North Texas business hires teacher to help working parents with virtual learning

CARROLLTON, Texas - Virtual learning is creating many issues for students and parents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We’ve seen learning pods, where students meet in small groups for virtual instruction.

And now, a Carrolton business is creating its own classroom so its employees can juggle work and this new style of learning.

School is in session, albeit in a different sort of setting.

“He’s still working on his school work while I’m working across the street,” parent Clifton Perry said.

Perry is bringing his son — Clifton Jr. — to work with him. Both parents in their household work.

“So it would be more money out of pocket having to find a daycare and everything like that,” Perry said.

And he isn’t alone with having that issue.

“It’s hard for them to stay at home and not be able to go to work and worry about them being at home alone. Sometimes they don’t have people to take care of them,” parent Claudia Mendoza said.

These situations are part of the reason why their employer, BuzzBallz, hired a full-time TEA certified teacher to assist students during the days of virtual learning.

“My hope is that when they go into school, they’re just going to go seamlessly into school,” teacher Christine Drumm said.

In a way, traditional school acts as daycare for some working families. Virtual learning typically requires a parent or guardian to be at home with younger students.

There have been learning pods set up across North Texas neighborhoods. Pods help students retain a sense of normalcy.

“Just going to art, going to music, going to PE, recess, lunch, you can see how much they enjoy lunch,” Drumm said.

This sort of pod helps working families.

“Sometimes they have to quit their job and the mom would have to stay home,” Mendoza said.

And in the end, it helps business while giving the kids some sense of a typical school day during these trying times.