Arianna Lambert Constant Learning, Remote Learning, self reflection, Technology

Back to the Classroom

It’s hard to believe that it’s only February and yet again, I’m sometimes amazed that it is still February! Last week, we headed back into the classroom, and with that, came mixed emotions. With a new principal in the midst of a pandemic, I was hesitant heading back because change is always hard for me. Fear of the unknown, particularly during these uncertain times, is always something that I struggle with. That being said, I was also very excited to have the chance to see my students in person again. The night before we headed back, I didn’t sleep very well but just walking into the space and envisioning my students coming in, gave me a sense of comfort and familiarity. When the bell rang and students entered the building, the familiar buzz and sense of excitement made me feel right at home. 

While we were learning virtually, I learned so much with and about my students. In this post, I’ll share a little about what I hope to continue as we learn again, in-person.

Time to Just Be

We all know the importance and benefits of social interactions in school. Opportunities to play and learn together – no matter the age – have great benefits for all students. I knew this but didn’t realize the magnitude until we went into virtual learning. While students were excited to see each other online and learn together through lessons, I noticed that they wanted more time to just be, together. Every day, I opened up our Meet at 8:45 am and school would officially start at 9 am. To my surprise, many weren’t interested in having the extra 15 minutes to ready themselves for the day but rather, many would just pop in early to talk or share something about themselves and to listen to others. It was an informal space to just be. Some mornings, students came up with games or Art activities to try with each other. We also did passion projects where we showcased something that we were passionate about in breakout rooms in Zoom. The smiles and how much they looked forward to having some “downtime” together made me realize that although learning together in the classroom has its social benefits, these moments where students were just themselves and having fun, held much value also. Since heading back to the classroom, I know that we have recess but I’m trying to figure out how we might incorporate these times – even if they are short – throughout the day. Less structured, while remaining safe and valuing more of what students choose to bring into the space.  

Voices

During virtual learning, I really tried to balance things so that all voices could be heard and not just the ones who were quickly able to hit the “raise hand” button. I was conscious of those who often spoke up and shared. I also tried to encourage those who were more quiet to understand that we so wanted to hear their voices. I was intentional in saying that while online, we need to ensure that all voices are heard and even if it took us an extra few minutes to pause to hear from a variety of students, we would. Coming back into the classroom, this is something that I want to be just as intentional about. We’re pausing and inviting more to share, being conscious of how much space we take up in discussions. 

Technology as a Tool

Since being back, it has taken us some time to get our tech back in the classroom. We’re there now and last week was a great reminder that technology is a powerful tool that is good for all and essential for some. During our time virtually, I continued to try and have students demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways. At the end of our Financial Literacy unit, we listed all that we learned during the unit, and students were tasked with creating their own resource to teach the unit to another Grade 5 class. It was amazing to see what students created. From posters and brochures to Slides presentations and videos, it was neat to see the ways in which students took an idea and ran with it, using technology. I have always been a firm believer in open tasks. Seeing what they did independently with this task was a great reminder for me. Technology is a great tool and when given the opportunity, students will use it to create and demonstrate their understanding, if we let them. 

While this learning isn’t necessarily new to me, I’ve appreciated taking the time to reflect on what was successful during virtual learning, and considering how I may bring some parts back into our in-person space. 

If you are returning to in-person learning, really hope that your return to school has been successful so far. If you are continuing to teach virtually, I give you so much credit for your work. It’s challenging to do and I’m in awe. During these challenging times, I know that we are all filled with a mix of emotions. Please remember to take some time to reflect on what is going well and also to take care of yourself!

Deb Weston Advocacy for public education, Assessment, COVID19, e-learning, Emergency Distance Learning, Engaging students with online learning, Remote Learning, Teaching online, Weather

Snow Day = No School Day

ETFO’s position on in-person learning remains unchanged. The union firmly believes that the daily, in-person model of instruction and support best meets the educational, developmental and social needs of students, provides the best experience for support, and is the most equitable learning model for all students. ETFO’s expectation is that elementary virtual learning in any capacity, including through hybrid models of instruction, will end once the pandemic ends.

As an elementary special education teacher, I teach in a hybrid class of some students learning synchronously online and some learning in-class. It’s a juggle of competing agendas as teaching online and in-class are very different due to different ecologies of learning. Ecology is defined as “the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment; it seeks to understand the vital connections between plants and animals and the world around them.”

In-class ecology of learning

In-class learning happens in a physical environment of personal connections. In-class students learn by watching and listening to teachers while they also complete their work. Teachers can address specific students’ needs by reading body language and answering students’ questions.

