We’re teaching in uncertain times–virtual learning, hybrid learning, brick-and-mortar. It’s up in the air from day-to-day.
I don’t have to tell you that teaching’s a tough job under the best of circumstances. I saw a quote on Instagram saying that teachers do a year’s worth of work in 10 months. You know that’s true. But the first six months of 2020 felt more like six years worth of work–the scramble to plan, grade, and just to keep up with students was overwhelming.
The quarantine was stressful–it put us all on edge. Then the bandage was ripped off race relations in the U.S., forcing those of us who had the privilege to ignore it in the past to look at it dead-on. People of Color knew it was there. They couldn’t ignore it because they’re the ones covered up inside it.
White people responded by dividing yet again. Many of us responded by attempting to learn about these undeniable wrongs. Many of us responded by attempting to re-cover the wound with the same bandage.
Regardless of your initial reaction, how will you respond for your students? We as teachers must remember that above all else, our job is to be there for our students. As we catch our collective breath and steel ourselves for more turmoil and uncertainty in the 2020-2021 school year, we must never forget this.
Every year, I do a summer blog series to prepare for the next school year. The one I had planned for 2020 seems irrelevant now. When I sketched it out last fall, we were living in a different world. Tech and teaching tutorials seem less relevant than broader approaches at this moment.
I’ve talked to teachers across the world and most of us don’t know what we’ll be facing this fall. A consensus seems to be that it’ll be some sort of hybrid learning model with preparations to go back into quarantine and virtual learning at any time.
Education is experiencing a rapid shift. This circumstance, to loosely quote Shakespeare, has been
“thrust upon us,” and we have to go with it. Either that or retire early.
In light of all of this, my new summer blog series is called “Teaching in Uncertain Times.” Here’s what’s coming for the next three weeks:
– BRING CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING TO ANY SETTING IN 6 STEPS
– 5 STEPS TOWARD BUILDING RACIAL EQUITY IN THE CLASSROOM
– HOW TO MAKE VIRTUAL LEARNING MORE EQUITABLE IN 3 STEPS
I hope you join me for the next five weeks for this series on “Teaching in Uncertain Times.” Please respond to the posts in the comments with your insight–I want to hear from you. Let’s learn how to navigate virtual and hybrid learning together.
