By Ms. Gordon
Academics:
Dr. Justus: “It is very hard not having the face-to-face contact. Body language and facial expressions are immediately telling in terms of how someone is doing. It is also challenging catching the various types of misconceptions that can arise with new content. Normally in the classroom these can be addressed during the mini-lesson, activities and discussions, and assessments.”
Mr. Park: “Not knowing if students are having trouble with the material or not. Students are reluctant to reach out to teachers: in the classroom, teachers could scan the room and look for the student with the confused look on his/her face, but with remote learning, students could be completely lost and unwilling to ask for help.”
Self-Care:
Dr. Justus: “I enjoy being able to drink coffee/water and take breaks when I want to. The 3 period stretch of a normal school day that most teachers have in their program can be tough, and teachers cannot use the bathroom pass.”
Ms. Gross: “SLEEP! I finally wake up and feel rested! Professionally, I like that each teacher in a team is splitting up the work more evenly.”
Ms. Glickman: "Personally, the silver lining is I've had the opportunity to spend so much more quality time with my children (ages 11 months and almost 4 years old)."
Mr. Yusah: "My silver lining is a revelation of healthier practices. When I was at NEST+m, I was not eating or hydrating. I was constantly stressed and playing catch-up. But in digital learning, I am healthier in both body and spirit. I eat my meals and am emotionally able to step away from my workbench at a reasonable hour without feeling guilty."
Ms. Thompson: "My personal silver lining is sitting down and eating breakfast at home every day (instead of cramming down a bagel while running to the train)."
Connection:
Mr. Yusah: "I believe a lot of the impact I have as an educator comes with being able to be fully present for my classroom instruction and my availability for interpersonal connection. In the classroom, I am allowed to both demonstrate my connection through lively instruction and facilitate social connection between students in their exercises. And between class, I try to nurture and extend connection to students through impromptu exchanges (and 7th period lunch socials). Remote learning takes away both my connection to the students and their connection to each other."
Ms. Bray: "It's really challenging to be out of the classroom and not physically with your students. SO much of teaching is discussions and community building in the classroom and I just feel like that is missing."
Messages of Encouragement/ Empathy:
Ms. Gross: “My wedding was supposed to be August 1st with all my family and friends - something I have been waiting for my whole life! It had to get postponed until NEXT summer (1 year later), which was devastating. I empathize with the Seniors who were looking forward to their special milestones (graduation, senior trip, and prom). If it helps at all, my senior prom wasn’t great (my dress strap broke), we had no senior trip, and those graduation caps were actually pretty awkward to wear.”
Mr. Park: “You're not in this alone. You may feel physically isolated, but the world is more connected than ever before, and all it takes is a phone call or a DM to connect with another person. Perhaps instead of calling it "social distancing", we should be calling it "physical distancing", since we can and should be more socially connected than ever before. Also, Isaac Newton was forced to quarantine as an undergraduate student in 1666 from Trinity College because of the Great Plague, and during that time he supposedly came up with Calculus, the theory of Optics, and Universal Gravitation. Juuuust saying.”
Mr. McGorry: “My contribution to cheering on the essential workers has been to go out on my fire escape each evening at 7pm and play a song on my saxophone. I know a lot of musicians who are doing this. It's great to see everyone in my neighborhood banging pots and pans from their windows and sharing in the experience of giving thanks to the heroes who have been on the front lines of this pandemic.”
Mr. Yusah: “I wish they could take this pandemic as an opportunity to learn about inequity. Our city has always been inequitable in so many ways, and this moment in history has made it undeniable. I hope my students are all okay and loved; but especially for those who have had a comfortable time in our quarantine, I hope they open themselves up to the challenges of others.”
Ms. O’Connor: "As wild as it sounds I miss seeing their faces in the over crowded gym! Remote learning is not as enjoyable as being in the gymnasium and watching students interact with each other, and myself. I'm trying to catch up on all of my students work and progress, but more importantly want to help them physically, mentally, and emotionally during this extremely difficult time. I'm here to listen if there is anything I can do to help support them."
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