They say it's a new kind of normal...

Teaching/Learning during a PANDEMIC

A Twitter Tale

At times I have felt like I am drowning in all of this. The world is scrambling to find its footing, some sense of normality, and yet the work keeps piling up, the bills are due, and life keeps going on whether we're prepared to handle it or not. I think it's very unfair. I think the way that many educators have approached this, or have had to approach this, was in some...maybe even a lot of ways, detrimental to student growth and development. Some however, seemed to pull from a source of empathy, and the sheer joy of sharing knowledge with their students.

The world is experiencing right now a sort of collective trauma that many of us have never felt before... 

Students who once flourished are struggling, and students who once struggled may be flourishing. I have seen more success and positive responses when educators approach this with a sense of understanding, while not trying to overload students with busy work, or assignments. I feel during this time, students should be focused on doing what is needed to get on track and learn, and we as their teachers need to let everything else go, be more flexible, and allow our students extended due dates as ways that encourage positive student growth.  

(still from a twitter thread I shared)

Grades are undoubtedly starting to pour in and some students are understandably behind and in danger of failing the course. One teacher posted about how she sent out an email to her some 135 students that they were all getting 0's, and the ones who were struggling panicked, got a hold of her, and are now doing what they can to catch up. While the teacher did give them options of completing what they can out of everything in order to get a passing mark, they touted about how it got the kids to comply with expectations, and that really upset me. In the new normal, it is our job as educators to comply with the needs of our students, not the other way around. The world is experiencing a collective trauma right now that many of us have never felt before, it is unfair to scare or force any of our students into rigid expectations while they watch friends, family, and others get sick and die. So I would like to share some of the ways one teacher approached this subject of teaching, passing, and failing students during a pandemic a little bit differently...

1. 

The first thing is encouraging students to stay calm, and do what they can in a realistic time frame. Have your students go through the work that was required, and have them pick something that interests them, or that they know they can or feel motivated to finish. Have them communicate with you about if they can or cannot complete expected assignments based on personal reasons or conditions of living. Once your students have identified the areas they feel they can address, have them set aside a comfortable amount of time to begin working on that assignment.

2. 

Encourage students to stick to the task at hand for the time they allotted themselves. Encourage them to take care of themselves and their emotions during this time also. Perhaps the task proved to be stressful, that's OK, encourage your students to get up, move around, become active, or do something that will help them relax and focus again. Once they have calmed down, have students reapporach the task for the same amount of time, or move onto another task for that time. Either way your student is progressing, and you as a teacher can assess that! This also creates an environment that doesn't manifest further anxiety in a world already filled with so much.

This time should be about setting realistic goals for our students to master, not expecting them to complete work just because they're home and "have time"...

An environment rich with empathy will help students to thrive. This time should be about setting realistic goals for our students to master, not expecting them to complete work just because they're home and "have time." Allowing students to work in a way that fits their needs right now, still gets us, their educators, results to assess and grade. Perhaps a student can't finish all the work, but progress is still progress, and we can assess student learning on that. This fosters an environment where students feel  taken care of, which will help in developing study habits for a "new type of normal" *I knowww* that we're all still trying to adjust to. Furthermore, as a student myself I have been buried over my head just trying to keep up with what's expected, while teachers I know are spending more quality time with family, just waiting for us to get work in for them to grade. There seems to some sort of discourse that quite frankly doesn't sit well with me. That is of course not to disregard the teachers that have gone above and beyond for their students, of which exemplars are plenty, but for every good teacher there seems to be another also struggling with how to implement classroom policy in a way that is also empathetic and enriching to students abilities right now. So that brings me to...

3. 

Losing control will help you gain control. Fully engaging in the fact that these are abnormal circumstances and that we do not know what our students are going through will help us to build a rapport of active and collective learning with them. As soon as we stress them out, place more responsibility on them than they are able to handle, and wait for them to approach us and tell us that they're struggling, rather than just at this point expecting that they are, we risk alienating them and us having to fail them. No teacher wants to have to fail their student during an pandemic, so collectively we can decide on an approach that allows for us not having to do so. 

4. 

Remember that the way that we approach students Social/Emotional needs builds strengths in all areas of their lives, and helps with the ultimate goal of sending out young people into the world fully equipped to handle that world. This matters more than ever. 

Losing control will help you gain control... 

None of us really know how all of this will truly end, and recognizing that the same fears, depressions, anxieties that we as adults are facing in light of this inevitability, students are also facing, is how we can ensure that we are building realistic expectations for our students right now, and giving them opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed.  

5.

