After cyberattack, Huntsville (Ala.) schools are staying offline

After being out of school for a week because of a cybersecurity attack, students returned Monday to Huntsville City (Ala.) district schools that were untethered to the internet

Al.com reports that the school systems’ computers still are shut down because of the attack, leaving more than 23,000 students with no online access.

“Technology is a big part of what we do, but teaching is teaching,” says Bo Coln, principal of Challenger Middle School. “And our teachers do an excellent job. I know there are teachers across our district who teach every day without a computer.”

School officials have shed little light on the investigation into the Nov. 30 cyber attack. It has disabled a district that has been all digital since 2013.

For now, school sessions in Huntsville consist of teachers copying assignments onto paper and then passing it out to students. Take-home packets have been assembled for virtual students and Coln says there had been a steady stream at the school of parents picking up assignments that once only existed in the digital world.

“We have quite a bit of paper on hand,” he said. “We do still use a lot of copies, that kind of thing. All our teachers do that. Right now, we have plenty of that. We’ve made orders for more just in case we need that.”

The principal praised his veteran teachers for their adaptability.

The students, he says, are embracing the lack of technology as if it’s some new type of learning.

“One thing is it is challenging them to think differently, for sure,” Coln says. “...Instead of being able to Google it and get an answer, now they are having to look for context clues or reading a passage. 'What did I read and did I retain that?' I think it’s a challenge for them."