#FoodforthoughtCreativeQuarantine
From here member Abigail Wambolt, thoughts on being a teacher during the pandemic.
VIRTUAL LEARNING: CAN WE DO IT?
Abigail Wamboldt
Transitioning to virtual learning this semester has been an incredible undertaking for
both instructors and students. Teachers who never needed to be tech savvy have had to spend
hours in virtual training, and watching webinars on how to effectively run classes online. Some
teachers have it harder than others. How are ceramicists, or printmakers expected to create
virtually without the proper tools? In many ways I count myself lucky that in drawing and painting
our materials are relatively easy to transport and work with in a variety of settings.
If teachers are struggling with online platforms students have been asked to do
something more difficult: navigate whatever material their teacher has managed to throw
together. One student confided in me that he had classes on Zoom, Blackboard Collaborate and
Webex. He had five different ways of submitting work, and five different ways each teacher
presented material, meaning he sometimes spends hours digging through a teachers virtual set
up trying to find a project.
We are also all thrown out of our teaching and learning element. Normally students have access to a classroom outfitted with easels, open studio hours, computer labs and libraries.
Now some students are sharing a computer with two or three siblings, or with parents who are working from home. They share bedrooms and homes with siblings, friends or roommates and
have no quiet or separate space in which to focus, spread out or work. Some students have apologized to me for missing lectures or being late handing in work because they have family members in the hospital. Other students work in healthcare or grocery stores and are pulling extra shifts. One student showed up to a virtual meeting from the hospital, with her mask on. Heeyoung Jeon, Large Interior,Acrylic on Canvas,40x30'', 2020 Introduction to Painting
Other students have lost their jobs. Others are the only family member still working and have
become the sole breadwinner in their household.
Before we were thrust into this virtual reality, my classes were addressing perspective
and space. Having this project straddle the move from classroom to online has allowed some
interesting documentation to occur. Some students were able to finish drawings or paintings
started in class at home from photos that had been taken. These drawings are eerie, showing
the halls of a building we are no longer allowed to enter. Others did not have photos and had to
start again. These images show bedrooms and hallways of homes, documenting the isolation
and confinement the artist is living in.
Laura Johnson, Perspective and Space, Graphite on Paper, 24x28'', 2020 Drawing I
Despite the conditions my students continue to show up. They show up smiling and
ready to work. They continue to push themselves, to engage in the material and participate in
discussions. Although we are living through a time of fear and uncertainty, watching them
persevere and execute beautiful work makes me believe in the strength and tenacity of the
human spirit.
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