Teacher’s Quarantine Experience

Throughout this quarantine, everyone has been concerned about them self, and for good reason. E-Learning has put a big focus on the students safety during the pandemic, and has asked students and sometimes staff to stay home for school days in order to prevent the virus. However, this poses a new problem. How will this effect teachers, who have likely never thought of being forced into this scenario? Let us ask Mrs. Greene, a English teacher at OLCHS. When asked how E learning has changed her class, she replied saying ‘The biggest changes in class are that we are focusing more on what is essential.”, and “We are focusing more on learning and feedback and less on tests.”. Class has become more of a struggle to teach, rather than a struggle to pass, which sounds like bad news for some students. However, there is some light. “Students have more flexibility about when and how to complete work.”.  Another topic, is how quarantine has effected Mrs. Greene’s student relationships. “I really miss seeing my students in class, but quarantine has actually resulted in better relationships with them. Students are sharing a lot more through writing and I am learning so much about what they think is important and their backgrounds.”. Mrs. Greene also highlights that “Students who are less comfortable sharing in classroom discussions are willing to share this way and I’m getting to hear more from those students.”. It seems E-Learning has somehow bettered parts of student participation, which is a very interesting development. When asked about the viability of E-Learning as a whole, Mrs. Greene said that “It makes me think that if we use E-Learning carefully and correctly, it’s a great tool. We have to be careful because E-Learning can be isolating and tough on students’ well-being.” As a contrast, she states that “E-Learning offers flexibility and it also offers access and interaction when people can’t physically gather in the same place. It’s allowed us to keep learning through this pandemic- I’m excited to see how we can apply it to other situations after the pandemic ends and in-person learning resumes.” Overall, it appears that Mrs. Greene feels that E-Learning is an experience that is going to improve the school experience for a long time, and this opinion appears to be a shared one amongst the teachers. Mrs. Greene cares about her students, and her ability to adapt to E-Learning as a teacher is something I hope is shared amongst the staff. “I am also checking in with students on their emotional health and feelings more. These are all things I want to carry over even when we are learning in person again… …We are all going through this difficult time together, and that bonds us.”. Lets hope E-Learning continues to improve, and go as smoothly for the teachers as it does for us!