Teachers’ Stories: North America

Teachers’ Stories: North America

 


Name

Joe Muise

School

St. Thomas More Collegiate

Country

Canada

What is your message to the global educational community?

This is an opportunity to engage with other teachers (both locally and around the world) to create resources and find different ways to engage students.

What does learning looks like for your school community at this time?

We’ve been working with remote teaching for three weeks now and have mainly been communicating with students via Google Meet. Students have thus far been engaged and happy to have work to do. I teach senior physics and have largely been creating videos for students to watch and online quizzes for them to show their learning.

What challenges are there?

  • The biggest challenge is definitely not being able to interact with students and colleagues face-to-face.
  • We have been lucky to have technology in place to make remote teaching and learning possible, but without being able to have in person interaction, it isn’t the same!

Where do you see signs of hope?

Our school has tried to maintain our community and keep everyone connected. Two staff members ran a live streamed trivia contest with people answering in Google Forms; our counselling department has posted mental health videos weekly; we’ve started posting daily prayers read by staff and students. All of these things help bring us closer in this trying time.


Name

Christine Chana

School

Iona Preparatory School, New York

Country

United States of America

What is your message to the global educational community?

YOU matter and you are loved – even from people a world away! Our strength lies in our humanity lifted by God’s grace.

What does learning look like for your school community at this time?

I video a lesson daily on my phone or record my voice explaining a lesson of slides. My amazing 96 students log in every day and submit a photo of their work for me to see. Then once a week using Goggle Meets I am there for my students for any and all questions they have in a Q and A session.

What challenges are there?

“I miss our daily class prayer, led by the students, with their intentions shared. I feel disconnected from their open hearts and feel a world away from them. Online lessons are difficult to hear everyone’s voice. Many are silent. Easter mass from our Holy Father was sad for me, I felt so disconnected from the gift of the eucharist. I am sad for all the loss due to the virus.”

Where do you see signs of hope?

I see hope in our Earth and signs of cleaner air, water, and soil everywhere I look. That gives me hope. My school family remains dedicated to fostering and exercising faith and service. That gives me hope. I hear of my own students supporting each other in chat groups that lift up their peers.