I started teaching this week. It is my 12th year teaching and my district starting in a remote model with plans to move to a hybrid model in early October. I spent quite a bit of time in August familiarizing myself with Zoom, Screencastify, EdPuzzle and other platforms and strategies to help effectively deliver instruction to my 7th graders remotely. As I end this week, I feel a bit disheartened. Things went relatively well. However, in four days I got a very good glimpse of what new challenges we will now be juggling while teaching remotely or synchronously. While I do feel that the PD sessions on different technologies were beneficial, it appears we failed to acknowledge the extraordinary collaborative efforts that will be required between schools and families this school year. While I’ve been focused on me as the teacher and my responsibilities, I didn’t spend much time thinking about my students and the challenges they may face at home to create and maintain a positive and effective learning environment. In just four days, I have had students leave our “classroom” to use the restroom and never return to class, play with their pets, conduct conversations with people out of the frame, lounge on the den couch with their siblings or appear to sit in a dark room. In an email communication with a parent, I found out one of my students is home alone during the day and navigating his school days on his own. Did we take for granted that families will be able to provide adequate supervision to their students during the school day? Did we assume that every child has a quiet space conducive to learning, away from distractions? Our district provides a Chromebook but do they have support at home if there is a technology issue? I am sure many of these issues will be addressed in the weeks ahead. However, just when I thought I had a decent handle on things, I am struck by how much is still out of my control.
Have you been experiencing the same issues as have I? Your thoughts?
Hi Kathleen,
ReplyDeleteI found your post to be very insightful and all your concerns are completely valid. Despite not being a full-time teacher, I am getting the opportunity to see how effective virtual learning will be this year. Currently, I am working for three families to oversea them as they're doing their school work online. A couple of days a week I work for two families who are parents of three third graders and the parents have decided to keep these students together as they learn remotely. The other family I work for the student is in first grade, he needs someone there to keep his attention on school because he's easily distracted. It is definitely a huge obstacle I'm noticing while working with these students. Although, I believe that the parents have tried their best to set up places in their homes for "school" it is hard to switch the idea of home to school. My first grade student is constantly trying to lay on his bed while he's in school mode and if I wasn't there he would be. I think that their definitely needs to be communication with the parents on how important it is that the students are in a controlled environment and that the child recognizes that this is an extension of their normal classroom. Thank you for your thoughts because I really have been reflecting on how difficult it must be teaching right now and not being able to use "normal" classroom management strategies.
Elizabeth Weissenberger
Kathleen,
ReplyDeleteI do feel that your concerns for this school year are justified as the days go on. I am glad I am able to get a perspective on this situation from a full-time teacher. I do agree that there are a lot of unknowns in terms of what challenges the students are facing. During my observations at Canfield Ave School I am noticing a lot of the same situations you just discussed. Students are not showing up to class meetings on time, they are carrying on conversations with family members during class instead of paying attention to the lessons, they are laying down on the couch while listening to a lesson, or leaving class meetings before the lesson is even over. It is sad that education has reached this point. I feel as though these students are not receiving the proper education they deserve. I am not saying that the teachers are responsible for this, but that the circumstances of this pandemic are keeping teachers from being able to actually help their students stay engaged and learn. I worry that so many students are going to fall behind this year because they are not sitting in a classroom and fully attentive to the lessons being taught on a daily basis. Kathleen, I hope you know that I really appreciate your point of view on things and that it has really helped me understand what it is like to be a full-time teacher right now. I can't imagine how difficult this transition has been for you, and I hope things get better.
I have had similar challenges at my school with my students as well. Being that they are in first grade, they need support from their parents which can be both a blessing and a curse. With the parents always around, the students get even more distracted and they are not answering or engaging independently. The students now not only have pressure from the class but from their parents as well. It has been hard to keep the little ones engaged for long periods of time. We are encouraged to give an adequate amount of breaks which leads to the same problem as you with students not returning. This year will be a learning experience for everyone and I think it is important to remember to be kind to ourselves and give ourselves the same treatment we are giving our students at this time.
ReplyDeleteCori Lardieri
Hi Kathleen,
ReplyDeleteI can completely relate! We really do come to know our students and want the best for them. Any yes if you look closely at them in google meets or zoom, their personalities start to show =). However I also feel that it depends on you and the admin to work together. If you work in a district that is willing to do that and deal with all those important factors.It takes a village not just to raise children but to educate them. A few ways that you can help is by taking into consideration that in these times, everyone is doing as best as possible in the situation they are in, EVEN YOU. If you see something that is not okay definitely let admin know. Keep in mind that not everyone knows how to ask when they need it. Maybe the family can't afford childcare so you will see siblings running around. Right now it does seem overwhelming, and we do have a lot on our plate as well. WE MUST REMAIN FLEXIBLE, I feel that is key. And much like Cori said above, we have to remember to be kind to ourselves and to our students. They too are going through a lot. It is our first year again, for all of us too. We teachers, are all in this together.
Hi Kathleen,
ReplyDeleteI have had similar experiences. The district that I work in is predominately urban and a lot of my students and their families live well below the poverty line.
That said, having adequate, quiet work space is an issue and while my students do their best to complete their work on their phones a lot of their families do not have a laptop. The ones that do have multiple students enrolled in synchronous classes so only one student will have the use of the laptop. All things considered, I feel that I have a pretty decent grasp on which students are putting forth a genuine effort and which students are trying to "coast" their way through things.
A couple other items that I noticed (that were beyond my control) were the parental involvement and student behavior. I had a parent hop into one of my classes and start yelling at another student for calling her son "slow" in the chat. Then I had a student "expose" himself in front of the class while another played a song that was completely vulgar and I had to scroll through the sea of 60 students to find out who it was and mute them.
These are just a few of the circumstances that I came up against that were completely out of my control and (if I'm being honest) that I didn't anticipate.
My administration was very supportive in handling things from their end and taking disciplinary action where appropriate and addressing the parent in my classroom.
All things considered, just as Lynn stated in her post, continue to stay FLEXIBLE and fluid. These are unprecedented times which we are all capable of working through (and we'll be more equipped once we get through this).