Classroom learning is personal in nature.

In-class ecology is based on interactions between participants that occur face-to-face with the opportunity to directly deal with students based on need. Needs are determined by teachers being able to assess students’ needs by their knowledge of student learning profiles and emotions identified via body language. Classrooms also provide students with opportunities to interact with other students and move while learning.

Classroom learning is fostered by relationships and the interconnections between students, parents, and teachers.

Online ecology of learning

Online learning happens in a virtual environment of auditory connections. When students learning online, they learn mostly by listening through a screen via an online platform. Teachers explain concepts through images and speaking with little or no eye contact with students. As students often have their cameras off (i.e., their choice to protect their privacy at home), teachers cannot assess students’ level of engagement nor can they assess students’ understanding of lessons. Further, since students learn via camera, they miss the opportunity to engage in learning by manipulating objects such as with math manipulatives or creating experiments in science.

Online learning is void of the personal nature found in classroom learning.

Through a camera, teachers cannot develop the fulsome relationships key to the evaluation of students’ understanding and need for support. In addition, teachers are highly limited in the understanding of students’ learning profiles or emotional needs.

The assessment of work is also a challenge as teachers cannot directly witness products or collect observations in assessing success criteria. Conducting assessments via conversations is challenging as other students are literally in the same space as the student being assessed.

Online learning falls short in the building of relationships and interconnections between students, parents, and teachers. As the act of learning is fueled by personal interactions and relationships, without them learning is constrained. Online learning, especially for students with special education needs, is not an effective venue to learn. Further, online learning disproportionally impacts students who come from lower social economic backgrounds where the additional resources of time and money may not be available to support learning from home.

Online and In-Class Learning have different ecologies

Overall, it’s taken me many months to delineate what works synchronously online and in-class via the hybrid model. As learning about how to teach is based on experience, I’ve had some lessons that were not to be repeated and through this process I know what works with my current class of students.

In-class and online teaching “Flip-o-Rama”

Tuesday, February 16th, 2021 was the day my in-class students were to return to school. My online students would remain online but follow along in class via a camera (which was finally provided to me by my board of education after a year of teaching online learning.) But Mother Nature decided not to have us return to school via a big dump of snow – a snow day was announced via Twitter.

My lesson plans for this day were based on teaching in-class at school. We were to get our classroom organized, go over new Covid protocols, discuss plans for our science projects, and learn about anti-racism. I did not plan for another day of teaching online.

I was informed via Twitter by this message “On Feb. 16, 2021, all buses are cancelled & school buildings are closed to students due to inclement weather conditions. Learning will continue at home through remote, synchronous instruction, where possible.”

I understand the need for students to continue their learning and I have been working over 6 days a week to make this happen. I have been stepping up to “learning through remote synchronous instruction, where possible” by making it possible every day since September 2020. As a teacher, during the Covid-19 pandemic, I have worked hard to meet every additional expectation presented to me by my board of education. I have made “where possible”, possible.

Just Pivot In-class to Online

The challenge I face is that I cannot “just flip a switch” (i.e. or pivot) to go from planning for in-class learning to synchronous, online learning. It is not an easy, “flip of a switch”, transition. The reality is that I need to plan more for online learning by making sure students have the materials they need to participate in lessons.

My greatest concern is that, in the future, once the pandemic passes, Snow Days (i.e., inclement weather days) will automatically become online learning days. This will result in teachers having to flip from in class learning to online learning within hours of inclement weather announcements. Parents will have to arrange their day to accommodate their child’s online school by monitoring their work and supporting learning activities where possible. It’s a big ask for teachers and parents.

Setting a precedent for online learning during inclement weather days is a slippery slope.

I can see boards and ministries of education using inclement weather online learning to move more students’ learning, online.

Collaboratively Yours,

Deborah Weston, PhD

Will Gourley Challenging Topics, COVID19, Distance learning, Emergency Distance Learning, Engaging students with online learning, General, Mental Health, Modern Learning, Remote Learning, Resilience, self reflection, social emotional learning, Social Media, Teacher Wellness, Teacher Working Conditions, Teaching online, Use of Technology

Per / Con / In / Re – form

Perform 
I am wrestling with my thoughts again. In other words, I am restless again. When this happens many questions appear soon thereafter. Is there anyone out there that feels restless too?

I can’t be the only one in questioning a lot of things right now because most days I feel like a busker at a street festival trying to juggle a bowling ball(technology), a chainsaw(lessons), and a fishtank(learners). Nothing to see here other than a fairly confident educator having a tough time with something that he’s done before – delivering lessons.

