Teaching and Learning Beyond COVID-19: Where Do We Go From Here?

Concurrent Session 3
Streamed Session

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Session Materials

Brief Abstract

Teachers were given a moment’s notice to move instruction online as COVID-19 swept across America. What have we learned from this experience, and where do we go from here? This session serves as an opportunity to explore both of these questions in the context of research and participants’ personal experiences.

Presenters

Lead Presenter: Anna Hart, Columbus State University

Dr. Anna Hart began her career in education as a classroom teacher in Dalton, Georgia, where she taught kindergarten and second grade. In 2016, she was hired as a faculty member at Dalton State College in the School of Education, where she redesigned and implemented innovative technology professional development for all teacher candidates, including a partnership with two local school systems that allows for field-based professional development for all participants. In August 2018, Anna accepted a position at Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia, where she now serves as Assistant Professor of Teacher Leadership, coordinator of the Teacher Leadership M.Ed. program, and College of Education Accreditation Coordinator. Dr. Hart's primary research interests include pre-service teacher education, teacher retention and attrition, and teacher leadership.

Extended Abstract

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, educators across the world were charged with moving instruction online, many of whom were afforded essentially no time or training to do so.  In addition, many schools and districts lacked the infrastructure, staff support, and/or organizational conditions needed to make the shift to digital learning a viable option for all students. This session will be split into two primary sections in an effort to address two overarching questions related to instructional practices during the global COVID-19 pandemic: what have we learned from this experience, and where do we go from here?

  

The first half of the session will work toward answering the question of what we have learned from this unique experience. The presenter will share the findings of a recent study of American PK-12 teachers’ experiences in moving instruction online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Attendees can expect to come away with an understanding of American public and private school teachers’ contextualized experiences with digital learning, including: 

  • teaching and learning preparation and practices during the pandemic,

  • structures in place to support teachers in their work, and 

  • teachers’ mental and physical health and wellness.

 

The second half of the session focuses on using knowledge available from research, along with participants’ own personal knowledge and experiences, to begin answering the second overarching question: where do we go from here?  Attendees will be invited to discuss the impact of the virus on planning for and implementing digital learning in the future, from both philosophical and pragmatic standpoints. Finally, participants will be invited to use an interactive brainstorming tool to identify the needs of their colleagues, students, and communities, as well as their own beliefs, in leaning into future digital teaching and learning opportunities.

 

Participation

Attendees will be encouraged to interact with the presenter as well as each other throughout the session.  Following a brief introduction, participants will be asked to compose up to three questions they have regarding the session topic.  Any questions not answered during the course of the presentation and subsequent discussion may be shared with the group via an interactive, online platform at the end of the session. Additional engagement measures to be used include live polling, small group discussion, and an interactive brainstorming tool designed to assist participants in applying new learning in their own professional settings.