The Joy of Online Teaching

 Hello everyone,

this is going to be a short one. I need to vent a little, so you can skip this.

Since the first lockdown I've been teaching online - give or take a year. At first I was too nervous about how it would go, as I had only first, second and third graders. And, as expected it was a nightmare. Constant giggling, pets screeching, crying siblings, screaming parents (LISTEN. MISS SAID YOUR NAME!!! WHY ARE YOU NOT SPEAKING???), children  muting and unmuting each other, me barely holding it together (but what? Tears, laughter? I'm still not sure).

I've seen more parents in their underwear than I care to admit. 

Visual representation:

Despite this rocky start we managed to finish the year. I even started liking it. At the end of our last lesson I asked all of my students which was the funniest thing that happened during the year - one class were unanimous 'when D and V started fighting'. Yeah, it was pretty funny. But not when they announce it online for all of the parents to hear. Because God forbid, you leave your 8 year old alone on the computer. They can do it! Not kidding, some of these children are more tech savvy than their parents. I listened to a whole 5 minute conversation between a child and his mother, and he was explaining to her how to open the chat with me. One student even remarked how lucky I was with these online lessons - if someone annoys you, you just mute them. Ahhh! This was absolutely true. I wish I had this option in real life. 

One year later I thought I've seen it all. Nope! I've got a student who is like a ghost - is he here, is he not, nobody knows! At least, during the previous term after a conversation with the parents this particular problem was practically resolved. Not this time. And at the same time he gets offended if he knows the answer, and after I've told him to say it, for I don't know, the fifth time and he is still not saying anything and I  move on to somebody else, then he starts screaming. 

Not to mention all of the additional tools and technologies I've had to purchase (while they lowered my salary, of course). On top of that I have to buy a new laptop. Urgh!

Okay, talking about money is my cue to shut up.

Have a nice week, and be nice to your teachers. They're giving their best.