So this post has been sitting in draft form in my dashboard for over a month now (we’re now 9 weeks in!) because it’s crazy times and I spent a few weeks racing to keep up with the evolving workload!  I’ve debated deleting it as the world and even my thinking has altered since then, but, I think there are still some relevancies that make it worth posting.

Pandemic

I doubt there is one of us who has not stopped at some point in the past few weeks to say, “This is crazy! Is this really happening?” We were naively gliding along through life and now, BAM, we find ourselves with the carpet pulled out from underneath us, dazed and confused by the instability we now face. I’ve thought several times that this feels like 9/11 again (I was teaching in the States at that time!). The world is shifting to a new normal again.

As educators, we are now forced to adapt to this new world. We must do it fast but not recklessly. We must not fail to respond but we must not overreact.

Endangered Educators

This week I am reading about the role of a teacher librarian (TL). I’m reading articles about different views different people have. Some view the TL as someone who reshelves and organises book fairs/dress-up days, others view TLs as partners in collaboration, some view the TL as someone who provides them with time-release, others view them as indispensable experts in resourcing the curriculum and leading students to become literate in information search processes. Many view the TL as an endangered species.

I teach at an Independent school and this week the focus was largely on moving to remote learning. Being a fee-based school, it came up multiple times that some families might feel like pulling their kids out of school if they had to be the teachers for six months. This could lead to reduced income and potentially reduced staff. For the first time, all the teachers felt like an endangered species.

This feeling of endangerment has pushed us staff to really think about we bring to the table as educators. How do we make our remote learning plans for students authentic and even indispensable? In our more rural setting many students don’t have enough devices or internet to make synchronis online learning possible but will instead, have work packs sent out. How can we do better than what a parent can get from a Kmart workbook? How do we nurture in students a passion for learning when we can’t see or speak to them?

As TLs can also feel like endangered species it is important from them to stop and reflect on their role. What are they bringing to the table that a technician, aide, or even classroom teacher can’t? Are they keeping themselves relevant in this changing world or are they stuck in the past deserving of their endangerment?

What Remote Learning Has Taught Me About Remote Teaching

This is Week 4 of my Master’s course. This is the first time I have ever used online learning. I must confess I really, really dislike it. I’ve always thought of myself as a visual learner (I am an Art teacher after all!) but boy do I dislike learning by looking at a computer screen! I feel like a digital refugee. I really miss learning with a group of people I can see, hear and interact with in person. I miss watching and listening to a lecturer. As I stare into the computer, I find my mind constantly wondering. I get distracted. I read the same line six times. I find it hard to sit still long enough to get through readings when I’m used to always being on the go.

Ironically, the timing of my dislike couldn’t be better! My own disengagement has pushed me to develop remote learning plans for me students that are as engaging and hands-on as possible. I’ve spent many hours over these school holidays assembling physical packs for students to interact with. I am keen to see how student engagement is with the tasks I’ve set. Am I continuing to grow an eagerness for learning in them or am I giving them busy work to hold the gap till we can be together again?