Pandemic Pedagogy

Pedagogy: noun meaning the method and practice of teaching, especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept.

I teach 6th grade Language Arts at an IB Academy (writing books is merely a side hustle...or is it vice versa??) and I will admit to a great deal of anxiety, frustration, and good ole fashioned hand-wringing since school closure (Florida) the second week of March due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Five months of staying close to home (okay, okay, there was a little 6,000 mile ride out west and back but mostly staying close to home...) and 9 weeks of teaching online has me bonkers! I know my administrator friends/colleagues are at the nail-biting-Tums-chewing stage as we rapidly approach 7/31 with no concrete plan to execute (Note: this is why I choose to be in the classroom and decline to use my Master's in Ed Leadership. You guys just go ahead and lead...I'll follow).

The question of how/when to return to school is a legitimate nightmare. As I write, the issue is being discussed, Zoomed, meme'd, Tweeted...I mean social media is ablaze with everyone's opinion about returning to school in August (and no, I don't give a flying fuck what IQ45 dictates. My district makes the decisions for me based on an elected school board who governs. If he had half a brain, he would know you can't threaten a teacher)! The purpose of this blog post is to sprinkle some much needed humor (similar to sprinkling glitter) on the issue.

A pandemic is forcing educators to completely rethink their approach to learning. Some can jump the digital divide and embrace eSchool (formerly known as Distance Learning. My district feels by changing the name students will not blow it off as they did Distance Learning) most cannot. I've always been tech savvy, but I will be honest, I detested online teaching. I am a hands on teacher, I am energized by my students in a brick and mortar classroom.

Theoretically (I say theoretically because if you fill a room with educators, we will all disagree on some level about pedagogy. We all have our own way of delivering instruction that doesn't necessarily fit in a nice neat box of theory. And someone will have a 57 slide presentation that explains it quite clearly...) there are five fundamentals of effective pedagogy...let's examine them from a PANDEMIC point-of-view.

1. JOINT PRODUCTIVE ACTIVITY

Easy to say, difficult to do when maintaining six feet of separation. Virtually every effective strategy/activity I employ in my classroom requires close contact. I can use my laser pointer for zeroing in on students perhaps. I can take a six foot cane pole into the classroom to make sure our distancing is legit. 

Even more difficult when your class is online; while you are teaching your ass off to a computer monitor, kids are checking their SnapChat, most have minimized your window and are playing Fortnite online, or they leave their empty chair in plain view. Working jointly doesn't seem to be on the pedagogy table.

2. LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

This normally includes vocabulary, problem-solving, academic language and of course learning English for my second language learners. How about this kids! Let's learn the new vocabulary/phrases: social distance, wash your hands, don't touch your face, wear your mask! And for those of you a little hard of hearing, forgive me for not taking my mask off so you can read my lips.  Todays problem solving activity: how do we execute Think Pair Share/Heads Together when you are six feet apart? 

3. CONTEXTUALIZATION

Phew! yeah, that's a big one. Connecting the learning to community, and cultural context. "well kids you are sitting in a classroom during a pandemic because your parents had to go to work or frankly they were just tired of 24/7 parenting." The good news is, those same parents will never again sit in a parent conference and tell me I am the problem.

4. CHALLENGING ACTIVITIES

Hey! We got THIS covered! The school day starts with your temperature being taken at the bus stop (nurse's station for teachers), once you are on campus we will check your uniform and your PPE gear. If any of this is off kilter, guess what? Mom (who just arrived at work) will get a phone call to come fetch you from campus. Made it past the bus stop? Great! Your next activity is to have your mask on properly, use the hand sanitizer before you touch anything, stop talking to your friend, is your ID on properly? What? your forgot your backpack? No worries, it was full of germs anyway. This is all prior to first period. In addition to relieving my bladder at key points in the school day, I now have to wash my hands 100 times (as suggested by a nurse). In between classes I have to wipe down the desks, the laptops, and any other surface a human has touched. 

5. INSTRUCTIONAL CONVERSATION

Well, fuck me, because this will be the toughest fundamental of all. I'm wearing a mask, each kid is wearing a mask, and we are six feet apart. I have a microphone (Thank God), they don't. Most 6th graders are afraid to speak up in the best of circumstances; they sit and mumble then get all upset/embarrassed when you ask them to repeat what they've said only louder. I tell them 'you have to speak up, I saw every good band of the '70's and I ride a loud motorcycle.'

Pedagogy aside, there are other issues teachers are struggling with at this time. I've bought six pairs of shoes since April (I'm a Skechers freak...now own approximately 20 pair). Who will see them if I'm teaching online? Same with my rainbow of colors of capri's and matching school logo embroidered button down shirts. Regardless if I'm face-to-face or online, I will miss the collaboration with my colleagues; hell, I'll miss sitting with them at lunch! Yes, we collaborated online but it wasn't the same... do you know how many distractions there are with online communication?? 

I'm in a quandary over purchasing a new Teacher Bag; yes, every year I indulge in an obscenely expensive bag for the start of a new school year. Sometimes, but not often, the price is so obscene I justify carrying it another year. This bag carries all my 'essentials,' to school and all of the student work for grading from school. Who wants to bring those germ infested papers home though??!! It's been recommended that we change clothes before leaving school to avoid carrying the virus home. Do I need a gym bag type Teacher Bag this year? Does Michael Kors or Coach make such a bag??

Just trying to keep my sanity while we await the final plan from our district. If you have school age children or grand children, choose to keep them home if at all possible and supervise their eSchool learning. Because it's gonna be a bitch in the classroom during a pandemic.

Debi Tolbert Duggar is the author of 'Riding Soul-O'

Part memoir, Part travelogue, Part spiritual salvation

Available at Bessieandme.com and online wherever books are sold