Navajo School, Students Fight to Endure COVID-19
2020-12-09
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1One student runs 26 meters up a hill every morning to get a telephone signal so he can report into the virtual school day.
2Another moved alone to Phoenix, Arizona, for a job as a builder after his only parent died.
3He continued his studies online there.
4And then there is the student who spends six hours most days doing schoolwork in a car next to a school bus that offers Wi-Fi.
5COVID-19 has created severe difficulty for Navajo Nation students.
6Across the reservation, victims of COVD-19 include parents and grandparents, guardians and providers, school advisors and teachers.
7Without them, some students have fallen behind or even disappeared from school.
8One local school official said, "We have some [children] that we just don't know where they are."
9Just a few hundred families live in the town of Piñon in Arizona.
10Their houses are spread over small desert hills.
11A single group of buildings houses the school for children of all K-12 grade levels.
12On the Navajo reservation, the COVID-19 death rate has been higher than any U.S. state.
13So as some U.S. schools reopened for in-person learning this fall, those on the Navajo reservation did not.
14Unlike their students, Piñon High School's teachers report to work in person each day.
15They are careful to wear face coverings and stay as socially distant as possible.
16Science teacher James Gustafson says student performance is suffering.
17Their marks are far lower than what he saw last year.
18"I've given the students who've turned nothing in - and there's a lot of them - a zero," he said.
19Even before the coronavirus crisis, Native young people had the highest dropout rates in the U.S.
20Only about 72 percent of Native American and Alaska Native students complete high school.
21The national average is 85 percent.
22The National Caucus of Native American State Legislators says the state of education for K-12 schools for Native students is worrisome.
23And the coronavirus crisis has only served to worsen the problem.
24More than 600 of the Navajo Nation's 173,000 people have died from COVID-19.
25That is 347 deaths for every 100,000 people.
26Yet, in Arizona's largest county - Maricopa County - the death rate is 86 per 100,000 people.
27Timothy Nelson leads Piñon High School.
28 He said COVID-19 has killed at least six parents of students, a teaching assistant and a school office worker.
29"Some people may think it's a joke and it's not a big deal," Nelson said of the disease.
30"But when you're living with it and you see it, it's not so much a joke anymore."
31Darrick Franklin is an education program manager with the Department of Diné Education.
32He spent months working with officials in New Mexico and Arizona to keep schools on the reservation closed.
33The goal, he said, is to "protect the Navajo people" - a feeling shared across Navajo leadership.
34In August, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez issued a statement urging schools to stay online until at least 2021.
35Teachers, parents and students are overcoming huge barriers to learn at a distance.
36Chris Ostgaard is the superintendent, or top official, of the Piñon school system.
37He said only about 50 percent of students have some form of internet connection.
38That includes slow connections and those only on cellphones.
39High speed internet service is found in about 25 percent of homes on the reservation.
40Less than half of the homes have a computer, federal data shows.
41Reaching students with no connection at all has been a serious issue.
42Ostgaard said enrollment across the three schools has decreased by about 100 students from last year.
43Some, he said, have "disappeared, basically."
44Several times each week, the school system sends out buses filled with paper schoolwork for students to pick up.
45With federal aid for COVID-19, the district got 14 buses equipped with Wi-Fi internet.
46The buses travel up to an hour, often on dirt roads.
47They sit in a place where families can drive close so students can use the internet for their schoolwork.
48About 20 miles from the district school, one of those Wi-Fi buses sits across the road from a gas station.
49Two cars with their engines on sit beside it.
50Inside, four sisters, ages 6 to 17, hold small laptop computers.
51They send the day's schoolwork to their teachers as their parents try to help.
52Their parents are math teacher Beverly Mix and construction worker Dekoven Begay.
53Both have been out of their paying jobs since the coronavirus crisis began.
54"Making sure my kids get online is a job," Mix said.
55And "making sure that they understand what they're being taught [is a job]."
56Sometimes the teacher only gives 20 minutes of class, she noted.
