New Teachers vs The Pandemic

As a student myself, I often think of and sympathise with new students joining university, and how different such a crucial part of their lives are compared to what was the norm, on account of the pandemic. What I failed to realise up until recently was how this also held true for teachers and faculty members, especially those who recently began a career in academia. How has the wave of online education treated them?

Online classes/exams were a first for many teachers in our country, since previously almost all educational activities were conducted in person. To adapt to such circumstances and learn how to teach effectively online despite struggling themselves during the pandemic is a feat in itself. To further do so at the beginning of their teaching career with the added anxiety of taking classes for the first time perhaps requires one to summon up even more mental strength.

Mahnaz Ahmed, English Literature teacher at Adroit International School, recalls her online teaching experience with different age groups of children, "I never knew my first day at work would be sitting on my desk at home. The first time I logged into the classroom, all the students greeted me with a big smile and were extremely supportive. I could sense the student's eagerness to learn although it was through a screen. I was nervous but extremely happy as I was doing something I absolutely love. The whiteboard was replaced with a Zoom screen, diaries were replaced by Google Classroom, and books were replaced by PDFs as we went along with the flow of the pandemic."

"I teach from kindergarten to Class 7 and it is a whole different experience dealing with various age groups. We study and have fun learning new things. It feels as if children have become used to the new normal of online teaching," she adds.

Illustration: RIDWAN NOOR NAFIS

Mahnaz discusses how she attempted to capture students' attention during class, "For classwork, we provide them worksheets for the month which are completed and submitted at the end of the month. We take regular class tests and oral tests to ensure complete learning, and teach via both books and video for visual learning which enhance the children's knowledge."

As for the challenges, Mahnaz states, "One of the biggest difficulties we come across is for the junior kids. It's difficult to ensure whether they have written or understood what we have tried to convey. At times, the internet connection is also a matter of concern and many students keep getting disconnected but I ask them to hold their copy in front of the camera to check their regular classwork. The parents sometimes assist in taking out the worksheet and logging into class."

Newly appointed private university lecturer in Dhaka, Abu Taher*, expresses his thoughts on how online classes posed difficulties for him. He says, "For someone like me who is only starting their teaching career, online classes can be a big obstacle to falling in love with this profession. Online classes take away the joy of in-person interactions and make it quite difficult for teachers to assess the quality of their delivery. A teacher needs to ensure that every student is properly comprehending the entire lecture. Particularly, in an online setting, this task becomes extremely difficult. Firstly, the teacher cannot be sure if the lecture material is clear enough for all students to understand. Students who are having trouble understanding the lecture rarely respond in online classes. Secondly, the teacher has no way of knowing if the delivery is interesting enough to hold everyone's attention. So, the teachers do not get the opportunity to adjust and improve their delivery."

*Fabiha Khan, lecturer at Daffodil International University, also comments on the challenges faced in terms of interaction in online classes, "Adapting to online teaching wasn't as hard for me, since I didn't have prior experience that I needed to forget. However, connecting with students has been especially difficult since I can't read their body language and adapt my teaching to keep their attention. Despite using every interactive platform and methods under the sun, it's a good day if I get a student to say 'yes' or 'no' to any question I ask. I don't necessarily blame them since they don't really have a relationship with me beyond a face on the screen. I've tried building a good mentor/mentee relationship with students during one-on-one sessions, and those have been very successful, but not everyone is eager to attend those sessions."

As indicated by those who shared their experiences, online classes generate few responses from students, making it difficult for faculties/teachers to judge how well the lecture has been understood. Continuously staring at a screen and speaking with no response potentially generates a feeling of speaking to yourself without being heard by anyone else, not to mention the physical problems that arise due to staring at a screen for lengthy periods of time and the network issues, all of which can be even more trying if your teaching career begins with such experiences.

However, all is not doom and gloom. Challenges are there only to be faced, and sometimes a little bit of gratitude towards a profession born out of passion goes a long way, like how Mahnaz describes the joy in teaching.

"It's delightful being a teacher. My time spent with the children is something I cherish and look forward to every day. When my KG 2 students tell me 'Miss, you're the best, we love you!', it's truly heartwarming and keeps me motivated. Although I started my journey during the pandemic, not for a single moment did I feel as if the kids were far away from me. The teacher-student bond is one of the best relationships and I'm glad that it's a big part of my life," she shares.

Given how class attendance is usually recommended unless legitimate excuses are present, the perseverance of good teachers and faculty members in attempting to effectively deliver academic information against all odds makes attending classes more doable for students during these difficult times. And for that, to our teachers, including the new ones who are only just adjusting themselves, thank you.

*Names have been changed upon request

Bushra Zaman likes books, art, and only being contacted by email. Find her at bushrazaman31@yahoo.com