Covid-19: Reflections of a Secondary Chemistry Teacher

Ana Teresa Risi de Carrillo

Iam learning many lessons during this unique year: a very important year for me, as I celebrate my 30th anniversary as a teacher. As the year started I printed, and placed in a corner of my class, a 30 year anniversary banner, which I decorated and planned to refer to throughout the year. I knew my students would celebrate along with me.

In Perú, our first day of teaching was on 2 March.

My lesson plans for the first week of classes were ready before the pandemic began. I wanted to deliver the most engaging lessons, and to have students work independently or in groups. I wanted to differentiate and facilitate their learning. Not knowing what the situation would be 10 days later, I continued to develop lessons as I had initially planned, which took me to unforeseen horizons. I am a middle school/ high school Chemistry teacher and I’ve taught Math as well. Since the year 2000, I’ve had wonderful teaching positions in three countries in Africa and spent my last five years in Guatemala, before returning to my home country Perú in 2015. This pandemic has hit us all and, as a teacher, I can say that we are all learning from each other throughout this process.

Planning innovative lessons

Our passion as teachers is what holds us together and what makes us work beyond expectations. We are learning to use new tools that are helping to deliver interesting and engaging lessons; tools that we would have never imagined to be so successful in impacting learning. Now both students and teachers are behind a screen, and even though I am not in a classroom with my students, I still feel a positive learning connection with them. From the teacher’s point of view, we are growing immensely as professionals. As a Chemistry teacher, I am using videos, Google slides and Google Docs that accompany my slides. Moreover, we connect by Zoom and, in most lessons, students work in breakout rooms where they can support each other’s learning. I visit them virtually and see how they interact and discuss their work. An advantage of using online platforms is the ability to record lessons, which students can then refer to later.

I have become more innovative, sometimes using my own kitchen for experiments: for example, burning nuts to see how they give out thermal energy. I have also made my own videos to explain the motion of ions in electrolysis, to explain structures of atoms, or other videos that explain other parts of the syllabus. When making my own slides, I sometimes include audios that connect and guide my students to a Google Doc. I have also learned to use Pear Deck and Nearpod online platforms, where I can immediately assess if students are understanding the content and can provide instant feedback if necessary. PhET simulations are great for visualizing concepts. I also assess participation as students ask and answer questions in class. In addition, Google Forms and Quizizz are great tools to assess students’ learning; both are immediately graded, and in Google Forms an explanation can be included when an answer is wrong. In order to encourage learning, flash cards, Quizizz and mind

My medicine is my students’ faces, their rapport with me, and their comments that they are learning in my lessons because of how these are structured and delivered

maps are also great for closing chapters and review. In this case, through Zoom, students can be split into rooms, and can be guided by the teacher. Above all, the magic of learning lies in respect, motivation, engagement and enjoyment on both sides: teacher and student.

Teacher/tutor perspective

Most students in my experience are really responding well to this challenging and stressful situation. As teachers we have ‘tutor meets’, where students can contact me if necessary at least once a week using Google Hangout or Zoom. From a tutor point of view, we take attendance every morning; students then go to lessons, and follow a timetable with their specific courses each day. Single periods were turned from 40 to 30 minutes long, and a double period was therefore turned into a maximum one hour. If issues arise before the day begins or throughout the day, I communicate this to students’ teachers and year coordinator. Teachers communicate with me if needed. Then tutors can follow up on students’ work or involve the parents if necessary. I have also had meetings with parents, to help them understand the timetable, or with parents and the student to help them create a schedule for their days. Communication between teachers who work with my tutor group is great, as well as with parents.

Lessons learned from my students

My medicine these days is my students’ faces, their rapport with me, and their comments that they are learning in my lessons because of how these are structured and delivered.

