It’s the beginning of April. This is all just a big April Fool’s joke, right? The more we get into the pandemic, the more surreal it feels. Every day, I find myself checking the latest statistics, both in Minnesota and around the world. It’s morbid at times.
And there have been days I’ve just sat in my classroom, all by myself, and just looked around. Like many teachers, I’ve shed some tears, thinking about how much my students and my job have been impacted.
I became a teacher because I enjoy working with young people. I like being around others. We extroverts are having a hard time with the social distancing and quarantine scenarios. There are times I’m glad I’m considered an essential worker and can get out of the house, even if it is to sit by myself in my classroom.
I worry about so many of my students. It’s not just the ones who really enjoy school either. Sometimes I think about the kids who complain all the time, but never seem to be absent with a case of fakentitis or imaginomonia. They might complain, but they are always there, maybe because they also need to get out and be with others.
I hosted some trial-run Google Meet sessions for all my classes last week, partly to test out how this new way of interacting with my kids would work and partly because I just really wanted to see them. For many of my classes, close to 50% of the kids showed up informally, and we just chatted. I observed as some of the kids just sat there, not saying anything, but looking happy to see their classmates and (maybe) their teacher again.
Understand that kids have so many opportunities to do this on a daily basis via Facetime and other apps on their phones. Still, to have a whole bunch of them at once was very cool.
This will bring a new element to my classroom. When I want to teach a new concept, I will need them all present, but it will feel weird talking to my computer. It will be an adjustment to answer questions without chaos descending. I’m even planning on speeches and presentations via video feeds!
I admit that I’m a little excited to see how this transpires. Every now and then, we need a jump start to discover new ways of teaching. Anyone who had me as a teacher in my first years in the profession probably wouldn’t recognize the way I run my classroom now. And after all this, things might change even more, who knows?
It feels strange to be excited about this, but I’ve found that I need to look for positivity amidst the despair in the world. I grow sad and worried at times, just like all of you. Chances seem very good that a number of us will have the coronavirus, and we will probably all know people who end up hospitalized, no matter what steps the government takes. To climb out of the worry, I try to think about some cool things that could come out of this for teaching.
I have a number of students who will e-mail me when they’re home ill because they don’t want to fall behind. Sometimes kids stay home because their road isn’t plowed out yet or they missed the bus. Perhaps we’ll find that teaching through the computer can work, at least in small doses. Those kids could join us virtually from home and not miss a beat. We’d have to be careful this wouldn’t get abused, but it would be an option for the motivated.
There will be missteps along the teaching path. We will run some trial and error. Education won’t get it all right. But you can bet your fanny that teachers all over the country are working hard to find the best ways to reach your children and grandchildren. We love kids, and even the ones who sometimes grow wearisome are special and important to us.
When I met with kids, so many of them said they just wanted to get back to it. They are worried too. High schoolers have a special kind of worry with so many important things impacted. The ACT test was postponed, spring sports are on hold, the school play is in limbo, prom seems sure to be at least delayed, and then there’s graduation.
The stress can be overwhelming at times for all involved. Know this, though: If you have a problem when it comes to how distance learning is being handled, please take a breath, contact the teacher, and work through the problem. Teaching has to be flexible at the best of times; in a situation like this, we might all discover that we can bend in ways we’d never thought possible!
Please stay safe, healthy, and positive. If one of your cherubs is in my class, please contact me if you need anything. My job is considered essential, but your kids are essential to my job.
Word of the Week: This week’s word is lachrymogenic, which means inducing tears, as in, “Every time the governor gave an update on the pandemic was a lachrymogenic event for the teacher, who worried about her students.” Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!