By Allison Li
The past few weeks of quarantine have passed in a flash, and with that, there have been countless, unprecedented changes to our daily lives. As students, we have had to adapt in many different aspects in order to balance online school with the rest of our activities. Just the same, teachers have to manage these changes in their lives. Here’s what a few of our teachers at East have to say about how the current global pandemic has impacted their daily lives and careers.
Our teachers have their own personal lives that may not always be showcased in the classroom. They are humans just like us, and in turn, they have their own routines and habits. Mrs. Brown, an English 11 teacher, shares some aspects of her personal life. “My living room has been taken over by an endless rotation of Lego creations and blanket forts.” Moreover, spending time in nature is especially important to Mrs. Brown. To maintain a positive mindset, she said, “I can feel myself relaxing when I am under the trees. I have noticed more types of birds in our yard. We have watched baby bunnies hop out of their nest, and we have discovered mole tunnels in our yard. (I do not think our dog, Rosie, makes much of a guard dog since none of the wild animals inhabiting our yard seem to even notice her.) It has been amazing to have the time to watch as nature springs to life around us.” Mrs. Brown also expressed the following views about the switch to online school. “I am not fully ‘me when I am not teaching. Hearing [students’s] voices, hearing them smile and tell me they were OK, helped me to anchor myself to hope. The hard part is that even google meets do not replace the energy and immediacy of being in the classroom with students.”
Mrs. Bernard concluded, “One positive thing that came out of this for our family was that we had many more family meals than ever before…it was nice to slow down a little.”
Mrs. Bernard, the AP Chemistry and Biology teacher, has also experienced changes in her daily life due to her entire family being home. She said, “My youngest son (4) absolutely loved not having to go to daycare everyday and my older son (13), started sleeping in very late. He often didn’t start his school work until 12-1 pm. He liked the flexibility of waking up late and doing school work at his own pace. That was one thing that was a little hard for me to get used to (haha).” Mrs. Bernard concluded, “One positive thing that came out of this for our family was that we had many more family meals than ever before…it was nice to slow down a little.”
This year, APs were also changed drastically – from a 3 hour exam to a 45 minute online test. For most classes, the test was composed of free response questions, or for history classes, a Document Based Question. Mrs. Bernard said, “I don’t feel like it was difficult to adjust for AP Chemistry. We had worked at a fast pace throughout the year, and we had almost two months of review before the exam. The hardest part was giving a Chemistry explanation over email.” Mr. Nogowski, the teacher for AP US History, also stated, “Under the circumstances, online learning is the only option at this time, which makes it better than nothing. Going forward, reality and expectations have to line up better… I miss being in the classroom with my students very much.”
Mr. Huber, an English teacher and the club advisor for the East Side News, has noted both the changes and constants in his life. “I still exercise in the morning, and work every morning and break for coffee. The big change is that I have to take over teaching my daughter around 11, make lunch while FaceTiming with family and my daughter’s friends, and then find a way to do work while I’m in charge of her–and she’s in first grade and has homework! My favorite part has been studying dinosaurs in a book, watching documentaries and movies and touring museums virtually, and then taking that information and applying it to Jurassic Park Evolution (on the Xbox), which is a theme park simulation game.” Finally, he explains his perspective on school: “As a teacher, I was fortunate enough that school closed really at the best time possible relating to each class, because they were all prepped for an assignment and ready to start working independently when it happened. With that said, I’m grateful for having wonderful students who have worked so hard and tried to be optimistic, so it was a good mix of timing and having such great kids.”
Our teachers have been supporting us all year, even when we can’t see them in person. They have all had to adapt to online teaching during this quarantine, just as we have had to adapt to online learning. Overall, although nothing will replace the classroom environment, they have done their best to continue instruction and ensure we have a successful school year.