From my students I have learned the following: 1. Students who are organized and are strong academically have always been connected to their lessons and followed up their classes successfully. Most set alarms in their cellphones; others have no problem in following their daily schedule through a Google calendar, or write their appointments in an agenda. One student shared with me that she is using ‘Trello’ to organize her day. Trello allows her to fill up her work and classify it as: done, to do, in progress. Students explained that they prefer teachers

connecting through Zoom or Google Meet to present the lesson. 2. Students at school who had organizational issues have been followed up and guided more frequently. Their teachers have been communicating with them and their tutors, and both have been following up on work that was not completed on time, or on absence in any lessons. Their support teachers have been helping them too. Tutors play a key role in this aspect. Through a joint effort with parents, students in my form have shared with me that they are now following their schedule on time and are attending their lessons. They have also said to me that they are less distracted in lessons and more engaged, compared to when they were at school. Like the first group, they prefer Zoom or Google Meets in their lessons. 3. Students who were distracted in school-based classes are saying that, if a lesson is well structured by a teacher, and keeps them engaged, they are not now as distracted as they used to be at school. They say that this is because their friends are not there to distract them, or that they are not there to distract their friends. Some also added that one aspect that prevents them from learning properly in a lesson is when the class is too large, or when several students talk too much during a presentation, and they lose the pace in their learning. Others shared that if parts of the lesson are written or typed, it is much easier for them to follow as English is their second language, and the school is a British School. 4. Some students who were usually distracted or disorganized during classes at school would find excuses that interrupted their learning, such as asking permission to go to the restroom or infirmary, or scheduling dental or medical appointments during classes. Due to the current situation these excuses no longer occur, and students are therefore more attentive. Interestingly, these groups of students have also noted that cellphones distract them. Some choose to give their phone to their parents at the beginning of the day, or while they are in class.

After months of social restriction, we still have areas of growth. Students’ latest concerns arise as their day begins if teachers do not post work on time. Teachers have to actively communicate their daily class routines so that students can see the day they have ahead of them. Planning classes is not easy, and it is important to maintain clear communication which alleviates stress on both students and teachers. As the lockdown continues to be extended, I have learned that work planned by teachers needs to be more concise, agile and varied, as students are more emotionally affected by the uncertainty of this situation.

Students share their ways to relax… a much needed ingredient

I was interested to know how students in my tutor group were finding ways to relax and to connect with their friends after the end of the school day. Students have found their own ways to relax, relating to their interests. They connect with friends every day through social sites. Some spend time cooking or baking, others dancing or exercising, others exercising with a member of their family or watching Netflix series or movies. I have advised students to maintain discipline in going to bed on time, as a few have said to me that the beginning of the day is too early. We talked about this, and compared it to a normal school day where they had to start their day at least one hour before arriving at school. In general, many students have learned to have self-control, to plan their day, to be independent learners, and to give their best during the time that they are connected. Of course for this to happen the lesson needs to be engaging; if not, they find ways to mute their audio and/or video and connect with friends on their cellphones. They are teenagers after all.

Final thought

The planning of lessons and the preparation of interesting and engaging lessons goes hand in hand with the capacity and ability of each teacher to manage different tools that are there for us to use, and with the free time a teacher has in their daily lives. Free time in teaching is something that we usually do not have. We are always planning, correcting, thinking – even in our yoga classes, or while we sit down to relax. I have sympathy for teachers and students who are away from their hometown, and for teachers who have babies, young families, and older parents. Moreover I feel sympathy for our seniors who had been planning many activities for the coming year, expecting to graduate with their classmates and to spend their last year at school bonding with their friends, when due to the circumstances it has not been possible. I am thankful for what I am learning today and for the lessons my students teach me. I am thankful for my Science team, as we are a cohesive group who support each other immensely. This current situation provides an example of neuroplasticity, of how teachers’ brains are adaptable and ready for challenges – even those that seem at first glance to be impossible. ◆

Ana Teresa Risi de Carrillo is a Science and Chemistry teacher at San Silvestre School, Lima, Perú. ✉ anatererisi@gmail.com