COVID-19: Quaranteaching

Quaran-teaching

Today marks the onset of my return as an educator from “spring break” through what I foresee will be the remainder of the school year. As I type, it has been exactly one month since I meandered through the hallways of my school, scurrying alongside the hustle and bustle that was the student body. I miss the steady hum and heartbeat that encapsulates every school building throughout the country. I miss the informal handshakes, high fives, and glistening smiles that greeted me as students entered our learning space. While I’ve tried my best to inhibit its passing, time has continuously ticked away with reckless abandonment to maintaining any sense of normalcy.

Inpatient

If you asked me to describe my lifestyle a month ago I could easily describe it in one word – busy. Between teaching K-12 in the daytime and adult learners in the evening, advising the Class of 2020, coaching, attempting to write a dissertation, getting in a lift at LA Fitness, it seemed like there was everything but free time in my life. Amidst all of these responsibilities, I’ve done my best to uphold the highest of standards and expectations for my craft. My rationale? As drastic as it may sound, in the world of education, millions of lives are at stake each and every day.

In a split second, however, with the implementation of protective social distancing measures and the closing of schools throughout the country, an overwhelming amount of time suddenly came flooding back into my life. What was I to do? As someone who repeatedly tells those around him,

Time is our most precious commodity. Savor every second as though it’s your last.

Bow-Tie Joe

I wanted to ensure that with this opportunity to hit the reset button, I did it the right way. And so, I got to work. Ironic right? With the haste and rapidity that was the transition to #RemoteLearning, I realized that with the face-to-face opportunity I was granted 180 days a year, as much as I have made an earnest effort to develop the social-emotional capacity of my learners – what one may call transferable “soft skills” if you’re a non-educator reading this – the transition to #RemoteLearning simply amplified that I was no closer to where I wanted my learners to be than when I had started. Why did it seem like all of a sudden that the ability to manage one’s time, respond (or even draft) an email, readily identify our strengths and weaknesses as learners seem to evade us, as adults and children? Being a mathematics educator by design has its fair share of pros and cons but I’ve come to realize in the past 31 days that I have a very valuable moment in my career to spend a considerable amount of time developing and strengthening the soft skills that I feel students should acquire rather than the mathematical knowledge they are supposed to acquire. Radical, I know. Please don’t tell on me.

Remedy

Model it. Make mistakes. Be human. While I’ve maintained my traditional standards in delivering mathematical content, I’ve spent a significant amount of time considering how to “teach” the intangible qualities I possess that have helped me be most successful.

To begin, I created a Remote Learning Schedule template for my students since I believe this is the instance in their lives where they literally have to self-regulate their ENTIRE day. The schedule breaks down their days on an hourly basis which spurred me to reflect upon my own “schedule”. While I know the negative connotations associated with “hustle culture” I adore it and thrive in that mindset. I did, however, begin to question the type of work I was able to complete at different instances throughout the day and at what point in the day did I consider a mental “shut down” where I read or dare I say it, watch Netflix or some other streaming service. Things I never would have considered 31 days ago.

Alongside the Remote Learning Schedule, through emails and any other form of virtual correspondence, I’ve made it a point to coach students in how we portray ourselves virtually and what it means to engage responsibly in digital citizenship and enhance our individual capacity in digital literacy. For me, this means resuscitating this blog to capture my thoughts and get them onto virtual paper and in the creation of a YouTube channel to support our learning. I’m hopeful that these platforms, amongst others, will afford me another opportunity to model the soft skills I hope they acquire before they depart my virtual classroom and ultimately, are better equipped to embrace the world and the adversity and opportunities that await.

Most importantly, I’ve hyper-emphasized the importance of communication (and accountability). Any time I’ve communicated information to my learners during this period of time, I do so under the assumption it will most likely not be read – with the unprecedented circumstances we’ve all been adapting to on the fly, we’re all allowed a few brain farts along the way, especially if we’re a child, still trying to make sense of all of this. And so, while I may not hear from a student for a week and receive no indication that anything troubling has arisen when they do decide to establish contact with me regarding an assignment (or anything else for that matter) that is past due, we engage in a simple conversation. While they unknowingly have already been granted additional time to submit the assignment regardless of circumstance, it’s the emphasis on the simple ability to communicate, even when we don’t necessarily want to explain our thoughts or actions that I perceive to be the more significant teachable moment. Within my own network, I feel like I’m in and out of Google Hangouts or FaceTimes on a daily basis with colleagues, classmates, friends, and family – it’s by far the most amount of time I’ve spent in my adult life reconnecting and chopping it up with so many individuals who are or have been integral to both my personal and professional growth. I can’t get enough of it! I’ve had some of the most meaningful conversations with those near and dear to my heart during this period of time.

So while the COVID-19 pandemic has seemingly inhibited many liberties we have grown accustomed to, I’m grateful that it’s afforded me the opportunity as an individual and as an educator to value those liberties and that I have a platform to try and instill those same core values in my learners. Meanwhile, despite time continuing to steadily tick away as I wrote this, less is still most certainly more. I’ll maximize more of my life and career moving forward by doing less and making the most of the time that I do have. Fortunately, it’s a beautiful day for a bike ride – “work” can wait.

I wonder if my students still even think of me as their mathematics teacher – I hope not.

Thanks for reading and sharing.

Bow-Tie Joe