Right now it is hard in different ways for if not all, most of us to function with daily tasks. As we know, the brain struggles or cannot learn during a traumatic experience. The United States has one of the highest mortality rates from Covid-19 in the world. People I know have had it, people my parents know, people whom my best friend works with. My best friend also works at one of the main testing hospitals and I haven't seen him in almost two months. I miss him dearly, and usually I get to see him at least once a week. Today was a nicer day outside, and he wanted to get together to sit 6 feet apart outside with our masks on. I had to tell him no because I have homework to do. As someone going into education and a student I wonder how anyone could feel right about forcing people to be distracted from what should matter right now....

6.

"To err is human, to forgive divine." As educators we have it in our power to forgive due dates, and the amount of work that needs to be completed in a way that still sets up proper assessment of learning standards for goals met. DO THIS!  Do everything you can to approach all of this as a lifeguard, rather than the wave that's about to hit them. Many of us were not prepared to transition into this style of teaching and learning, but the sooner we start implementing policies like the ones discussed here, the sooner we can actually get back to learning. 

My Semester on Twitter

(still from my twitter account)

I was actually planning on deleting all of my social media accounts this year. I had actually done so with everything but Instagram when the semester started, and I was prompted to create a new Twitter handle for my class. Needless to say I wasn't happy. However, it has quickly turned into a valuable experience in networking tools as I make the transition from Novice/Pre-Student teaching to just student teaching. 

Twitter seems like an especially poignant tool in the age of social distancing...

Twitter has allowed me to connect with a larger body of educators, whom I normally wouldn't have had access to. This has become increasingly true during Twitter chats. "A Twitter Chat is a public Twitter conversation around one unique hashtag."

This month I participated in my first ever #k12ArtChat - note this isn't my first Twitter Chat, but it was my first one that was geared directly toward art educators. This is a network that even ten years ago (Twitter is 14 years old) would not have been available to people on this platform. Or if it was, what teacher was really utilizing this tool for such a goal? 

As technology becomes an integral part of our lives, and our survival, Twitter has been carried with it. One of the earlier forms of social media (though not as early to the game as MySpace or Facebook) I would never have thought some 14 years later that I would be sitting here writing a blog about the amazing benefits of Twitter. Especially during a pandemic. Cue the music. 

      (still from a recent Twitter chat I had)

I don't think we should be ashamed of finding inspiration in popular culture...

The Zeitgeist is the Zeitgeist for a reason, and I don't think we should be ashamed of finding inspiration in popular culture. I learned this lesson through my use of Twitter. Twitter itself is positioned in this realm as politicians, celebrities, and influencers alike utilize the tool to get their message across to the masses. It can be easy to overlook the potential for an education among the clatter, but it's there, and I encourage you to seek it out.

As some schools plan for not re-opening until possibly Fall 2021, Twitter seems like a poignant tool in the age of social distancing. With these new stipulations in place, it's high time for us as educators to embrace these tools for just this reason. Our students are already engaged in this technology, and it can only serve to benefit them, and our role as their teachers, to invest in these as well. This is how we can pull from our students daily experiences to get them re-engaged in learning.

Much like my recent Twitter chat, where the subject steered toward pop star’s role in innovation, one person commented that their students tell them they don't like art, but that same student can turn around and describe all the aesthetics of the concert they just went to. Our students are already engaging in art on a level that interests them, and that isn't something that we should be afraid of. Instead, I feel this is something that we as educators can use toward our advantage.

I was recently working on a unit in my novice placement (prior to schools closing down) that had students who had little exposure to the Elements and Principles attempt to define them in modern day album cover art. The results were really satisfying. Students were engaged, and ready to share their knowledge, and whether it was the right answer or not (and they usually were right!) their responses were really in depth for middle schoolers.

It does stand to reason then, that when we as educators take the time to engage in what our students are engaging in, we will find a world of possibilities to educate them in the discipline we are working with. Twitter is just one of those tools, and it provides you with a virtual PLC group in a sense, especially with education chats like the one I discussed in this blog. So don't listen to the hype about Twitter trolls, and go make yourself an account, and start getting engaged. 

SRS Tools

Using SRS (Student Response Systems) tools in your classroom can be a fun and exciting way to keep student attention, and gain student understanding of the material.

Students participating in an activity
 involving  Plickers, an SRS tool 

Student Response Systems are quickly becoming the norm in today's classrooms, and why not? With so many options, there is really no reason for teachers NOT to be using these tools in their classrooms. Well what if our school can't afford tech for our students? You might be asking yourself this question right now, and to put it bluntly, they have an APP for that.

SRS tools have really come a long way, in terms of options and functions, and overall accessibility. The above picture for example, shows students interacting with Plickers, an SRS tool where students can answer Trivia style questions by simply holding up cue cards with symbols drawn on them, making this a great tool for formative assessments of students understanding of the material. The teacher can then scan in their student's answers with any smart device they have access to, and they don't need the newest age tech to run the app either. This a great solution for schools in lower socioeconomic areas. 

