photo #1167305

sO WE DID DO THIS BEFORE.....Remote learning over the radio in Chicago during the polio epidemic in 1937. It may feel like the pandemic of 2020 has upended much of every day life, from going to work to sending our kids to school, but it's not the first time that an unforseen disaster has required Americans to think outside of the box.When a polio outbreak threatened to upend the lives of millions of students in 1937, the Chicago school system used the radio to make remote learning happen when the start of the school year was pushed back by three weeks.More than 300,000 children in grades three through eight were enlisted in this experiment with class schedules printed local papers and 15 minute classes to keep things simple for everyone. Teachers may not have been in the homes of their students but they were available by phone, with more than 1,000 calls logged on the first day of "school."This innovative solution helped students stay up to date on their education while doing everything possible to remain easy and breezy. This just shows that everything that happens will happen again