“战疫”课堂 同样精彩 ——上实国际部（浦西校区）线上教学阶段回顾（五）

Jamie

I worked very diligently each day to ensure the learning environment was akin to that in the physical classroom.  The lesson was delivered online using Zhumu.  The students had a bit of difficulty adjusting, at first,  but have done well considering the circumstances.

Dominic

Testing times for teachers and students alike have afforded us the opportunity to teach, learn, and communicate in new and exciting ways.

We are maintaining the stability of the classroom, while embracing the Wonders of the internet.

A prime example of the old meeting the new, has been when the children wrote letters to each other telling of their experiences during the lock down, and sharing their ideas on different ways to have fun at home. They posted them to each other in a class group on WeChat, where we could all benefit from them.

Online learning has been a fantastic experience for all of us to get to know each other and ourselves better. With the support of their families, the children of classes 1-A and 2-A couldn’t have adapted better to this change in their lives. In short, their resiliency bodes well for the future.  

In both classes students have made video presentations connected to the theme of each unit. Students have completed projects such as map making, constructing pillow forts, cooking dishes, and creating their own musical instruments as a way of consolidating and reinforcing what we’ve been learning. Our students continually impress me with their attitude, resourcefulness, and ingenuity when completing these tasks. It’s times like this where one’s character shines through just a bit more and the students of 1-A and 2-A are shining bright like a diamond.

It’s been a real pleasure to be a part of this community and will always remember this special time fondly as our youngest learners have proved to all of us that nothing is impossible.

In the 2B class we are having a lot of fun and have positively adapted to e-learning. Despite learning online, students are as creative as ever. We like to keep class fun and interesting through projects. Students also learn to work as a team navigating the feature “breakout rooms”  to work privately with their peers as I monitor them.

 One of the most successful highlights from learning together online was when students worked with a partner to design their own inventions. Students were tasked to work jointly with their partner to invent something that could make life easier. Students came up with inventions like: instant weather devices, homework robots, smart clothes closets, and mechanical pets.

Once students had a prototype and instructions sheet, they were ready to present to the class. In the end, students enjoyed working together to be creative. It’s great to be able to use English in a non-conventional and modern way like a group project. If distance learning has taught us one important thing, it is that students are still deeply passionate and eager to learn. 

Online learning has been a great experience for myself and I hope the students as well. We have learned a lot and had to overcome some difficulties in the beginning but now we are like a well oiled machine. Each day the students know what is expected of them and we try to always have fun. All the students performed a talent show and we found out we could make our own band! Lots of talented kids! Grade 2-O has been working hard on problems and solutions and have even created an invention to rescue a cat from a tall building. The 3-O students have created their own newspapers. Grade 5-A has done a great job with their comics and telling it in 1st person. E-Learning has been a great success thanks to the parents and students being ready to learn. Let’s keep up the great work! 

I have had 3 ½ years prior online teaching experience, so the adjustment was not that big. I however used to teach adults, who chose to be in class (intrinsically motivated) as opposed to children who did not choose this (extrinsically motivated).

I therefore had to adjust my approach to the students a little bit and try to find more engaging ways to teach. The language games and activities on the Wonders website helped a lot in achieving this.

I also started a project where one student had to do a presentation/performance every day so that there is some variation and to encourage the students to be involved. This has proven phenomenally successful and created a more cohesive atmosphere in a class where students do not see each other outside of the classroom.

Homework I sent in PDF format and gave the students a week to complete so they can budget their screen time and do it on days they have less screen time to be easier on their eyes. I also gave them the option of returning the homework via WeChat or email, and in picture or PDF format. I would check it and return it using WeTransfer, which made it easier to send large batches of files.

Homework is checked for completion only, unless it involves longer written answers, which I would access more thoroughly. 

Answer sheets are sent out after the homework was due, so students can compare their answers to mine.

I tried doing a test to see how it works – I sent the blank answer sheet a week before, to give students ample time to print it, and on the day of the test I put the questions on a ppt which I shared in the classroom. Students had to keep their cameras on and hold up the answer sheet to the camera when the test was completed so I could see they did it.

They had to submit pictures of the test the same day. 

This worked very well, and I have made some notes as to how to improve this should I need to do this in future.

What I do find worrying is that I have a few students who “get lost” in the class. These are the low-level students in the 4A class. I would recommend reinstating the C class next semester, because these students need extra help even in the brick and mortar classroom. 

Having lessons online is absolutely a new experience for me. It is a challenge to engage young aged students at all time. Therefore games mixed with proper lessons would arouse students’ interest. 

We have been using online dictionaries to search definitions for vocabulary, and browsing websites to find interesting items such as homemade dishes to prepare our assignment.