Buried in the Office
So I’ve been in the house for two whole days. The farthest I got was the mailbox at the edge of the road. And for the past few days, I’ve been trying my best to become an “online teacher”. I’ve made four lectures on video, talking to myself and the computer about the geography of India, the beginnings of the Middle Ages, the industrialization and expansion of mid-19th century America and the Trail of Tears: Hoo Boy!
The first rule of teaching is “know more than the kids”. And I do know more than 6th, 7th, and 8th graders about the subjects (though ancient India is definitely pushing my boundaries). I’ve taught “one chapter ahead” before, and I’ve taught all of this, somewhere along the way of thirty-six years of education. But I have to admit, in a time when technology is the entire “game” for teachers; the kids probably have me beat.
Don’t Pick Your Nose on Computer
I can do I-Movies of “talks”, and I can find all sorts of videos online that emphasize the points I need to make. I’ve got online notes, vocabulary, and I’m even learning how to do online tests. Where I get hung up is with online communications. My sixth graders (what, twelve years old?) are anxious to “zoom” with me. That’s a video conferencing application for those who aren’t aware (I wasn’t until last week). Old dog here, doing my best to learn new tricks. But I’m not ready to “zoom” with a classroom full of kids…yet.
The hardest part: my “teaching style” is direct interaction with students. In the old days they called it the “Socratic” method, questions leading to more questions leading to the students discovering conclusions. How do you do that with a bunch of faces in squares, each with a two second delay, and looking for all the world like the opening credits to the “Brady Bunch”?
Online Teacher??
It’s purely a mischance that I’m teaching anything right now. A teacher had her baby, and they needed a long-term substitute. I thought it would be fun to get back in the classroom for a while, and help pay for a big trip in the fall. So, before anyone knew anything about “social distancing” or “sheltering in place,” I signed up for the rest of the year.
That was then, before the whole world literally fell apart. Now is now.
But how is a school supposed to hire a substitute teacher to be “online”? I was in place, and willing to try. So here I am, at the same computer I’ve been talking to, swearing at, and worrying over all morning. It’s been a long time since I’ve tried something new, and this is as new as it gets. And we probably won’t be going on a trip in the fall, anyway.
Hair Cut
Speaking of doing something I haven’t tried in a while, it’s the first of the month. Not that I’m too set in my ways, but the beginning of the month is the time for a haircut. I’m not ready to grow back my old “fro” from the 1970’s (a guy with a gray “fro” looks silly) but there’s no social distance from a barber. And besides, they’re all closed down.
So Amazon delivered the clippers yesterday, and, with assistance from Jenn on the back, I’ve got my haircut. It looks OK today, if I do say so myself, but give it a couple of weeks and it will probably grow out an every odd direction. The last time I gave myself a haircut, it was in 1976. It was easy then, I took a pair of thinners and just drove it into the old “fro”, chopping out pieces to thin out the nest. When I was done, I shook it all out, and nothing looked different. So we’ll see how this turns out.
Distant
On the other hand, it’s mostly Jenn and the dogs that will get to see it anyway. At least until we “zoom” sometime next week, I guess. Then I’ll just keep the computer slightly out of focus. Can’t you hear the back texts now: what is up with that guy’s hair? Was that on purpose?
Distance is the difficult thing today. We are so distant from friends, family and neighbors: distant from folks who need a hug more than anything else in the world today. Distant from showing up at the front door to help, or serving as in-house physical therapist. It’s hard to hug through an email, or a phone call, or even a “zoom” conference.
But it’s our life. My favorite phrase this month is stolen from a Bobby Kennedy speech:
“There’s an old Chinese curse, may you live in interesting times. Like it or not, we live in interesting times.”
I had that hanging in my dorm room at college, post-Vietnam and Watergate, wearing the “fro” in interesting times. Now that I’m cutting my own hair again, maybe it ought to go back up on the wall of my office. We definitely are living in interesting times.