Organization for In-Person School
Claire Madachy '22 Copy Editor
Kenny Stevens '25 Staff Writer
Kenny Stevens '25 Staff Writer
The transition to in-person learning from online school was hard on everyone for many different reasons, organization being one of them. Suddenly, students and teachers alike had to re-adjust the entire system they had spent a year getting used to. Understandably, this has created some confusion from both students and staff on how to transition back to the classroom after attending class in bed for a whole year.
Last year, all teachers were required to post their lessons week by week in Canvas modules, a system that some loved and some hated. However, there are no such requirements this year, meaning that teachers and students have to find which organization style works best for them. Many teachers are glad to have this freedom. Mrs. Hensley, an art teacher at Howard High School, said she is very glad to be back to teaching in person. Mrs. Hensley explained that she is “trying to take advantage of the huge array of media that we have in this county” now that we are back in person. “It’s such a hands-on class,” she continues, “I missed students.” Most of Mrs. Henseley’s art classes are on paper in the classroom, but there has been one significant change. Digital portfolios are a way for students to document their finished art pieces in a way that will last much longer than a piece of paper would. When asked what she thinks about the digital portfolios, Mrs. Hensley stated, “I think it’s something that’s actually good that came out of the pandemic.” Even teachers in less hands-on subjects have mostly transitioned back to paper and pencil. Ms. O’Neill, a math teacher at Howard, said she has also been using Canvas way less than she did last year. “I really like that this year everything is in one location. You’re not looking at 18 pages, you’re looking at 1 page and it has all the information for that unit. It kind of streamlines things,” she explains. In Ms. O’Neill’s class, “Anything online is just kind of an extra resource. We have our note packets to keep us on track that are organized by unit, and everything else is just extra resources.” Overall, teachers seem to be liking this year’s model of organization much better than last year’s, in part because they are able to do what works best for their specific subject.
Students seem to agree. When asked how easy it was to keep her stuff organized last year, senior Stuti Rao said, “It was awful.” Senior Olivia Miller agreed, saying, “It wasn’t good.” Both Miller and Rao agreed that this year has been a lot easier to stay organized, but with each teacher using their own system, it can get confusing at times. When asked what they wished their teachers would do to help them stay organized, Rao and Miller said they liked it when teachers organized by unit. Senior Maggie Krieg agreed, saying, “I want a clear list of what I should be looking for. I need teachers to specify better what is classwork and what is homework.” Freshman Ziyon Walker said something similar about how he prefers teachers to organize their Canvas calendars. Walker uses Canvas “Just to know what is homework and what isn’t.”
Both teachers and students need to re-learn how best to organize their classes. Teachers need to be clear on what work is and isn’t homework, since last year most work was done online independently. Students need to make sure to stay up to date on assignments. As we continue on in the school year, teachers and students both will continue to adjust to being back in the classroom. Hopefully with that adjusting comes better organization that helps both students and staff be efficient and successful.
Last year, all teachers were required to post their lessons week by week in Canvas modules, a system that some loved and some hated. However, there are no such requirements this year, meaning that teachers and students have to find which organization style works best for them. Many teachers are glad to have this freedom. Mrs. Hensley, an art teacher at Howard High School, said she is very glad to be back to teaching in person. Mrs. Hensley explained that she is “trying to take advantage of the huge array of media that we have in this county” now that we are back in person. “It’s such a hands-on class,” she continues, “I missed students.” Most of Mrs. Henseley’s art classes are on paper in the classroom, but there has been one significant change. Digital portfolios are a way for students to document their finished art pieces in a way that will last much longer than a piece of paper would. When asked what she thinks about the digital portfolios, Mrs. Hensley stated, “I think it’s something that’s actually good that came out of the pandemic.” Even teachers in less hands-on subjects have mostly transitioned back to paper and pencil. Ms. O’Neill, a math teacher at Howard, said she has also been using Canvas way less than she did last year. “I really like that this year everything is in one location. You’re not looking at 18 pages, you’re looking at 1 page and it has all the information for that unit. It kind of streamlines things,” she explains. In Ms. O’Neill’s class, “Anything online is just kind of an extra resource. We have our note packets to keep us on track that are organized by unit, and everything else is just extra resources.” Overall, teachers seem to be liking this year’s model of organization much better than last year’s, in part because they are able to do what works best for their specific subject.
Students seem to agree. When asked how easy it was to keep her stuff organized last year, senior Stuti Rao said, “It was awful.” Senior Olivia Miller agreed, saying, “It wasn’t good.” Both Miller and Rao agreed that this year has been a lot easier to stay organized, but with each teacher using their own system, it can get confusing at times. When asked what they wished their teachers would do to help them stay organized, Rao and Miller said they liked it when teachers organized by unit. Senior Maggie Krieg agreed, saying, “I want a clear list of what I should be looking for. I need teachers to specify better what is classwork and what is homework.” Freshman Ziyon Walker said something similar about how he prefers teachers to organize their Canvas calendars. Walker uses Canvas “Just to know what is homework and what isn’t.”
Both teachers and students need to re-learn how best to organize their classes. Teachers need to be clear on what work is and isn’t homework, since last year most work was done online independently. Students need to make sure to stay up to date on assignments. As we continue on in the school year, teachers and students both will continue to adjust to being back in the classroom. Hopefully with that adjusting comes better organization that helps both students and staff be efficient and successful.