BY: T Y L E R M C COY B I R D V I L L E H I G H S C H O O L A G R I C U LT U R E S C I E N C E T E A C H E R
FLORAL DESIGN IN THE CLASSROOM: ADAPTING AND THRIVING
T
he COVID-19 pandemic, which no one thought possible, has affected even the strongest of us for a year now. It has made us reevaluate the meaning of the word normal. But there has been one thing that has remained constant... the continued need to educate our youth, grow future leaders, and ensure the workforce of tomorrow. While the virus has impacted the way we do this, every single day teachers wake up ready to take on the challenges and obstacles that they will face. Luckily for those of us who are teaching the future of the floral industry, we have a partner in the trenches to help ease the burdens we are carrying, the Texas State Florist Association. It’s no surprise that learning the art of a hands-on skill, such as floral design, is something that can be challenging even under typical circumstances. Throw in a global pandemic and we are having to totally recreate the wheel in terms of teaching our craft. Whether our schools have students face to face, are strictly virtual, or have a mix of both, we want to make sure our students get the opportunities to learn and practice their floral design skills. Many programs have taken
numerous approaches to achieve this depending on their needs. For my program, we decided that a shotgun approach would best reach most students. This includes at-home arrangements kits, after-hour in-person small group lessons for distant learning students, and alternative assignments that allow students to gain knowledge without having to leave their homes. Our most popular option is the at-home arrangements kits, where students or their families come to pick-up their floral materials from our campus and complete the projects at home with video guidance. Guidance such as live zoom/teams meetings demonstrating and coaching students through their arrangements, prerecorded videos teaching/providing instructions/ completing a demonstration for the students, or my personal favorite, providing students links to TSFA video lessons gratuitously made available to all for free. These were a huge time saver for us and the students enjoyed the detail! As it is with many districts across the state, a lot of focus is put on certifying students and making sure they are college, career, or military ready. For us, that means getting every student we can
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certified in an area. While the knowledge aspect of the floral certification was already available to be completed online, testing for the hands-on component without being at a testing site was not an option. Which was a big concern for many teachers last year when trying to plan the remainder of their spring semester and knowing that travel was out of the picture. To address this TFSA stepped up and demonstrated their level of commitment to the students of Texas with the launch of the new virtual hands-on certification testing platform. They have invested countless dollars in our students and have ensured that we are able to provide this incredible opportunity to our students regardless of any future situation. Our program was excited to work through this new platform and was beyond pleased with the results! It has allowed our students to gain their full level one certification without ever leaving our campus. The system is very user-friendly and easy enough for students to even upload their own photos for grading. Without a doubt, a platform that will be the sole reason thousands of students all across the state will be certified this year and in years to come.