So why am I struggling to deliver my lessons? It seems like a good place to start. Right now, I am questioning everything about my professional practice, and it feels like running along a path and tripping over an imaginary object. My week long tumbles are not so much about the content I am teaching, but rather how it is being taught, how it is being received, and how it can be assessed. It is leaving me limping into the weekend? Tell me I am not alone right now.

Conform
And then it hits. How long until the realization that some of my students are not completely engaging with learning right now even though their eyes and emotionless emoticons tell me otherwise? After extended times staring at screens and thumbnail sized student/profile memes I can tell my students are becoming exhausted too despite the brave faces that I see popping up on occasion when called upon. Is this happening to anyone else teaching right now? Are your students tired too? I am. 

Why am I so tired right now? Shouldn’t getting an extra hour of sleep each night, drinking 2+ litres of water per day, reduced caffeine, reduced personal device time, reading more books, and getting more exercise than in years past be helping me out here? I have even added Tai Chi, Yoga, and Hip Hop Dance to our DPA to increase movement during class time. To top it all off, I take daily walks whether I feel like it or not. 

Inform
You see, I force myself to take a walk after each of my hyper-telepresent virtual teaching sessions. Once the goodbyes are done, it is pretty much all I can do to get out of my chair, climb the stairs, and get geared up to go out most days. Especially, when I have to pass by a very comfortable couch whose cushions scream, “Remember us?” It is very tempting, but something even better calls, my daily walks.

Regardless of the weather, these walks are my motivational carrots to keep taking the steps that get me through the many muddy moments along each day’s unpaved path. Knowing that no matter how the day goes, a walk awaits has been all it takes to see me through. Whether a lesson went well or died on the screen in front of me ceases to matter when I inhale that first breath of fresh outdoor air. The exhale feels pretty good too. 

You watch enough TV, and very soon the inside of your head has become a vast, arid plain, across which you cannot detect the passage of a thought. Harlan Ellison

So far this year, I have only missed one day of walking. In hindsight it was probably the day that I needed a it most. Instead, I ended up planted on that inviting couch with a bowl of Smartfood staring at our television. Tuned out. Achy. Sullen. Grumpy. Numb. These feelings got me thinking about screens. 

Reform
Sci-fi author Harlan Ellison referred to TV as the “glass teat”. He even wrote a couple of books about it. I see parallels to how education is being delivered right now. We need to wean our students off of their screens more and more in order to preserve their minds from numbing and tuning out. 

Somewhere along my way outside a struggle ensued about the work I am doing in front of my screen. Is it serving to numb our students over extended periods of time? Will these extended periods of online learning cause irreparable tears in our socio-academic fabric? I am not ready to believe that this is the beginning of the end for in person school and that we are heading for our isolation pods as told in E.M Forster’s The Machine Stops? 

We cannot continue feeding content from one glass plate after another and expecting students to grow up smart and healthy. A dear friend suggested that cutting the learning day back to 4 days might be a good idea. Allowing the 5th day for asynchronous activities such as self-directed inquiry and catching up on assignments during the day rather than in the evenings when fatigue sets in. Teachers could easily use that time for office hours, for one on one/small group support, and conferencing. Everyone wins. 

Yet to form
This is much more than having the tools to master a domain that has yet to be tamed? Virtual learning means we are virtually learning how to do this while we teach? I can tell you there are few system leaders or consultants that have as much experience as any teachers in this medium, and it has largely been gained through self-teaching and experimentation with their classes.

I worry that too much emphasis has been placed on performance and conformity without serious consideration to being fully informed of the true social, emotional, and physical costs of virtual learning. Teachers, students, and families are feeling the stress from this and without an alternative I fear that there will be problems far greater than being behind on assignments or failing a test.

There is a definite need to refine and reform how we are being asked to serve and support our students. I’d love to take a walk around the neighbourhood with those making decisions on our behalf, share some ideas, listen to one another, breath in some fresh air, and take the steps that would best support students and staff -from a safe distance of course. Maybe if we took away their screens everyone might be able to see eye to eye here about helping to change things for the better, our students. 

In the meantime, I think another walk is in order. 

 

 

Arianna Lambert Distance learning, Remote Learning, self reflection

Lessons From Virtual Learning

I’m going to start out by giving a shout-out to virtual teachers everywhere! Those of you that have been doing this since September, wow! You amaze me. As I’m getting used to the idea of teaching into a screen, I’m amazed by how you are able to do this day in and day out. At the end of the day, I sometimes walk away unsure as to the depth of our work; my eyes hurt; and if we didn’t have Phys. Ed. or if I haven’t had a chance to walk yet for the day, my back hurts. I was amazed by you before but experiencing this first-hand, you deserve much more credit than has been given!

