"Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.”
— John F. Kennedy
Yet another memorable moment to put in the College history books. In the first week of April 2020, we started operating our virtual Community College. Another turning point for Macquarie Community College – and this in our 70th Anniversary year!
We never stop learning here at MCC – just as well since the only constant in life at the moment seems to be change.
In the past weeks we have achieved a lot of change – with more to come as we approach and work through Term 2. I am so proud of the efforts of our teaching team members, our program managers, customer service and admin teams, as well as our volunteer board of directors. Individually and collectively we have been working through the challenges and upheavals brought about by Covid-19. As always they are focussed on identifying the needs of our communities of learners and responding to them. They are rapidly adapting to the “new normal” of teaching and supporting students and colleagues who are no longer attending campuses, but working remotely.
Adapting to Virtual Classrooms
In what seems like the blink of an eye we moved what was our already adapted face to face classroom teaching using social distancing measures to delivering many of our full qualification teaching hours through new modes and mediums like Zoom, Skype, Teams and Google Hangouts.
This has also meant restructuring class outlines, re-thinking how students participate, finding a way to ensure reading and assessment materials are refreshed to home-based learning. We have also successfully run sessions in Hatha Yoga, Italian and French class by video as well.
Our Term 1 students have been great adventurers along the way, being more than willing to try this new way of learning, discovering new technology and study skills they may not have otherwise discovered before. They have shown grit and determination and a willingness to give it a go.
Re-designing Term 2 courses
We are working now on the re-launch of our re-designed Term 2 programs for accredited and non-accredited courses from Childcare, Aged Care, Business, Computing and English to Foreign Languages and Arts & Craft. Our website is being updated with new information every day.
Not everything we do lends itself to remote learning, especially for our clients that have limited digital literacy or access to modern technology – we are committed to working through those barriers as well. We know how important being part of our learning community is to our students – not just for the education and training we provide but also for the inclusion, companionship and camaraderie they experience in our College where they are welcomed, supported and respected.
The College, our staff and our student will be forever changed by the events of 2020 – but as we adapt we learn, and change will lead us to opportunities as well as challenges.
Theresa Collignon
CEO