2020 wasn’t the first time U.S. schools closed due to a pandemic. It also happened in 1937, and at that time, teachers also resorted to the latest technology to teach remotely. Without the internet to connect, however, schools came up with a novel idea: lessons on the radio.
In 1937, a polio epidemic swept across the United States. The polio virus was highly contagious, and those who caught it were often crippled or paralyzed. Some public spaces nationwide were closed, particularly for children, who seemed to suffer severely from the virus.
In Chicago, the epidemic hit children particularly hard. A story in The Chicago Sun Times details how the city responded. After over 100 Chicago children contracted polio in August of 1937, the city delayed the start of school by three weeks.
Rather than extend summer vacation, Chicago began “radio school,” during which lessons were broadcast citywide. Around 315,000 children in grades 3 through 8 received the lessons over the radio, in a program in which teachers and principals worked with educational experts to craft lessons. Seven local radio stations donated air time for the daily lessons, which began on September 13, 1937.
The Sun Times details how the lessons worked:
Local papers printed class schedules each morning. Social studies and science classes were slated for Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays were devoted to English and math. The on-air school day began with announcements and gym. Classes were short — just 15 minutes — providing simple, broad questions and assigning homework.
The objective was to be “entertaining yet informative.” Two principals monitored each broadcast, providing feedback to teachers on content, articulation, vocabulary, and general performance. When schools reopened students would submit their work and take tests to show mastery of the material. Sixteen teachers answered phone calls from parents at the school district’s central office. After the phone bank logged more than 1,000 calls on the first day, they brought five more teachers on board.
The program ended when on-campus classes resumed at the end of September. The program did have issues: there was no way for immediate feedback or questions, obviously. Schools had no idea how many students actually listened to the broadcasts, but they were generally considered a success.
Although the circumstances were similar, remote learning today faces many more challenges, particularly because of the length of time students have been out of the classroom. Despite the advances in technology, it could take years for students to “catch up” to the levels they would have achieved otherwise.