As I log on to my online class, my ears wait for the distinct ‘ding’ that signals the arrival of a student, and as I click ‘Admit’, my mind flits momentarily to the days when I used to hear a “May I come in, Ma’am?” instead… If someone had told me in March that I would have to completely ‘virtualise’ my way of teaching for the foreseeable future, I would have panicked. Well, in reality, there was no time for panic, only time to swing.. or should I say.. ‘zoom’ into action!
I think my fellow teachers will agree that online teaching-learning can be fun and challenging – wrapped up in one! Yes, there are network fluctuations and audio echoes. But there are pros as well! First of all, I thank God for the ‘Present’ option. Whether it is a file full of exercises or a PPT chock-full of examples and images, this expedient tool of presenting content while teaching online is rather like displaying a PPT in the physical classroom. There are also great moments when the chat window is filled up by students eagerly typing away their views instead of speaking aloud, just for a change.
If you have been connecting with your classmates and colleagues virtually, a refrain of “Am I audible?” and “Can you hear me?” echoes in your head every so often, doesn’t it? What’s more, I feel as if I’ve said “Please unmute yourself” only about a hundred times to some dear souls who speak while they are muted and end up having to repeat themselves! To add to the entertainment quotient, a lot of attendees have mastered the skill of managing quick exchanges with family while simultaneously attending an online class – the rest of are treated to some amusing snippets when they are blissfully unaware that they haven’t muted their microphones!
Then there are a few sleepy souls who treat us to barely concealed loud yawns during an early morning class. Such a yawn is quickly followed by a slightly annoyed classmate’s instruction - ‘Mute yourself (yawner’s name)’ - in the chat window. The yawner quickly obliges, (presumably) gulps some coffee and joins in again, a little more awake! A pleasant sound of course is the chirping of birds that is a nice background score for some students’ presentations.
Who could have envisioned that mental absenteeism (good old daydreaming) would be replaced by muting oneself? Here is a fair warning, dear students: we teachers can make out whether you are actually ‘on call’!
Ah, these times are definitely unique. Kudos to all those who have challenged themselves getting familiar with the trending video conferencing platforms. When we are back to our good old brick-and-mortar classes, I wonder, will we yearn for the times of Google Meet, Zoom and MS Teams, minus the root cause, of course? I reckon we will…
-Vidisha Chirmulay
Full-time faculty