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Hi everyone, I'm currently in the Education program at my school. I was wondering if it is difficult now for student teachers to get the full experience of being in the classroom as opposed to everything being online now. Is it easier or harder, and are the student teachers prepared to do it on their own with only online experience? 

Hi Jacky!

As a future teacher, the reality of having to teach online and missing the opportunity to teach in a classroom somewhat scares me. The only convenience I can think of while teaching online is that we'll be in the comfort of our own homes. Having witnessed my siblings' zoom classes for the past few months, I came to the conclusion that kids really do learn better when the material is in front of them in a physical classroom. Especially children in Elementary School need hands-on experience and physical group work. If we're talking about students in high school, even then the environment of a classroom motivates them to learn and study. Teaching is much more effective in person, with a proper setting. Many things go on at home; everyone has a different story. It gets super difficult to teach and/or learn from home. 

I have experienced both virtual and in classroom experiences while student teaching. I don't think either is better or worse, but dependent on what is reality. If we were always going to be in person, in classroom would be better. With this current world, we benefit from both types of instruction. We never know what type of teaching we will be doing and more and more I see virtual instruction in the in person classroom experience to elaborate on learning. I'd say jump in and learn as much as you can during both experiences!

I think its very hard to learn on zoom.  I agree that in person and in classroom would be better. I really like how you said to jump in and learn from new experiences. As a teacher this is very important you have to be flexable. 

I think its very hard to learn on zoom.  I agree that in person and in classroom would be better. I really like how you said to jump in and learn from new experiences. As a teacher this is very important you have to be flexable. 

Hi Jacky! Based on my personal experience with doing student teaching online, it has been both different and difficult. A big part of teaching is being able to build on relationships with your students and effectively evaluate your own teaching methods. These are both things that can feel nearly impossible when doing over Zoom, rather than in person. When in person, you can get to know your students better by having conversations and they’re a lot less why when you aren’t talking through a screen. When assessing your own teaching strategies you do this better by seeing the attention and engagement of your students. It is hard to accurately measure their engagement levels when young children can get so easily distracted being outside of the typical learning environment. I think a great way to tackle this issue is focus on classroom management strategies and make sure to check in with your class frequently to ensure they are on task and paying attention. 

Hello, my name is Nikita Hatley; and I attend Henderson State University; and I'm an Elementary Educational Major.  I have a question, is teaching students through zoom harder than teaching students face-to-face?

Hello, my name is Nikita Hatley; and I attend Henderson State University; and I'm an Elementary Educational Major.  I have a question, is teaching students through zoom harder than teaching students face-to-face?

First, let me give a general answer. Teaching students virtually is a LOT harder for any number of reasons. On the most basic level, a good teacher can feel the air in a classroom. No, not kidding. As you progress in teaching you'll feel the vibes of your classroom so clearly.  You'll know when you are really 'kicking' and know when you have just shot way over their heads and need to double back. You'll feel the excitement of discovery.  (Not all teachers can do this, but those that can't often don't stay long...because that's the magic.)  It is really hard to do that virtually. 

On a more practical level, I find that online teaching takes a ton more time for me to do well than in person teaching. And don't forget, the students are not real experts at that sort of communication so they lose the 'clues' that socialization provides. 

Prpbably more information than you wanted!

Last semester the students were mostly virtual for the whole school year. Every lesson that I did for my observations was online. I was very limited with the resources I could use and still learning how to use the technology I was given. Personally I am a hands on person and I do better when I am go in to face-to-face classes at my college. So I had an idea of how the students were feeling with their learning all being virtual. I would say that from my personal experience last semester, I would not be ready to do it all on my own yet. This semester my student teaching is in person and I feel more confident than being virtual last semester.

Hello Jacky! I am also a an education student and I had some experience student teaching online last semester. Later in the semester we moved back to in-person, and so far this year we are in-person. I am going to be honest with you, I do not think that student teaching online gives you the full experience. When you are teaching online you do not get to see all of your students faces. This may seem small but you can often see on their faces how they are feeling, which is important. It is much harder to interact with them online as well. I think interacting with my students in person has allowed me to learn so much. The technology aspect of online teaching creates difficulty in general. Students often struggle to navigate the online tools needed to partipate in online class. It is also much harder to keep the students engaged and completing tasks. I do not think I would have been prepared to start teaching if I had only student taught online. Being online made me miss a lot of the things I have learned from interacting with students and teaching in person. 

Hello Jacky! I am also a an education student and I had some experience student teaching online last semester. Later in the semester we moved back to in-person, and so far this year we are in-person. I am going to be honest with you, I do not think that student teaching online gives you the full experience. When you are teaching online you do not get to see all of your students faces. This may seem small but you can often see on their faces how they are feeling, which is important. It is much harder to interact with them online as well. I think interacting with my students in person has allowed me to learn so much. The technology aspect of online teaching creates difficulty in general. Students often struggle to navigate the online tools needed to partipate in online class. It is also much harder to keep the students engaged and completing tasks. I do not think I would have been prepared to start teaching if I had only student taught online. Being online made me miss a lot of the things I have learned from interacting with students and teaching in person. 

Hi there! Last semester I was in a student teaching placement that was fully remote, and honestly I felt as if I didn't gain any experience from that placement. It was difficult for me personally because I am a very social person, and love making connections with my students. While I was still able to make connects with the students through zoom, it is just completely different. I think it also depends on the district, and the resources they have for online learning. I was in a district that didn't have the best resources, so it made it harder on the teacher, and we weren't able to make it as engaging and fun for students as some other schools. This year, I'm in a placement that is fully in person, and I feel like I have learned so much more about teaching from this placement than I did in the last, and I think a lot of it has to do with having my students with me. Being online made me realize how much I missed student interaction and connections.