57Each of the Mix's four girls has a specially designed car desk that Mix bought online.
58Their laptops were provided by the school district.
59Chenoa, the oldest daughter, is almost finished with high school.
60She dreams of attending a university and to one day work for the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.
61But she said it has been hard to fill out university applications without her school advisor.
62Chenoa says she has a better support system than many of her friends.
63But even so, the family's home internet is too weak to download large documents or connect to video programming.
64So they spend about 20 hours a week in their car near the Wi-Fi school bus.
65At lunchtime, drivers of the Wi-Fi buses find out how many meals the gathered children need.
66During the pandemic, the school has been putting together take-home breakfasts and lunches for families.
67Some days, they give out more than 100 meals.
68Research in May showed that school setbacks during the pandemic would likely be worse for children of color and those who live in poverty.
69It found that this is especially true for the ones without dependable internet.
70Gustafson, the science teacher, calls the divide between children with and without internet a form of segregation.
71Ostgaard, the superintendent, said that the district has a few students that he would almost consider homeless at this point.
72They have lost their parent or guardian so they move from one family members' home to another.
73Still, for students with the right situations, Piñon's online efforts have worked well.
74In fact, the state has given the district approval to use its teaching methods to open a fully online high school for any Arizona student.
75So when Piñon schools do reopen their doors, students will have the choice whether to return.
76Even with all that they are facing, Piñon officials are still doing what they can to inspire their students about the future.
77Gustafson, for example, spoke recently via Zoom video to a group of students about his career.
78The talk was meant to remind them that their dreams can still be realized.
79Or, as Gustafson says it: "Get me to the university, get me to the city and something will happen."
80I'm Alice Bryant. And I'm Jill Robbins.
1One student runs 26 meters up a hill every morning to get a telephone signal so he can report into the virtual school day. Another moved alone to Phoenix, Arizona, for a job as a builder after his only parent died. He continued his studies online there. And then there is the student who spends six hours most days doing schoolwork in a car next to a school bus that offers Wi-Fi. 2COVID-19 has created severe difficulty for Navajo Nation students. Across the reservation, victims of COVD-19 include parents and grandparents, guardians and providers, school advisors and teachers. Without them, some students have fallen behind or even disappeared from school. 3One local school official said, "We have some [children] that we just don't know where they are." 4A district's survival 5Just a few hundred families live in the town of Piñon in Arizona. Their houses are spread over small desert hills. A single group of buildings houses the school for children of all K-12 grade levels. 6On the Navajo reservation, the COVID-19 death rate has been higher than any U.S. state. So as some U.S. schools reopened for in-person learning this fall, those on the Navajo reservation did not. 7Unlike their students, Piñon High School's teachers report to work in person each day. They are careful to wear face coverings and stay as socially distant as possible. 8Science teacher James Gustafson says student performance is suffering. Their marks are far lower than what he saw last year. 9"I've given the students who've turned nothing in - and there's a lot of them - a zero," he said. 10Even before the coronavirus crisis, Native young people had the highest dropout rates in the U.S. Only about 72 percent of Native American and Alaska Native students complete high school. The national average is 85 percent. 11The National Caucus of Native American State Legislators says the state of education for K-12 schools for Native students is worrisome. And the coronavirus crisis has only served to worsen the problem. 12More than 600 of the Navajo Nation's 173,000 people have died from COVID-19. That is 347 deaths for every 100,000 people. Yet, in Arizona's largest county - Maricopa County - the death rate is 86 per 100,000 people. 13Timothy Nelson leads Piñon High School. He said COVID-19 has killed at least six parents of students, a teaching assistant and a school office worker. 14"Some people may think it's a joke and it's not a big deal," Nelson said of the disease. "But when you're living with it and you see it, it's not so much a joke anymore." 15Darrick Franklin is an education program manager with the Department of Diné Education. He spent months working with officials in New Mexico and Arizona to keep schools on the reservation closed. 16The goal, he said, is to "protect the Navajo people" - a feeling shared across Navajo leadership. In August, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez issued a statement urging schools to stay online until at least 2021. 