I've been wanting to write down my thoughts about the Spring 2020 semester for a while. This is the semester that took us all by surprise and forced us college professors to move from in-person classes to on-line classes in a matter of days.
I remember one February afternoon chatting with a colleague in the locker room after playing basketball. I asked what he thought about this coronavirus thing that was getting a lot of attention in the news. He said, "I wouldn't be surprised if Harding doesn't allow our students to return after Spring Break." I was shocked. That would be crazy!
I was really looking forward to our upcoming Spring Break in March. Becky and I were traveling to Portland together so I could attend the SIGCSE 2020 Symposium. This would be our first get-away without the kids this year. I remember teasing my students the week before our break: "Don't be the one that brings coronavirus back to campus!" We would all laugh; none of thought it was all that serious.
However, a coronavirus outbreak in Seattle had some conference attendees (and my parents) worried. The SIGCSE conference organizers were telling us they were going ahead with the conference, but they were also offering partial refunds for those who wanted out. My parents kept asking me if they thought it was safe, and honestly, I wasn't worried at all.
As it got closer to our March 10 flight and more and more news spread fear about the virus, I also started worrying. On March 8, the governor of Oregon declared a State of Emergency. Becky and I decided maybe we shouldn't go after all. I hated cancelling, but I knew it was probably the best move to make. Thankfully the airlines, hotels, and conference organizers were all very understanding as I cancelled all our tickets and reservations just two days before we were supposed to leave.
My family then decided to visit my parents in northwest Arkansas. It was there that we learned that the SIGCSE 2020 Symposium was cancelled the day it was to start. We also learned that Harding, like so many other universities, would be moving all courses on-line. Students were not going to be allowed to return to campus. Toilet paper started selling out. A few people broke out face masks in public places. Our church cancelled Sunday's service. It was getting really weird very fast.
We returned to Searcy towards the end of Spring Break so I could start preparing to move my classes on-line. I was teaching five classes, my usual four CS courses and one additional course for the MIS department (the previous instructor had to leave at week five). Thankfully, I had already been using Canvas to post assignments and class videos. I was already familiar with the tools I'd need to use to go all on-line. For most CS professors, the transition wasn't nearly as difficult as it was for our colleagues in other departments.
I developed a plan: One day a week we'd meet synchronously so I could see my students' faces and check-in. The other days I'd just post a video of the day's lecture. Reading and homework assignments would continue as usual, but I cut out some content that I'd planned on covering. I also dropped project presentations from all my courses. I would continue to hold office hours at the same times and could chat via Zoom.
Many of my students made the transition to online without too much difficulty. But a number of them did not. It became apparent early on that some student didn't have reliable internet access. Some were taking on jobs or other responsibilities that would take away from their class work. Some were having family emergencies or personal issues. And some just lacked the personal discipline to keep up with their courses.
Most of my synchronous meetings had an absentee rate of around 25%, and it got worse and the semester progressed. When I checked to see how many students were watching class videos, I was very disappointed to see that a significant number of students weren't watching anything at all. It was not surprising that some of my students were asking how to do X when they hadn't watched the videos where I described X.
For most of the time we were online, I was honestly frustrated and somewhat depressed. I was frustrated that I couldn't get many of my students to continue engaging in their courses. I felt a huge gulf between us as our interactions were now only online. I was depressed that I sat in my office on a beautiful campus that was totally devoid of life. All of the fun activities, Spring Sing, graduation, etc. were no more. Even my kid's school went on-line, so the kids were home with Becky with only Zoom meetings to interact with the outside world. And I worried a lot about my students. Some were not communicating with me at all. I had to call several of them to ask why they were not turning in assignments, and I heard all kinds of answers ranging from "I'm just not good at online" to "I'm depressed."
Teaching online, in my opinion, is a poor substitute for learning in person. Of course it can be done... that's primarily the way I learn myself. But there's so much communication that is lost online. I can no longer read my students' body language to see if they understand what I'm saying. The delay in a Zoom meeting or the faces looking all over require my brain to work overtime and drain me. Sometimes it's even difficult for me to remember if I've said something before because everything I say online is from sitting in the same physical place. When I teach in person, I'm physically moving, I'm looking at specific individuals, I'm seeing faces. All of that is lost online.
For college students who still learning how to learn, the online experience presents difficulties. Instead of physically moving your body, smiling at your friends, laughing with those around you, seeing the professor's gestures, moving your eyes from your professor to your notes, all of which form memories and aid in learning, you experience only approximations of the same thing looking at a computer screen. For those who are extreme introverts, going all online might sound wonderful. But losing a physical connection to those around us is a huge loss to everyone.
Harding University is scheduled to start classes in nine weeks. The goal is to meet in-person here in Searcy. But with COVID-19 spiking here in Arkansas and other states, there are a lot of questions about how feasible it is for us to be physically together. Like most universities, Harding took a big financial hit last spring when we refunded all the school dorm and cafeteria fees, and we lost all the revenue that on-campus events generate. We need to be in-person in the fall, but we are preparing to be all online.
Although I am anxious about the future, I trust God will somehow get us through this.