In the last 4 weeks, I have learned a lot about myself and my students. In this post, I’ll share a few of the “lessons” that I have learned. While they may not be new “lessons”, they are certainly reminders for me when I head back into the classroom.  Here they are:

  1. Flexibility is fundamental;
  2. Reflection is required;
  3. Connections are crucial.

Flexibility Is Fundamental

Every day I head into our Meet or Zoom with a plan of how the day will go and almost always that plan gets completely changed around. While I know that it’s the same in the classroom, I find that so much more comes up in the virtual classroom. Our check-ins last longer. Tech issues arise. We need more or different support with a question or task since the way in which we “move around the room” is quite different. Where I thought I would be and where we actually are, are two different places and I’m learning more and more to not feel as though I’m failing my students because we can’t get to it just yet. As a teacher, I know that I can’t get to everything and for years now I’ve worked on the philosophy that my students will set the pace of where we go. However, somehow when we started in January, I found myself planning out and feeling the need to be moving along faster. I found myself getting frustrated with not being able to support my students in the same way and it has taken me some time to figure out different ways to accomplish this. Small group meetings or peer review sessions. I’m learning to be gentle with myself and understanding that flexibility is needed in my plans and where I imagined we might take an activity considering we’ve moved from in the classroom to virtual. 

Reflection Is Required

At the end of the first week, we took some time to reflect on the week and while I thought we did a great job, the feedback was brutal! In the classroom, a lot of the work and conversations are student-led with me as the facilitator. Being online, I found – and sometimes continue to find myself – in the seat of being the person who is speaking the most. Sure, we ask questions and there are discussions but it’s definitely not like it was in the classroom and the students feel it and have commented on it! As such, I’m getting over my fear of controlling the online space and my notion of making sure that it’s “safe” for all and we have ventured into breakout rooms in Zoom where I pop in from group to group as they work to solve problems, offer feedback to each other and lead workouts for Phys. Ed. It’s in these times that I have seen that they are “themselves”. That is to say that they’re the leaders I saw when we were in the classroom who are in charge of their own learning and helping their peers along with their learning. The small groups resemble the collaborative learning we’ve grown accustomed to over the past few months. They’ve asked for more opportunities to lead each other in Art activities or other areas of interest and I need to listen to their feedback and work with them to weave it into our day. Next week is another feedback/checkpoint for us and hopefully, we’ll be doing better in some areas and learn even more ways to make virtual learning more effective for my students. 

Connections Are Crucial

A couple of weeks ago, a colleague reached out to me to check-in via email. This colleague also happens to be the parent of one of my students. I can’t tell you how much I appreciated them checking in with me to see how I was doing and to also share how they felt their child was doing. It came on a day when I was actually struggling. I was frustrated with the fact that our return to school was being extended and knowing that the current way of teaching really isn’t sustainable. I’m grateful that all of my students are in everyday and learning but this really isn’t learning as we have known it. As I read the email, I started to feel very emotional. It wasn’t about what I could do better but it was sincerely thanking me for what I had been doing and for that I will forever be grateful. I share this to ask, who are you connecting with during this time? Are there friends, colleagues, or family members who are checking-in on you or with whom you can check-in? Since this colleague checked in on me, I’ve tried to pay it forward. I haven’t checked in with as many people as I have wanted to but as I connect, I realize just how crucial these connections are, as we are so isolated at this time. 

These are just some of the lessons I have learned in the last 4 weeks. While virtual learning continues for the next while, I know that more lessons will come. I’m ready to accept them and learn as I continue in my teaching practice. What lessons are you learning during this time?  How might they help you in your practice? What might you leave behind when we are back in person? What might change when we return? I hope that you are staying safe and taking care of yourself.

 

ETFO’s position on in-person learning remains unchanged. The union firmly believes that the daily, in-person model of instruction and support best meets the educational, developmental and social needs of students, provides the best experience for support, and is the most equitable learning model for all students.

ETFO’s expectation is that elementary virtual learning in any capacity, including through hybrid models of instruction, will end once the pandemic ends.

Kelly.McLaughlin 21st Century Learning, Black Lives Matter, Challenging Topics, COVID19, Distance learning, Mental Health, Remote Learning, self reflection, Social Justice, Students as Teachers, Teaching online, Wellbeing

At a loss for words

Did anyone else have a very hard time before class Thursday, January 7th?