17Teachers, parents and students are overcoming huge barriers to learn at a distance. 18Chris Ostgaard is the superintendent, or top official, of the Piñon school system. He said only about 50 percent of students have some form of internet connection. That includes slow connections and those only on cellphones. 19High speed internet service is found in about 25 percent of homes on the reservation. Less than half of the homes have a computer, federal data shows. 20Reaching students with no connection at all has been a serious issue. Ostgaard said enrollment across the three schools has decreased by about 100 students from last year. Some, he said, have "disappeared, basically." 21Several times each week, the school system sends out buses filled with paper schoolwork for students to pick up. 22With federal aid for COVID-19, the district got 14 buses equipped with Wi-Fi internet. The buses travel up to an hour, often on dirt roads. They sit in a place where families can drive close so students can use the internet for their schoolwork. 23One family's story 24About 20 miles from the district school, one of those Wi-Fi buses sits across the road from a gas station. Two cars with their engines on sit beside it. 25Inside, four sisters, ages 6 to 17, hold small laptop computers. They send the day's schoolwork to their teachers as their parents try to help. 26Their parents are math teacher Beverly Mix and construction worker Dekoven Begay. Both have been out of their paying jobs since the coronavirus crisis began. 27"Making sure my kids get online is a job," Mix said. And "making sure that they understand what they're being taught [is a job]." Sometimes the teacher only gives 20 minutes of class, she noted. 28Each of the Mix's four girls has a specially designed car desk that Mix bought online. Their laptops were provided by the school district. 29Chenoa, the oldest daughter, is almost finished with high school. She dreams of attending a university and to one day work for the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. But she said it has been hard to fill out university applications without her school advisor. 30Chenoa says she has a better support system than many of her friends. But even so, the family's home internet is too weak to download large documents or connect to video programming. So they spend about 20 hours a week in their car near the Wi-Fi school bus. 31At lunchtime, drivers of the Wi-Fi buses find out how many meals the gathered children need. During the pandemic, the school has been putting together take-home breakfasts and lunches for families. Some days, they give out more than 100 meals. 32Still dreaming 33Research in May showed that school setbacks during the pandemic would likely be worse for children of color and those who live in poverty. It found that this is especially true for the ones without dependable internet. 34Gustafson, the science teacher, calls the divide between children with and without internet a form of segregation. 35Ostgaard, the superintendent, said that the district has a few students that he would almost consider homeless at this point. They have lost their parent or guardian so they move from one family members' home to another. 36Still, for students with the right situations, Piñon's online efforts have worked well. In fact, the state has given the district approval to use its teaching methods to open a fully online high school for any Arizona student. So when Piñon schools do reopen their doors, students will have the choice whether to return. 37Even with all that they are facing, Piñon officials are still doing what they can to inspire their students about the future. Gustafson, for example, spoke recently via Zoom video to a group of students about his career. 38The talk was meant to remind them that their dreams can still be realized. Or, as Gustafson says it: "Get me to the university, get me to the city and something will happen." 39I'm Alice Bryant. And I'm Jill Robbins. 40This story was provided to The Associated Press by Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 41________________________________________________________________ 42Words in This Story 43Wi-Fi - n. a wireless technology that lets electronic devices access, send and receive information over the Internet 44reservation - n. n area of land in the U.S. that is kept separate as a place for Native Americans to live 45dropout - n. a person who stops going to a school, college, etc., before finishing 46data - n. facts or information used usually to calculate, analyze, or plan something 47manager - n. someone who is in charge of a business or department 48district - n. an area or region containing the schools that a school board is in charge of 49desk - n. a piece of furniture that is like a table and often has drawers 50application - n. a formal and usually written request for something, such as a job, a loan or admission to a school 51segregation - n. the practice or policy of keeping people of different races, religions, etc., separate from each other 52construction - n. the act or process of building something (such as a house or road)