Principles in conflict?

Last summer, I taught in a correctional facility. There were no iPads, no smart boards or projectors or computers. No internet at all and no smart devices. If I wanted a box of chalk with a few colors, I had to get permission to bring it in and was required to bring it out.

The students in my class didn't have computers. They had a textbook (it had to be approved by the facility), access to a small library of books contingent on a bunch of circumstances, one or two pencils, and paper they mostly had to purchase for themselves unless I got permission to bring some in.

That summer made me rethink my reliance on the bells and whistles: online videos, fancy animations, etc. I made a pledge in my teaching log (yep, still have a paper and pencil teaching log!) to make sure that whatever class stuff I develop is doable with pencil, paper, and discussion. I also pledged to keep my courses as self-contained as possible: between the class and the textbook, students would have the necessary tools (physical, like pencil and paper, and intellectual, like strategies, outlines, examples, and suggested steps for starting problems) to complete assignments -- or at least make progress until the next class meeting.

I have been just okay at keeping those pledges (better than if I hadn't made them), and I find that it's hard to keep them with the shift to remote instruction. My litmus test is, "Could I teach this course at a correctional facility with minimal changes?" and suddenly the answer has shifted from "kinda" to "not even close."

I'm trying to figure out how to bring my principles into alignment. Suggestions welcome.

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