Columbia daycares facing issues with staffing and online learning

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Local daycares and learning centers throughout Columbia are facing issues with staffing and being able to help students with their online learning courses.

Daycares have experienced a huge increase with students enrolled in centers since CPS announced transitioning back to a virtual online learning classroom. 

"We definitely have had a greater need and more people reaching out more than ever," Christy Wills, District Leader for KinderCare Learning Center. 

Sharon Sweezey, owner of Jade’s Preschool and Daycare, said they received over 30 calls within one week of parents looking to enroll their children. 

Sweezey said they've actually had to turn away parents because they simply cannot take on any more students within their facility.

Other facilities like KinderCare have had to make major adjustments within their center in order to accommodate all the students that are currently in an online learning program. 

“The need was so great that we actually moved classrooms around in our center to open a second classroom of school-age children so that can have 2 complete classrooms and we haven’t needed that in years”, Christy Wills District Leader for KinderCare Learning Center. 

Both centers said they are managing well with the amount of staff and space that they have available. Daycare teachers are having to supervise students in their online classes and ensure they are completing assignments. Most students are operating from their CPS tablets and work independently due to COVID. 

Daycares are experiencing staffing issues like many CPS public schools, but it is not because teachers are being exposed to the virus. In fact, Sweezey, the owner of Jade's Daycare and Preschool, said that they have not had any teachers with COVID to date.

Many of the daycare centers have been experiencing staff shortages before the pandemic took place. They are running into an issue of not having enough teachers for the large number of students that have been recently enrolled and not enough substitutes. 

I asked both daycare centers if they felt a burden had been placed on them since schools shut down, they both said no.

Both said this transition has been rough, but they have become accustomed to having many children and are able to handle it. The issue daycares are having is particularly in communication with children's schools and teachers.

Sweezey explained that they aren't able to communicate with children's teachers effectively. Sweezey explained many students are struggling with this style of learning because they feel detached from their teacher.

Students aren't as willing to ask questions and ask for help when in class via zoom as they would if they were in person. Students are becoming behind in their work because they aren't communicating effectively with their teachers in their online classes.

Daycares like Jade's are pleading with schools and teachers to communicate with the centers that children are at during the day so that they can get the students' help.

“Our only complaint in the whole thing is just the communication with the schools. Just if the teachers can communicate with us so that we can help these students that are struggling,” Sweezey explained. 

Sweezey said, “We want to help these kids succeed and right now some of these kids are really struggling with this type of learning so anything we can do to help and I know the teachers are feeling that way too we’re all in this together. We’re all trying to get these kids the best education they can get in this hard time.”