Plickers is also an amazing tool for art classes, gym classes, and other disciplines where students might not have access to, or benefit from traditional style test taking. Students with IEP's or 504's, who may struggle with traditional style test taking, can also greatly benefit from something like Plickers. The system allows you to assess student understanding in real time, while you're teaching your lesson, or as a review before your lesson starts, or once you've finished.

While SRS tools functions may vary, each of them can be a great solution for gauging student interest/knowledge, and getting students working with the material they're learning about in a hands on kind of way. 

Example of a Nearpod I am building for a class
through Google Slides

If your school has an option for each student to have their own smart device/tablet/or otherwise, Nearpod is a great tool for setting up interactive slides that allow students to express what they are learning through action. For example, Nearpod unlike Plickers (which is more of a test based system) allows your students to engage in the lesson by finding and posting their own content, as well as allowing them to draw out examples through the use of the Draw It  tool.

I am actually currently working on a Nearpod for my 8th graders for a lesson I'll be teaching. The lesson is on the role of album art, and how these items we're so used to seeing are daily examples of the Elements and Principles of Art in practice. I am able to build the slide show in Google Slides, and then convert the slides/upload them into my Nearpod. What this means is, if I want students to answer questions, or find examples of certain Elements and Principles in album art, I can add that option to my slides through connecting them with Nearpod. It's really a great combination of what Plickers offers on a basic level, while allowing students the option to be more involved in their learning.

SRS tools are a great way to get students engaged and having fun with what they're learning.

After my students work is completed I have them upload images, as well as an Artist Statement, onto Artsonia. This is a very different kind of Student Response System than the ones we have looked at already. Your students will not need access to a school sanctioned smart device, as they can get on Artsonia from any computer or device (notably understandable that not all students will have access to a computer/smart device). This tool allows students to build an online portfolio and presence, much like a real working artist would have to do. 

Teachers, parents, and relatives can then leave comments on students work, making this a great visual tool to get your class thinking and building work habits like a professional artist, and while student work is public, only approved comments appear, and student identities remain private. This is important to remember when putting student artwork out there. This subject will come up, and I strongly suggest getting parent permission before utilizing this tool. 

If you're interested in using Artsonia in your classroom, or learning more about this SRS tool, click here to watch a video I made that explores Artsonia a little further. 

I hope that this has helped you to understand SRS tools a little bit more, and that it has even encouraged you, or made you more excited about using the different options available to you and your students. Remember that we don't have to fear incorporating technology into our classrooms. There are many different ways to utilize SRS tools in a variety of schools and situations, it just may take a little exploration to find the one that fits you best! 

Hashtag: New Teacher to Twitter!

I recently experienced my first "Twitter Chat" - What's a Twitter Chat you say? Good Question! As I didn't know until just recently myself. According to this site a "Twitter Chat" can be defined as "a public Twitter conversation around one unique hashtag. This hashtag allows you to follow the discussion and participate in it. Twitter chats are usually recurring and on specific topics to regularly connect people with these interests."And that's exactly what it is! To say the least. Haha. 

Really it's a meeting place where professionals, fans of celebrities, and a variety of others can come together, share ideas, and build a network of like-minded-people.

I am really happy with the Twitter Chat that I chose for my first one, as it lead to a pretty meaningful exchange. It was specifically designed to help new teachers connect, build a following, and start using Twitter in creative ways that benefit our profession/potential profession, and that's exactly what it did for me! What an amazing way to build a network of people with similar interests and knowledge in their field to help guide you on your journey!

(After the chat I also gained a few followers, and our ideas and exchanges have gotten to continue long past our initial chat! So it's a really great tool for any educator or anyone really just looking to connect)  

This of course was nice to see, given the animosity often associated with Twitter.

 

I know that after being up early all week, one might be tempted to sleep in during the weekends (I know I do!) - but maybe try and make some time to check one of these out! 

As you can see at the start of this blog post I have posted the prompt that we covered that morning. Also note the presence of a hashtag....as mentioned above in our definition...here it is  #nt2t - for New Teacher to Twitter! The person running the chat posted the prompt about an hour before the chat officially began (probably to allow time to meditate on your answers) and then throughout to remind people of the questions and guide them as to when to answer them.


Feel free to check out my Twitter account to see all of my answers! 

One theme that became apparent in my answers was empathy, and taking time to build positive happy goals and relationships. Which was appropriate given the Groundhog Day theme. It's easy to get stuck in a routine that can make us burn out quickly. It's not so easy to take time for our own happiness, and allow others to take time for their own. 

Moving into a new decade, let's stop getting stuck together. Let's remind ourselves and give us permission to take time for what we need and want, and to be more understanding of when others need to take time for themselves.

The work will get done, the bills will get paid, but a life worth living is waiting for you.

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