Teachers on Virtual Learning
BY JULIE CHEN '23
As you just finish scraping the last bit of breakfast off your plate, you grudgingly open up your laptop to attend your first Zoom call of the day. After thirty minutes of class discussion, you click on the Google Classroom tab to receive an onslaught of new school assignments, fresh and waiting for your completion.
With the spread of COVID-19 and the closing of schools, teachers are taking on a puzzling issue: virtual learning. The quick decisions made by Governor Baker, Principal Dorey, and Superintendent Light left the future of school operations unforeseeable. Mrs. Bromberg, a math teacher at the Acton Boxborough Regional High School, mentions that the “fluidity of the virus” is a challenge and that it is “difficult to adjust.” She reports that the long hours spent grading became meaningless after the announcement that diverted the rest of the school year to a pass or fail system. Yet, the work quickly returned when the Principal retracted his statement after receiving several complaints.
Remote communication with students has also posed a challenge for many teachers. Some students feel uncomfortable showing their faces during a video call, which history teacher Ms. Buffum acknowledges is “understandable, but hard, since teachers are teaching into a void without faces.” This distant atmosphere has diminished each class’s collective energy. Mr. Romano, a science teacher at ABRHS, mentions that his passion for teaching includes the in-person connections that he makes with his students. Like him, many teachers treasure the class time with their students, which makes the learning experience more personal and apprehensible. Physical Education teacher Coach Miller adds that the “connection is not the same through the internet” and appreciates the classroom environment, where teachers can observe a student’s engagement. Although staff members are doing all they can to effectively communicate with their students, Mr. Cosseron of the Language Department reminds us that it is “not possible to replicate the classroom completely,” so the objective instead should be to “find the right tool for learning.”
However, finding the “right tool” is not always easy. Numerous teachers reported that they are experimenting with new online platforms for effective learning, with the most prominent being Zoom. Zoom enables teachers to video call their students efficiently using the software’s numerous features and user-friendly interface. In addition to these learning devices, teachers are also exploring various ways to keep students engaged. At home, students face many possible distractions such as texting friends and playing online games. The utilization of Zoom’s breakout rooms, standard class meetings, and short student presentations are just a few methods that teachers are testing out to limit these interferences. Ms. Houle from the English Department points out that teachers at ABRHS are not “trained to teach virtually” but are still trying to“[make] most out of the thirty minutes [they] have.”
Virtual teaching poses a problem for most teachers, but the worst of it falls on departments that teach through physical demonstration, such as the Science Department, the Physical Education Department, and the Arts Department. The labs and experiments that deepen student understanding cannot be executed now that schools are closed. Many science teachers are resorting to virtual labs and online videos of the experiments. Ms. Moss, the chorus teacher at ABRHS, adds on to the list of struggles, noting that video calls endure minor lags that restrict students from playing music in sync. She includes that she’s tried to play the music and have her students sing separately to resemble the activities that they would have done at school. Emulating the classroom is challenging, but teachers are striving to offer the most suitable learning strategies “in this new territory of online learning,” as Coach Miller describes.
Although schools are facing a time of learning complications, Ms. Moss claims that the synchronous learning schedule at ABRHS is “very helpful,” as it ensures everyone is available to check in at a designated time. Furthermore, the teachers and staff of Acton-Boxborough are doing their best to accommodate each student’s learning needs and prioritize the content that needs to be taught. These new online learning platforms will also benefit future teaching, as they could potentially be used to compensate for snow days as well. By taking on the challenge of virtual learning, teachers are using this opportunity to see these severe circumstances in a positive light and lend their support as we persevere through this time of uncertainty.
With the spread of COVID-19 and the closing of schools, teachers are taking on a puzzling issue: virtual learning. The quick decisions made by Governor Baker, Principal Dorey, and Superintendent Light left the future of school operations unforeseeable. Mrs. Bromberg, a math teacher at the Acton Boxborough Regional High School, mentions that the “fluidity of the virus” is a challenge and that it is “difficult to adjust.” She reports that the long hours spent grading became meaningless after the announcement that diverted the rest of the school year to a pass or fail system. Yet, the work quickly returned when the Principal retracted his statement after receiving several complaints.
Remote communication with students has also posed a challenge for many teachers. Some students feel uncomfortable showing their faces during a video call, which history teacher Ms. Buffum acknowledges is “understandable, but hard, since teachers are teaching into a void without faces.” This distant atmosphere has diminished each class’s collective energy. Mr. Romano, a science teacher at ABRHS, mentions that his passion for teaching includes the in-person connections that he makes with his students. Like him, many teachers treasure the class time with their students, which makes the learning experience more personal and apprehensible. Physical Education teacher Coach Miller adds that the “connection is not the same through the internet” and appreciates the classroom environment, where teachers can observe a student’s engagement. Although staff members are doing all they can to effectively communicate with their students, Mr. Cosseron of the Language Department reminds us that it is “not possible to replicate the classroom completely,” so the objective instead should be to “find the right tool for learning.”
However, finding the “right tool” is not always easy. Numerous teachers reported that they are experimenting with new online platforms for effective learning, with the most prominent being Zoom. Zoom enables teachers to video call their students efficiently using the software’s numerous features and user-friendly interface. In addition to these learning devices, teachers are also exploring various ways to keep students engaged. At home, students face many possible distractions such as texting friends and playing online games. The utilization of Zoom’s breakout rooms, standard class meetings, and short student presentations are just a few methods that teachers are testing out to limit these interferences. Ms. Houle from the English Department points out that teachers at ABRHS are not “trained to teach virtually” but are still trying to“[make] most out of the thirty minutes [they] have.”
Virtual teaching poses a problem for most teachers, but the worst of it falls on departments that teach through physical demonstration, such as the Science Department, the Physical Education Department, and the Arts Department. The labs and experiments that deepen student understanding cannot be executed now that schools are closed. Many science teachers are resorting to virtual labs and online videos of the experiments. Ms. Moss, the chorus teacher at ABRHS, adds on to the list of struggles, noting that video calls endure minor lags that restrict students from playing music in sync. She includes that she’s tried to play the music and have her students sing separately to resemble the activities that they would have done at school. Emulating the classroom is challenging, but teachers are striving to offer the most suitable learning strategies “in this new territory of online learning,” as Coach Miller describes.
Although schools are facing a time of learning complications, Ms. Moss claims that the synchronous learning schedule at ABRHS is “very helpful,” as it ensures everyone is available to check in at a designated time. Furthermore, the teachers and staff of Acton-Boxborough are doing their best to accommodate each student’s learning needs and prioritize the content that needs to be taught. These new online learning platforms will also benefit future teaching, as they could potentially be used to compensate for snow days as well. By taking on the challenge of virtual learning, teachers are using this opportunity to see these severe circumstances in a positive light and lend their support as we persevere through this time of uncertainty.
