Virtual classrooms challenge teachers

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The closure of schools has forced teachers across the country to re-evaluate their approach to education. Both teachers and students now have to adapt to a new learning environment.

Schools have been closed since March 16 and Minister of Education Anthony Garcia suggested in early April that they may not reopen until September. Newsday spoke to several teachers on their experience  thus far with the "virtual classroom." All requested anonymity.

“You are basically learning while your students are learning,” said a secondary school teacher. Because of how quickly decisions have to be made, in the middle of an ongoing term to boot, he said there was no proper training on how to navigate e-learning platforms.

“Usually you would be trained for a new platform,” he said, but this was not the case at his school. Because he teaches at secondary level, he does not rely heavily on the input of parents. He said his students, outside of their sessions, are expected to do independent study. Parents are only responsible for ensuring they have access to a device and internet access.

The teacher said he has not observed any difference in the students' approach to the virtual classroom.

“The same students who were doing the work before are doing it now and the same students who weren’t, are not doing it now. Not much has changed in that regard.”

One issue he said the teachers at his school are having is access to resources. “A lot of my resources are at work.”

Because the school is closed, he and other teachers have been unable to access the materials and have had to make do without it.

HARD TO BALANCE HOME WITH WORK

Another teacher pointed out that a quiet work environment is also a challenge.

“Teachers are parents too,” this teacher said. Just as she is responsible for the education of her students, she also has to care for and monitor her own children at the same time.

“Balancing work life and home life at home has been a challenge,” she said. Working from home also means resources are limited.

“Sometimes it means I don’t have access to devices, because my children have to use them.” Most of what can be done is being done, she said, but to keep up with the situation, she believes the curriculum and the school structure need to change in the coming months.

She said she believes in “teaching students, not a curriculum,” because everyone learns at their own pace and the curriculum needs to change to suit the situation.

A maths teacher who works in a private primary school said he is learning on the job as he prepares his standard five class for Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA). He uses a combination of forums to teach his class, including Zoom, and forwarding additional work via e-mail and WhatsApp.

School starts at 8am and finishes at 2pm. Sessions are usually 40 minutes long, with ten-minute breaks in between. Parents are required to oversee homework and ensure students are prepared for classes daily.

VIRTUAL LEARNING CAN BE TEDIOUS

“This pandemic has encouraged students to become somewhat independent in their readiness for classes,” he said, adding that his students seek external sources to supplement what they are being taught.

He has, however, noticed issues in participation due to internet access and in some instances, a lack of supervision. “Students don’t always pay attention, and fail to participate.

“Virtual learning can be tedious and somewhat unfair to students who are new to the process,” he said, particularly tactile learners, who process information through touching and moving. “My biggest issue is attendance, lateness and poor internet service.”

He said there have been instances of students waking up late because of a lack of adult supervision.

For parents who feel overwhelmed, his advice is to take it one step at a time, and keep in communication with teachers the issues they are experiencing. He is also urging that a home schedule should be written up and adhered to.

The teacher said the new school term may pose a challenge to some students.

“This pandemic has placed students in a peculiar position,” he said. “The issue of SEA will impact the new year (as we) are still unaware of the date. This may cause emotional distress to teachers, parents and students.”

PARENTS' ROLE IN FOCUS

The stay-at-home restrictions have brought the role of parents in children’s education and development into sharper focus. This is greater when the students are younger, pre-teens who need greater supervision to gain the most during virtual classroom teaching.

First-year students of a primary school in east Trinidad are tuning in to Zoom and Google classrooms with their teacher to keep up with their lessons. Because they are so young, there is more of a demand for parental involvement and supervision. Parents are required to review videos, stories and learning aids and help children complete work sent to them by the teacher.

“All work being done so far is revision and reinforcement of work done previously,” a teacher at the school said, adding that the  will  get extra work only if they can handle more. “Children are quite resilient,” she said. “Usually during the July/August vacation, most do not do any revision and they fall into a normal pace when promoted in the new term.” She said, however, this extra time off may affect some children negatively and they might regress in certain skills.

That's why revision during this period is important, so these children can easily pick up from where they left off when schools reopen.

GLAD TO STAY AT HOME

“The curriculum has been put on hold, for now,” she said. “No new material is to be taught until all children can be accessed. This was mandated by the principal.” However, teachers have been keeping in touch with parents and students to find out how they have been coping.

The teacher said she is not at all concerned that schools may not reopen till September, because she is acutely aware of how rapidly germs are spread among young children.

“We have to firstly ensure the health and safety of the children. They rarely stay within their personal space and personal hygiene. A pencil can go from the hand to the ground, in the ear then in the mouth again within a matter of seconds.”

She said this has been a stressful time for teachers. So the teachers in her social circle have come together for much-needed emotional support.

“We have formed a bond with our charges. This distance and uncertainty is taking an emotional toll on us as teachers.”

She said the infant department at her school agreed to allow teachers to work on their own time. “Most of us are parents as well. Some have ailing parents to look after.”

Work and due dates are set before hand, allowing their time to be a bit more flexible, and easing the burden on teachers and parents who have to work.

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