When New Zealand moved into Alert Level 4, schools around the country shifted to remote learning.
Green Island School principal Steve Hayward said having access to the internet, a device to use and a space to work in was important for most people when learning from home.
"It’s not just about whether you’ve got Wi-Fi, it’s whether you’ve got a good level of service ... because if everyone is in the lounge on it then things don’t run quite so well," Mr Hayward said.
Lockdown also highlighted the importance of schools having up-to-date contact details for families, he said.
Dunedin was lucky to have good weather during that period but he was concerned about the additional expense families might face if isolating in colder conditions, he said.
"There’s extra costs there with heating your house."
Keeping up with the rule changes during the past two years had been difficult, but schools were doing as best they could, Mr Hayward
said.
"We’ve been very happy with how our community has supported our school.
"People realised we didn’t make the rules and we’ve just been enforcing them as best we can."
While it was disappointing to miss events due to restrictions, Mr Hayward was not putting any pressure on the need to reschedule if there was not a suitable time.
"We’ve given ourselves permission to say no."
Since assemblies could not be held, staff were finding different ways to celebrate pupils’ successes with their parents, like putting extra photos in the newsletter.
"We’re just doing our best for the kids."
