Am I Becoming a Digital Native?

Alice Wu

As a self-described technophobe, the COVID-19 quarantine and subsequent necessity of having to quickly learn how to both record and teach online classes felt extremely daunting. Not only did we have to use an unfamiliar program (Panopto) to record lectures for asynchronous classes, we also had to prepare to teach our students in synchronous classes using Zoom, which involved screen-sharing PowerPoints and putting students into breakout rooms. In addition, we had to do it all in just a couple of short weeks before classes resumed! After several trial-and-error attempts to use Panopto, I figured out how to record a successful video, and these are some tips I found helpful as I embarked on this journey:

1. Utilize the resources around you: Take advantage of webinars, quick guides, tech support, and knowledgeable colleagues.
2. Take the plunge and record a sample video—then watch, critique, and take notes on how to improve the next one. (Suggestions: pick a good background, look directly at the camera, smile, and make sure to include sufficient lighting—either natural or indoor).
3. Print out the PowerPoint three slides to a page and write a few key points for each slide.
4. Run through the lecture a couple of times with your PowerPoint notes before recording so you will know where each section begins and ends.
5. Turn on a timer to keep track of how long you have been speaking and keep it under 10 minutes.

Though we had been concerned about how our very interactive classes would translate to an online environment, most students were punctual, eager to interact, and seemed quite comfortable in their Zoom classes. One student commented that our classes were “enjoyable, even joyful.” In fact, Zoom now just seems like the normal way to speak, and I have begun dreaming about PowerPoint and Zoom. They say that when you start to dream in a second language, you are starting to master it. Maybe that means I am now on my way to becoming a digital native!

Balancing Relevance With Empathy

Caroline Mrozla-Toscano

Now that we are in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, it may seem natural to want to engage our ITAs in questions about the coronavirus. After all, what topic could be more relevant and engaging at the moment? Before asking students to engage in a discussion about COVID-19, however, it is necessary to understand just how emotionally distressing this and other topics may be for some learners.

This brings up a compelling conundrum: Which topics are appropriate for building ITAs’ English proficiency, and which ones may be a trigger? Even the slightest allusion to a sensitive topic can activate distressing thoughts in the learner’s mind.

According to trauma-informed educational practice, trauma has many sources, including societal and historical/generational trauma and personal experiences. As a result, it is important to understand students’ individual and collective contexts when engaging in topic discussion. If an instructor notices that a topic is triggering for a student, there are certain techniques that can be used to de-escalate the trigger (from Sound Discipline, 2016):

1. Watch for verbal and nonverbal signs of stress, including disjointed speech, facial expressions, and eye movement that indicate anxiety.
2. Try not to “mirror” the student’s behaviors. People tend (via mirror neurons) to copy others’ behaviors, but this can further escalate the student’s stress level.
3. Remain calm and move/speak slowly. This will help the student to “mirror” you.
4. Listen as much as possible and use attending behaviors (e.g., nodding, smiling) to communicate that you are giving undivided attention.
5. Let the student take a “cool-down” break if needed.
6. Engage the student individually, and suggest simple tasks to engage the cortex and distract the student’s attention away from the triggering event. For example, ask the student to spell out a word or take a deep breath and count to 10.
7. Ask the student what you can do to help once the situation is de-escalated.

The learning space should be as nonthreatening and welcoming as possible. It is only then that the cognitive and emotional realms can work in tandem to promote student learning.

The Reality of Remote Learning

Mila Veshcherevich

Teaching is an occupation that requires knowledge, expertise, quick thinking, patience, and sensitivity, among other skills and characteristics. Recently, technological prowess has been added to the list. Since the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to online instruction, educators of all levels have been forced to learn new skills and become experts in an array of classroom technologies. The trick has been to have technology working for us instead of getting in the way of our classroom routines. Fortuitously, some of the online tools, like Zoom, align quite nicely with our classes:

1. In my context, we had been using Zoom this past year for individual and paired meetings with our students outside the classroom, which we continue doing.
2. During our classes, however, we had always used PowerPoints to move from one speaking activity to another. Now, this is done via Zoom, and we share our screens with the slides.
3. The majority of our classroom activities are done in pairs. We have been able to continue to do this by utilizing breakout rooms on Zoom. Moreover, it saves time when you need to switch partners. Instructors can easily facilitate these activities through the Recreate Rooms feature.
4. Breakout rooms created automatically help move the class along smoothly during a think-pair-share activity. The option of assigning students to the breakout rooms comes in handy if you want to ensure students are in specific discussion groups.
5. Most classes have had an undergraduate student to help out with the discussions. They have reported that the breakout rooms allow for quick access to providing feedback to pairs.

In general, Zoom has provided us with a sense of face-to-face interaction with our students and has allowed us to build connections with them. While we might have assumed that it would be impersonal, remote teaching has enabled us to continue to build rapport with our students to foster a productive learning environment.

Work-Life Balance: Reimagining Space and Time

Jayasri Srinivasan

As my colleagues have described, switching to online teaching has given us a host of

new opportunities to upgrade our technology skills, teach creatively, develop a flexible outlook, and cultivate an adaptability that comes from dealing with unexpected glitches, both real and virtual. Perhaps this shift to remote teaching can also serve as a pause to reexamine our notions of work-life balance.

As our Zoom spaces have expanded outwardly, our physical spaces keep us contained within walls, and in near constant proximity to our partners and children, pets, and plants. While teaching, I’m often aware of the low-level domestic chatter around me, and any boundary between my teaching and personal space is a purely imagined one! I am continually learning about new concepts of the space-time continuum and how they often seem to weave together into a seamless blur.

The reality is that all of us are exploring new ways of juggling work and play, creating new routines to stay grounded in the midst of an amorphous future and finding new ways of nurturing connections with our partners, families, and friends. In this search for a new normal, it helps to take each day as it comes and regard every setback as a learning opportunity. After all, the world is at our fingertips.

Summary

Taken together, the preceding insights represent interesting lessons we have learned from our transition to emergency remote teaching. Although we had already used the online space for some activities, we learned a great deal more about the pedagogical and affective issues associated with a completely online context in the midst of a pandemic. As we adjust to a possible new normal of online instruction, it is more important than ever before for us to learn from one another and foster a connected learning ITA program community. Even if we may not all be in the same boat, we are all in the same storm.

References

Bruening, M. (2020, Mar 6). I Will Survive, Coronavirus version for teachers going online. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCe5PaeAeew

Sound Discipline. (2016). Building resiliency: Working with students exposed to trauma. http://www.k12.wa.us/GATE/SupportingStudents/pubdocs/2016April/BuildingResiliency.pdf

Alice Wu teaches in the ITA Program in Cornell's Center for Teaching Innovation. Her special interests include intercultural communication and cross-cultural transitions.

Mila Veshcherevich is an instructor in the ITA Program at Cornell's Center for Teaching Innovation. Her other interests include teaching Russian.

Dr. Jayasri Srinivasan is an instructor with the ITA Program at the Center for Teaching Innovation. Her other interests include counseling and learning new languages.