毫无疑问，新冠肺炎疫情对世界的影响前所未有. 世界卫生组织(世卫组织.int)总结, COVID-19 has presented a great challenge to public health and the livelihoods of many people. 不仅有生命危险, 但也存在着人们失业的风险, 房屋, 以及其他基本必需品. 内布拉斯加州已经开始从疫情中恢复, 我们的许多日常活动仍然受到影响. 面具现在是我们日常生活的一部分, 人们仍然不鼓励我们在公共场合呆太久, 甚至我们与朋友和家人的聚会也被改变了. 然而, one big step towards normalcy was the push for schools to re-open and allow 学生 to partake in learning in-person again. 虽然也有人反对这一行动, it was thought to be the most advantageous option for 学生 to be able to engage with one another and build relationships with each other as well as their teachers. 当然, 有许多规则需要遵循，也有许多挑战摆在教育者面前, 学生, 以及在过去的一年里参加我们学校活动的家庭. The transition from remote learning back to in-person attendance has had many ups and downs- and the impacts will likely be felt for years to come.
STEM educators gathered at a recent Noyce 项目服务 seminar to speak about the impact that COVID-19 has had on education, and the ways it affected teachers’ relationships with 学生 and their learning communities. The teachers 谁 spoke of their experiences came from a variety of backgrounds and different communities. SERVE项目论坛提供了一个机会来反思我们所做的事情, 经验教训, 以及我们如何为下一步做准备.
通过项目服务研讨会讨论, we learned that COVID-19 has had multiple negative impacts on our Nebraska communities, 农村和城市. 艾米丽的冬天, 一个来自费尔伯里的科学老师, 表明逃学人数在大流行期间大幅上升, 与前几年相比. 这些缺勤严重影响了与学生建立关系, 除了基本的内容学习. Emily was also concerned that 学生 谁 would’ve eaten a daily meal or two at the school weren’t being properly fed while staying at home in isolation. 这可能会导致学生的健康和幸福问题, 即使不感染病毒. 凯尔Hemje, 来自克里特岛的数学老师, stated that a lack of consistency with the various health measures that were put in place caused additional challenges in his classroom this past year. 不断变化的规则使得找到一个规律更加困难, 缺乏常规使得良好的课堂文化难以形成.
Teachers were forced find creative ways to adapt to their ever changing classrooms. 当许多学生转向在线学习时, teachers had to learn how to educate their 学生 in entirely different ways. Sharla Hanzlik, 从Niobrara, indicated that a big change for her was restricting her movement to stay in front of a camera, 而不是在教室里精力充沛地走动, 她喜欢这样做. 艾米丽的冬天 mentioned that teachers also had to be aware of finding content that was remote learning friendly, 特别是当实践活动通常在教室里进行时. Content also had to be modified in regards to the viability of it being taught equitably to all the 学生, 还要考虑到额外的时间限制.
尽管有这些困难, the teachers sharing at the Project SERVE forum have been finding alternative ways to use their resources to be more efficient and available to 学生 and families. 凯尔Hemje had fortunately started recording videos of his math lessons prior to COVID-19, and he was able to share with the kids 谁 were having difficulties learning during the pandemic. Sharla Hanzlik and 艾米丽的冬天 both described how they used social media to engage with the families 谁 had 学生 learning from home. 他们在进行实验和实践学习方面也很有创意, even delivering materials needed to perform experiment in advance to the 学生 谁 were remote learners.
Some of the strategies regarding social media and other types of outreach had positive impacts with families, and the seminar presenters indicated that they would likely continue some of these practices, 即使我们超越了大流行的限制. 较小的社区, like the ones that 艾米丽的冬天 and Sharla Hanzlik are a part of found that these types of communication methods helped parents and community members feel more connected to their 学生’ classroom. 然而, 在较大的社区中, 比如凯尔·海姆杰所在的克里特岛, 社交媒体的交流就没那么有效了. Kyle found that some 学生 and families felt very disconnected from the classroom due to the necessity of 学生 needing to work for the family or help take care of their siblings during the day. Kyle stated that it was hard to predict 谁 would be in the classroom and at home on certain days due to quarantine regulations. 尽管他为实验室做了创造性和深思熟虑的规划, unpredictable attendance made participation in hands-on activities quite difficult.
While there were many challenges with learning and relationship building this past year, there were also some positive examples of perseverance shared at the Noyce seminar. 尽管在大流行期间经历了困难, 测试表明，学生的学习仍有一定程度的进步. Students and families seem to have a greater appreciation for school and teachers, and have a better perspective on the privilege of education that we may take for granted. So, 许多人已经建立了继续前进的韧性, 尽管在疫情期间我们都经历了困难. These experiences will help shape future learning and provide the grit necessary to succeed when the going gets tough.
展望未来的教育, the speakers at the Project SERVE forum had a variety of thoughts about their own school districts. 对于一些社区来说, the way of life will likely return to pre-pandemic conditions due to the community's smaller size. 在其他情况下, it was recognized that home learning is now a viable option for situations that previously might have interrupted learning (although everyone was in agreement that we shouldn’t do away with snow days here in Nebraska!)至于STEM教育工作者, 我们必须继续保持创造性和适应力, 因为我们尽最大努力为学生提供优质的教育, 无论在什么情况下. Despite the inconsistency and uncertainty related to health measures during the pandemic, 有人提醒我们必须尽力而为, 用我们现有的资源, 为学生服务. While it is impossible to predict all the potential events that may happen in the future, 作为教育者，我们有责任灵活地应对变化, 尽我们所能帮助我们的学生. 因为归根结底，我们为之奋斗的是我们的学生.
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Nolan Field (’21) is a Noyce scholar in the 十大网络娱乐平台注册 Fast Track Teacher Preparation program. Upon completing his teacher certification, he plans to teach science in a high-need secondary school.