Thinking about how to start discussing the terrorist attacks in the United States on Wednesday, January 6th? I spent the entire evening feeling sick about the whole situation. Then, an entirely new wave of anxiety came over me knowing that I would need to address it with my grade seven students.

At first I reached out to fellow intermediate educators, asking them how they were going to start this challenging discussion. They mentioned breakout groups, article readings and then discussions. Then I spoke to some friends about it who helped me come up with careful and sensitive things to say. In this profession, it is hard to speak about these topics (without being political) and to do so in a calm and professional manner. This attack was something that was devastating towards many people, especially BLM activists who were attacked with tear gas, etc. when they peacefully protesting in 2020.

The morning of January 7th arrived and class had begun. I always start the day with morning music and I found it appropriate to play the song “Where is the Love?” by the Black Eyed Peas. I found some of my students did not know what had happened the night before. A student in my class asked to speak on the mic and inform them about the terrorist attacks on the US Capitol. That student spoke very well and did a good job informing anyone who did not see the news, instagram, twitter or other social media platforms. I spoke about it for a while and explained the importance of positive role models/leaders in societies. Followers will always act on behalf of their leaders and this led to a discussion about positive leaders and how they have positively inspired change (Greta Thunberg, David Suzuki, etc.) Our conversation lasted about thirty minutes and was mostly student-led. Many grade sevens came on the mic to share their thoughts and they all did so in a respectful and calm way. Many students expressed their sadness for families that had children going through many things in the past year: forest fires, a pandemic, the death of Georg Floyd, the violent police response to BLM protestors, remote learning, election issues and then, this. We talked about how we are merely watching from Canada but imagine being in that city during this event, worrying about what may happen to you and your family. My favourite part of the discussion was when one of my students expressed her gratitude for talking about the situation rather than pretending it never happened and going about our day. This made me feel that the discussion had gone well and reaffirmed my thoughts about why current events cannot be swept under the rug (especially with intermediate students). We eventually went on with our day after first checking with all students, making sure that they were okay to move on from the challenging topic.

This week, we received an Emergency Alert on Thursday that informed us we are in a State of Emergency and a stay-at-home order is now in effect. This came during class time and many of my students own phones. We discussed what this means and I made sure to answer any questions students may have had. I discussed how the return to school date had been pushed back (that does not matter to us as we are always a remote class), plus the outdoor gathering size had changed to five and also, just to try their best to only leave home for important reasons. We had a great conversation about how the word “exercise” was now added as a reason to leave home. We continued a discussion about how mental health relates to exercise. This had tied in nicely to our healthy living presentations which had been going on during the week. We talked about how important it was that the government acknowledged that leaving your home for a walk or a run was an important thing to do.

After all the discussions were said and done, we did get back to our usual topics but as we know, the mental health of our students is the most important topic and we should always do our best to check in. This is especially important as we continue to learn online, with little to no face- to-face interactions with our students.

I am hoping everyone had a great start to 2021 so far and all that challenging conversations went as smoothly as they could go. I know I was extremely anxious about the conversations but I shouldn’t have been because my students prove to me time and time again their maturity and positive attitude towards their learning and overall outlook on our world.

Melissa Turnbull 21st Century Learning, Celebrating Success, Occasional Teaching, Remote Learning, Resilience

Occasional Teaching Online (part 3 of 3): My Favourite Things

"I love school"

 

If I had to pick my favourite thing about Occasional Teaching online the answer would easily be the students I meet each day. This picture was a screenshot from one of my supply days right before the winter break. “I love school” a student commented, randomly and unprompted in the chat box of Google Meet. Needless to say this reinforced my realization of how resilient students are. Comments like this keep me grounded during increasingly challenging times. 

 

What is it like to supply teach in an FRL classroom? 

 

I’ve put together some ideas in hopes to paint a picture of what it is like for my fellow OT’s out there.

Classroom management: Google add ons are helpful to download to view students who are using the ‘raise hand’ or ‘nod’ features. In FRL settings, I have found it important to emphasize many of the same things I do in the classroom, such as reminders to be respectful if someone else is talking or coming up with hand signals when students want to talk, agree, or need to use the washroom during a lesson. Each classroom teacher has different ways of doing this, so I find checking in with the students at the beginning of each day to be the most helpful.  

Social and emotional learning: Expect to enjoy some time each day for sharing, community circles and brain breaks. 

Academic learning:

 

Yet again as we head back into the unknown, remember to find what grounds you… find your favourite things.