No mixed signals!
MANY TEACHERS by now have got the very romantic good morning text from at least one of their high school sugar dumplings, “Miss, I just wake up. What did I miss?”
Very commendable of them to ask. Even when the message pops up in the WhatsApp group at 10:30 for the class that started at 8:00. As they say, better late than never.
There are two main problems standing in the way of effective distance learning. The first we all know and are well aware of: the connection problem. Sadly, many students who would have loved to be able to take part in distance learning are hindered by lack of access to the necessary technological infrastructure. Some teachers themselves suffer from the same problem – poor Internet connectivity and service, malfunctioning technological gadgets, and the like.
Matters are worsened when teachers simply don’t know what to do with the technology – if they do get access to it. But the primary and overarching problem is lack of access. And this is the reality for many Jamaican teachers and students. Undoubtedly, some students are getting left behind. No connection.
Problem number two has started to mature as a result of problem number one. Our students are very smart. Those who are online are seeing what is happening. They log in to class today and see that half their classmates are not in attendance, and they know there is no way the teacher will leave so many students behind. They know the material will be retaught.
Tomorrow, they log in a little later than usual, but what’s the big deal anyway? And within a few days, a once industrious and hard-working student would have been turned into a complete do-nothing, rolling out of bed at 10:30 for the 8:00 class.
For other students, who are a little more covert with their lack of regard and enthusiasm, they log their laptops or phones into their online classes, but they don’t bother to log themselves in. Hidden behind the computer screen, the teacher doesn’t see them texting throughout the class or eating breakfast with what should have been their note-taking or problem-working hand. The teacher only realises at some point that they are talking to a bunch of doorknobs who are hardly responding.
TRY HARDER THAN USUAL
Truth be told, both students and teachers will have to try harder than usual. Distance learning will be making new men and women out of the nation’s teachers. Many hate the tech stuff, but they simply have to adjust. It’s what they are being paid to do. Some students, on the other hand, think that they are on vacation, and since there is apparently no imperative for them to adjust, many simply don’t.
Many teachers can sense that their students are just not very engaged and, hence, are not as interested. Some students really try, but they quickly become worn out by the frustrations associated with learning how to use myriad different online platforms since their teachers don’t all use the same platforms.
Not only that, but if the only laptop in the house is being shared among three siblings and parent(s), the laptop will, at some point, get tired, and between unreliable Internet connectivity and just general overusage, the technology won’t continue to perform as required. Either way, three students can’t all attend different online classes using the same gadget at the same time. How enthused can a student really be about distance learning when after starting to grasp new material in class today, they have to forego the follow-up class tomorrow because they have a sibling who must also get a turn?
The point is that there are a thousand and one factors that make virtual teaching and learning difficult. But we still have to try, and try our best. Otherwise, nothing will be achieved and we would have wasted an entire term.
In all honesty, lazy students have got lazier, and the only students religiously logging on to their classes are those who previously, had been showing interest. While some students are genuinely unable to make the necessary adjustments, others are just not willing to do what it takes – especially, when they apparently have bought into the idea that the material now being taught virtually will be retaught when face-to-face classes are resumed. This is a major hindrance to progress in the virtual classroom.
Downright complacency has started to set in where some students have adopted the idea that distance learning is a joke anyway and, therefore, any material taught will be covered again. If that is the understanding, naturally, students will not want to waste their time in online school if they feel it is simply a waste of time.
NO MIDDLE GROUND
Let me make my personal position clear. If the intention is for the 2019-2020 summer term to be a mock-run of what is to be the real teaching of the same material when face-to-face classes are resumed, neither students nor teachers have any reason to waste their time. It is with this background that I urge the decision-makers to remain clear on what the approach is.
The approach can either be to have students (with the exception of those sitting external exams) forget about classes for the time being, given the challenges associated with distance learning, or have the term run its course, with all stakeholders having the understanding that it is now or never.
Unfortunately, there is no middle ground. Any middle ground will simply result in wasted time. Given the prime minister’s clear indication that schools should be continuing online, students should not be getting mixed signals – whether from their teachers, school administrators, or their parents, who, in some cases, are unconvinced that what teachers are now doing online is of importance equalling that of face-toface teaching.
This is clearly the sentiment that has driven some private-school parents to advocate for a reduction in school fees. There is a clear dichotomy between the teacher’s view of how critical virtual schooling is at this time and the views held by some parents.
Regardless of how distance learning is viewed, it must be understood that what is taking place online this term is a replacement of face-to-face teaching and not a preview to it. In many schools, teachers are still being expected to administer assignments online, collect and grade them, and have grades submitted at the usual time. Doesn’t sound like a joke to me.
Unfortunately, some students have not got the memo. Parents can help them to understand, though. But they themselves must be convinced first.
The prime minister has stated that the Government intends to move with great ‘speed and alacrity” to reach students who are under-resourced. I applaud this effort and really hope it can be realised quickly. It has to. Remember, the train is taking off.