Lewisville ISD students and teachers encountered many technological issues Wednesday as they virtually began the 2020-21 school year.
The district is beginning the school year virtual-only for the first three weeks, based on a recommendation from Denton County Public Health. Students who elected to return to in-school learning will be back in schools on Sept. 8. The virtual-only first day didn’t go smoothly for most students.
In a letter to LISD families, Superintendent Dr. Kevin Rogers said the district “expected some bumps in the road,” but not nearly as many as students, teachers and staff had to work through on Wednesday.
“This is not what we wanted, not what we planned for, not what we expected,” Rogers said in the letter. “Several of our systems performed in a less than acceptable way. We are working diligently and making adjustments – being flexible and nimble – to try to address the problems. We will continue working until we find a solution.”
According to a LISD email sent to parents, the district network bandwidth maxed out, WebEx sessions lagged, some students were getting errors when using Canvas, Learning Hub wasn’t allowing users to log in, and other technology problems disrupted the school day for many.
In the letter to families, Rogers encouraged students to keep their cameras and video turned off unless a teacher asks them to turn them on. The district call center is experiencing high call volume, so families are encouraged to check the district website for remote learning resources before calling.
“While the excitement of the first day of school may have been diminished for some families because of the issues with technology, we also know our students and staff reconnected, something we’ve been looking forward to since May. Thank you to our students, families, and staff for making the best of today,” Rogers said. “Despite today not going as planned, I can’t tell you how glad we are that the 2020-21 school year has begun. We appreciate your continued support.”
