I learned a few things from my survey.

First of all, all but one of the 15 responses use a laptop to

attend remote learning. This is surprising, as I thought there would be more smartphone users. This is
refreshing because it allows for more access to simultaneous options when teaching, rather than just a
simple screen share, since computers can multi-task much easier than a phone or tablet can.

12 of 15 respondents reported that they currently were either “kinda”, “not really”, or not at all
engaged in class whatsoever. This mirrors my own experience as many of my own classes that I share
with a lot of these students have the professors falling back on predominantly direct instruction lectures
with forced mini-group discussions for a minute or two. While some direct instruction is perfectly fine
when used appropriately, its overuse (especially in a virtual environment) is a one way ticket to
snoozeville. “According to a group of German psychologists at the University of Freiburg, direct
instruction may actually be equally as efficient as non-directive instruction (e.g, self-directed learning),
with one important catch— it must be customized for the learner.” The virtual environment makes
customized learning incredibly difficult to near impossible, so it is important to use it sparingly and
instead try and focus on non-directive learning to encourage students to think and make decisions on
their own. This is mirrored in some of the responses to the question, “What would you change to feel
more engaged in your virtual classes?”:

 I feel like we've just got a bunch of mini-assignments that I work on during class. If we
got rid of those and got graded on our participation, then I'd feel a lot more engaged.
 I would get into some activities that require actually applying skills rather than writing 2
page reflections every other day.
 I would make them in- person lol; jk, probably try to do more group work with clear
instructions
 I feel like we've just got a bunch of mini-assignments that I work on during class. If we
got rid of those and got graded on our participation, then I'd feel a lot more engaged.
 I would like to have more interaction during lectures, such as using PearDeck.

Also many respondents (10 of 15) would rather prefer in person classes, as it almost forces
better engagement. It is easy to tune out when you’re safe at home with all of your stuff with no
supervision.

 The ability to interact with classmates in cool and interesting ways

 I want a stronger sense of community

One of the more shocking responses were the answers to the question, “Do you feel prepared
for your classes every day? Why or why not?”. Students are completely across the board with this;
almost a pure 50/50 split. Some students feel utterly hopeless and lost and others feel completely on
top of things. This is important to recognize as a future teacher to touch base with our students on a
more personal level and make sure everyone is doing okay. Spot checks mid-class are ineffective, as
students may feel pressured to answer in the affirmative to not deviate from the norm or be a “trouble
student”.

 I've usually got no idea what is going on because everything blends together online.
 No, I just wake up and wonder which of my classes has an assignment I need to
complete first. I think I haven't put myself on a consistent routine on what I need to do
with my classes so I am not prepared for any of them.
  So online classes feel... imaginary. I feel like the concepts and assignments are intangible
and I am more or less just trying to make sure I do what is asked of me.
 Yes, with few books and less homework it is all manageable.
 When the semester started, I felt behind every day. I have adjusted so now I am more
prepared.
 I feel prepared enough, even though I don't look at the reading material before class.
Truth be told, the fact that the readings are never brought up at all in-class or referred
to at all makes them feel like a complete waste of time. I suppose I choose not to
"prepare" for class because the material feels irrelevant.
 For most days I feel prepared, but other days I have too much on my workload and have
to rush through assignments.
 Most days I feel prepared mainly due to being confident in the resources available from
the classes and resources within reach of my work space.

A huge question that I wanted confirmation on was when I asked, “Do you feel like some
teachers are expanding homework loads to make up for a decrease in in-person learning time? If so, do
you think this is effective? If not, do you think they should?” I have personally felt that this is a huge
issue that teachers are assigning busywork and as a result, are losing the interest of their students.
Assignments and homework need to have a purpose. If they do not, teachers will absolutely lose the
respect of their students and their learning will suffer. I will let some of the responses speak for
themselves, as I feel their raw emotions should be given their due:

 Yes, they are doing all of that and no, I do not think it is effective. I do not think teachers
should increase the homework load maybe just the difficulty of it. I think we should
focus on quality work instead of quantity where some of us just send a last minute or
late submission.
 YES I DO! I have never had so much homework in my life. No I don't think it is super
effective, because it stresses me out and anxiety hinders learning. Also, all of the extra
reading blends together.
 YES THEY ARE. NO ITS NOT EFFECTIVE.
 I absolutely think this is the case. And I think it is ridiculous. Being given 2 days to
complete a survey, administer the survey, analyze data, and write a report is absolutely
ridiculous, regardless of in-person learning time. Instructors still need to be aware that
students have other classes, jobs, and other priorities in life. As they say, students aren't
going to care about their classes if they think the instructor doesn't care about them.
 I haven't experienced it personally, but I have seen my friends get homework piled on. I
don't think it's effective because it just leads to more busywork.
 Yes! I don't think it's effective though because it just makes me check out.

The final question of note was the question of, “Do you feel that virtual learning is preparing you
for future success?” These responses were all over the board, with some students feeling fine, others
just okay, and others with varying degrees of swearing and sarcastic laughing. Most students across the
spectrum did note that while they understand that their professors are doing their best, they are
learning more about specifically what not to do if/when they have to do virtual learning on their own.
There was also a begrudging acceptance by several respondents of the grim reality that this may be
what teaching looks like for us and to observe our current college classes as we would an internship, not
an actual class, since much of the material isn’t being taught effectively or in an engaging way.

Notable responses that didn’t fit the narrative format of this essay:

 I feel like my professors are doing the best they can and I appreciate that. I am still
learning, it is just different and not my preferred method. I think that learning like this
will help me use tech to enhance my lessons in the future.
 As stubborn as I want to be about online learning, this really is a good experience to
know it CAN be done, even if it's not pretty.
 I think my teachers were nice. The one class I have that requires a lot of work was
initially an online class and from what I was told it was always set up that way. I feel like
easing up on students and not giving a ton of homework has been better because I
spend so much time looking at a screen that I need a break for my health.
 Okay so basically the same 3 people talk and I hate it. If we could all take turns or call on
someone new I would be a lot happier.
 I don’t know how to feel about this and I sort of wish I turned on non-
anonymous responses. I know that this is basically about Taylor, Dylan, and
myself, since many of us are blocked together and we basically dominate all
class discussions when it turns to free responses from the professor. However
this is annoying since we all have privately acknowledged that we can dominate
conversations and then we try and give others a chance to speak, the room goes
dead silent for 20 seconds while we wait for someone else to talk. While having
the same voices speaking every time can be bad in a secondary classroom, as
students can feel unengaged if they feel like their thoughts or opinions are not
being heard or valued, at the same time we are at the college level in the last
semester of formal classroom teaching. This profession is no place for introverts
and if you don’t speak up in a structured classroom how are you going to speak
up in your own classroom? While some structured round-robin style responses
to certain questions or activities can work out and be fun activities, we are at
the level now where you have to be able to speak up on your own.

References:

Briggs, S. (2013). Customized Instruction: Four Characteristics of Effective Instructional Explanations.

Retrieved from: http://www.opencolleges.edu.au/informed/features/customized-instruction-four-
characteristics-of-effective-instructional-explanations/

Kasnot, C. (2020). Super Cool Survey Explosions Time. Retrieved from:

https://forms.gle/5yCD1Pas7UVmvuxg6