Grant McLaughlinAfter spending months adapting to remote teaching, many UM faculty members said they’re looking forward to seeing classrooms filled with students in the fall. Still, many plan to continue implementing select pandemic practices in the classroom.
“Over the past year, I have learned a lot about new technologies that were necessary for distance learning that I can foresee will be helpful … even after we fully return to in-class teaching,” Michael Herrington, an intensive English program instructor, said.
Many professors have become accustomed to using Zoom as a tool to teach and record their classes. Now, faculty are thinking about what internet applications they can continue to use in the classroom.
William Joseph Sumrall, a professor of elementary education, said Google Sheets can be an extremely useful tool, even in a face-to-face classroom.
“If you give students an assignment where they are looking up ‘best websites for teaching something in science,’ you could actually compile a huge list, or the students can, and then everybody can access it through Google Sheets,” Sumrall said.
Sumrall also spoke about an application called Voki, which students can use for animated presentations, assignments and as a virtually viewed discussion forum, according to its website.
“I can see (Voki) as being a really good thing to do in the face-to-face class with students,” Sumrall said.
While most of the faculty is looking forward to the switch back to in-person classes, there is still an uneasy feeling about the idea of having so many people in the same room again.
“I think some of us will feel nervous even though we’ll be vaccinated. We’ve been conditioned to be fearful of gathering, and it may take a while before we can relax and feel comfortable inside classrooms,” Vivian Hobbs, an English professor, said.
Most students are also eager to return to in-person classes. According to the COVID-19 response survey conducted by the university, 81% of students who responded said they found remote learning hindered their motivation to engage with their classes.
“Kind of bummed that I have to wake up more than three seconds before class now, but I learn a lot better with face-to-face instruction,” Damien Harbin, a junior criminal justice major, said.
Oren Smith, a freshman forensic chemistry major, said remote learning has taught him better time management.
“Most of it at first was on your own and not on a strict schedule that you had to follow. You had to make one on your own,” Smith said. “That’s a skill I’ll be taking back with me, as it will help me in the long run.”
For some, going back to the classroom doesn’t necessarily mean the end of Zoom chats and remote instruction.
“I see no reason why instructors couldn’t set up a Zoom call for students who can’t make it to class,” Harbin said. “As much as I hate to say it, Zoom kind of destroys sick absences.”
