The need for face-to-face education
As COVID-19 is still lurking, educators across the United States are preparing to return to the classroom, and in some places, their return is already in progress. In Colombia, I directed the Master of Environmental Science and Policy. Since the day after Memorial Day, more than 60 students have come to our classroom. We have all been tested and vaccinated, and we all wear masks in class. Although I can teach without a mask, it still beats Zooming. Due to visa and travel restrictions, some of our international students are late, but as our summer semester ends, they have all arrived. This summer, we taught all courses in “Hy-Flex” through video and face-to-face teaching, but next semester, all our required courses will be taught face-to-face.
In another course I directed, the Master of Sustainable Management program, about half of our courses this fall will be “Hy-Flex” to accommodate those students who cannot arrive in time for the beginning of the semester and help those who are enrolled in the first year. student. Postgraduate studies are completed online. We have all learned a lot about online teaching. I believe it occupies an important position in professional graduate education, but I also know that it is not very useful for K-12 and undergraduate education. This is because graduate education is not only about “book learning”, but also about socialization and growth. In low-income communities, education is also to ensure the health, nutrition and well-being of students. This requires people to gather in a school that provides a range of key services.
The past 18 months have been painful for young students who are unable to have on-site contact with teachers, classmates and classrooms. We are a social and tactile species. We learn from each other’s facial expressions and body language. The impact of the lack of face-to-face education on young children has not been fully studied, but I would be surprised if this period of isolation can bring many benefits. Many of us have adapted and managed to adjust our lifestyle to these changing conditions, and our creative adaptation will certainly bring long-term benefits. But they are necessary choices, and we should not confuse them with choices made when we have real choices.
For postgraduate professional education, there is an entire industry that aims to promote online education to students more convenient, cheaper, and as good as face-to-face learning. no. It has a place in teaching and learning. It is useful when face-to-face education is not feasible, but there is no substitute for on-site interaction. I often say that in graduate school, I learn more in bars and cafes than in class. This is not to say that class time is not very precious. However, extracurricular interactions with other graduate students tend to focus on more detailed discussions of concepts introduced in class. Of course, we talked about sports and social aspects, but we are all experiencing a process of collective learning, we often debate and teach with each other. Many online courses at Columbia University (and other universities) are adapted to the needs of face-to-face interaction. These courses begin and end with a short-term residence at the university, where students meet and interact with colleagues and faculty. These intensive residency help make online courses and related group work more effective. During the pandemic, we had to transfer these “onsite” meetings to Zoom. They worked well, but they still did not complete all the goals that the face-to-face meetings were designed to achieve.
To ensure the safety of our students and teachers, educators across the United States are working hard to develop alternatives to face-to-face learning. Teachers in the United States work long hours, come to visit, and strive to educate and establish contact with students every day. There are many success stories, but unfortunately, many students, especially those from poor families, have suffered. For many young students, the school is an island of structure, reason and safety in an unsafe and chaotic world. The teacher is a considerate, authoritative and rational adult whose importance should not be underestimated.
Government officials listened to the opinions of parents, and many people insisted on reopening the school. Many schools encourage and even require vaccinations, masks, and testing to ensure that children, staff, and teachers are as safe as possible. I hope that these vaccines will soon be fully authorized by the FDA and authorized to young children. Of course, there are also some likable political performers, such as the governors of Texas and Florida, who believe that public health missions are the first step towards fascism. Let us hope that these fools do not decide to carefully study traffic laws, such as speed limits and bans on alcohol consumption. Freedom does not grant you the right to harm others. We need to reject the idea that people should have the freedom to spread this virus at will. Although vaccinations and masks do not provide perfect protection, they can reduce the chance of serious illness. In this pandemic storm, we cannot choose the color and shape of the lifeboat. We just need to jump into the ones we can find.
I am lucky that the university where I work has responded to this pandemic with great skill. Need to be tested and vaccinated, free and convenient. When we had to leave the campus, we left, and when we were able to return slowly, we did the same. For postgraduate professional education, face-to-face teaching is a necessary but insufficient step for us to return to normal. We also need to sponsor and participate in many professional social activities and extracurricular meetings and lectures to provide our students with the necessary tools for professional development. We have been hosting these conferences online, and the convenience of Zoom allows us to include alumni and friends from all over the world, but the virtual happy hour can only end here.
Initially, Columbia University returned to campus on September 9, allowing interaction without masks. Only Columbia University faculty, staff, students and staff (vaccinated and tested) were allowed to enter the campus. Due to the Delta variant, this date has been moved to September 30, and health data will determine whether to continue wearing a mask. Although we cannot welcome alumni, prospective students and other guests to the campus, many of our students and part-time teachers are professionals who will benefit from informal contact with each other. When we can gather together to eat and drink without wearing masks, we will do so. Hopefully, soon, we can also greet the guests in person.
Despite these restrictions, most students, faculty and staff have completely accepted returning to campus. The students who attended class this summer did not wear masks when they met outside and often met outside the school, and quickly integrated into a community. The pandemic looms over all of us like dark clouds, but many people have developed ways to resume important activities and adapt to the greater risks of life during the pandemic. I know that I am honored to work in an institution with world-class medical and public health professionals who have provided clever advice to our central government during this long and difficult period. Like everyone else, I lost patience with this roller coaster return to reality. But I am grateful for everyone’s consensus that we need to make every effort to restore face-to-face education. There are risks, but they must be compared with the certainty of the negative effects of returning to Zoom-enabled isolation. COVID may continue to exist, and we need to learn how to operate responsibly in this new environment.
This fall will test our ability to gather in the classroom without drastically increasing the spread of the virus. We have tools to reduce risks, and if we use these tools, we should be able to resume normal education. Sixty or ninety days later, we should know whether we have successfully reopened safely. Much depends on the success of the restoration of face-to-face education.
