kennedyloreth

Changed Perspectives

I am Kennedy Loreth, well actually Kennedy Cooper as I just got married this June! I graduated from the University of Regina with my bachelor degree in 2018. From there I took a year to travel abroad to Australia & take in as much substitute teaching as I could. I loved learning all the unique teaching strategies & diverse classroom structures. As much as I enjoyed this time to further learn & gain some understanding, I was definitely eager to get into my own classroom. I started my first teaching job in September of 2019. I was teaching Grade 6 & loved every second of this experience. I took in every moment, both challenging & rewarding, and was constantly in awe of this being my job. 

Unfortunately March 2020 rolled around & Covid-19 had hit. My first teaching experience was forced to go online & I was absolutely crushed. If I’m being honest, this was a challenge for me in many ways. I felt so disconnected from my profession, my colleagues, my students and even myself. I found myself questioning my own abilities, along with my love & passion for teaching. Within the next couple of years there seemed to be lots of flopping back & forth between online & in person and each time I was reassured that online teaching was not for me. 

As much as I am even more thankful to be back in the classroom teaching, I did learn a thing or two from teaching online. I honestly do not know if I would incorporate technology to the level that I have had we not gone online during the pandemic. I’ve learned to embrace the many positives of technology, which I had previously held a negative & close minded perspective about. I’ve embraced letting my students learn, research, and create online. It has given me the opportunity to enrich my teaching skills & connect with my students in diverse ways. I’ve also learned how online and blended learning has helped me to balance a split class. 

Looking at this from the perspective of a student rather than an educator, I am very thankful for the opportunity of learning online. Again, I think we owe a lot of this to the pandemic, but I believe it has created such an ideal & unique way for us educators to continue learning. I know that the majority of these classes were previously only offered in person and since then it has opened new doors & opportunities for online & blended learning. I still appreciate & enjoy the in person classes, but being as busy as I am & living over an hour away from the university, this has provided me with realistic opportunities & many new possibilities.

On the first night of this class, my group discussed how sometimes blended learning can often feel like we are doing double the work as the educators. So then why do it? Well for me personally I believe it is because the outcome is so worth it! I believe my students are gaining more from blended learning & are also pushing themselves in new & unique ways. It gives me the opportunity to assess in various ways & to understand my students better. It also ensures we are keeping up with today’s advanced technology in beneficial ways. I’m thankful for learning as much as I have about online learning & am so eager to keep gaining a deeper understanding & seeing the benefits of using it within my classroom & teaching profession.

kennedyloreth

6 responses to “Changed Perspectives”

  1. Raegyn Fulmek Avatar
    Raegyn Fulmek

    Congrats!!! I would agree though, my online experiences really took off at the beginning of Covid. What were your biggest successes with online learning during these times? What challenges did you have? How does this influence your present and future teachings?

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    1. kennedyloreth Avatar
      kennedyloreth

      Thank you! I think one of my biggest successes was how comfortable & familiar I became with technology. This was something I previously wasn’t very comfortable with, so it definitely pushed me out of my comfort zone & I’m very thankful for that. I think one of my biggest challenges was connecting with my students the way I wanted to connect. I felt there was constantly a wall & barrier between us. I think I will always believe that being in person at a young age is much better for connection & communication. However, I do think both of these things worked in my favour for my present & future teachings. Technology & creating connection is something I do not take for granted & try to incorporate into my classroom every chance I get! I appreciate you asking these questions & getting my thoughts out there. What would you say were some of your biggest challenges and/or successes for you?

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  2. mcwenc Avatar
    mcwenc

    Hello Kennedy! Congratulations on your marriage. You certainly had an interesting first year of teaching and I can empathize with your loss of passion, direction and purpose at the beginning of COVID. Even as a 7th year educator when it all began, I felt the same way.

    While I agree that online learning is SOO much work at the beginning, the outcome is worth it and the “frontloading” of the planning process truly does help educators move closer to a UbD process. As an administrator in a school with predominantly triple grade splits, I also see the potential to better meet diverse student needs — particularly with the flipped classroom model! I am excited to continue learning how we can use technology as a tool to help us educators cope with increasingly complex classrooms!

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    1. kennedyloreth Avatar
      kennedyloreth

      Hi! I definitely agree with your thoughts here & appreciate your comment.

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  3. Durston McKenna Avatar
    Durston McKenna

    Hello Kennedy,

    First of all, congratulations on your recent marriage!

    In my 5th year I taught a grade 6/7 split and loved every second of it. I find it interesting how there are age groups that interest different educators. I taught younger grades and although I enjoyed them my true passion lies in that middle years.

    Covid and being assigned home had some challenges for teachers of all calibers. Veteran teachers had challenges changing their pedagogies to align with distance learning. Teachers who between 5-10 years of experience were expected to be more comfortable with the technology portion but were just starting to feel comfortable in a classroom. New teachers definitely got turned upside down as they are working to establish routines and establish themselves in the profession. I agree with you though although there are aspects of online that I loved and at times miss, I feel the impact I am making is greater when I can teach in person, along with coaching.

    I’m glad to see your enthusiasm for continued learning and how eager you are to deepen your understanding of online learning and its benefits. Your willingness to adapt and embrace new teaching methods will undoubtedly have a positive impact on your students’ learning journeys.

    Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experiences!

    Durston McKenna

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    1. kennedyloreth Avatar
      kennedyloreth

      Durston, thank you for your thoughts & comments. I appreciate you taking the time to compare all the challenges that teachers went through during the hard times of being online through covid. I agree that the level of experience came with its own set of challenges for each individual teacher. I’m just so glad to be back in the classroom doing what I love!

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