Euverman teaches Grade 7 math and science and says she's excited by how her students are embracing technology.

"We're still adapting and finding ways that we can improve instruction for our kids every single day," Euverman said.

"It's totally made me do a 180 (degree change) of how I think about how students learn and the things that we need to do, and everyday it challenges me to want to be better so that students are able to learn and reach their potential."

Euverman says she can see her students on her monitor throughout the day and that means she can get a sense of whether or not they're understanding the curriculum, or if she needs to spend some one-on-one time with them so no one falls behind.

"Constant feedback, whether it's touching base verbally with them in class, or we're using the chat features and things like that, shooting emails but yeah, every single day I touch base with every student," said Euverman.

Diaz Aburto is a 13-year-old Grade 8 student, and says he misses seeing his friends at school in-person but has made new friends with his online classmates.

"I think I've seen a big improvement in my learning this year in Rundle and I honestly think that it's a good school," Aburto said.

His dad, Sergio, says Diaz never used to like going to school.

"It was so negative. He didn't want to get out of bed because he didn't want to go to school," said Alberto. "He felt dumb. He just didn't understand why he wasn't understanding the material."

Now, Diaz is improving through his online learning program at Rundle Studio and his dad likes the difference he sees in his son.

"Watching him this year, progress with not only his academic skills, but his confidence," said Alberto. "By him being able to actually come out and say, 'I like school' – (that) was never something that we ever heard."

To learn more about Rundle Studio you can visit the facility's website.