Tech Tales from the Classroom: Covid, eLearning, and What Educators Need to Thrive

Flashback to 1987. Madonna and Bon Jovi hit the top of the charts, the New York Giants won the Super Bowl, and Sheri Ferris embarked on the beginning of her teaching career.

Before the threat of AI haunted school hallways, there was a time when teachers didn’t have computers at their desks. Access to information was slow, curriculum was simple, and projector lamps were so hot they burned your retinas. 

What a time to be alive.

I had the privilege of sitting down with Mrs. Sheri Ferris–a teacher of 36 years–to get her insight on the way the teaching landscape has changed. Beginning her career as a kindergarten teacher and then later transitioning to first grade, Mrs. Ferris has dedicated over three decades to educating and inspiring students to set them up for a strong educational trajectory.

In our interview, we touch on hot topics like what it was like to be a teacher during COVID, how technology has impacted the classroom, and what students and educators need to thrive. So if you’re interested in getting the inside scoop from a fellow parent, veteran teacher, and developmental expert, keep reading.

Me: “How has teaching changed since you started your career? Has anything gotten better? What’s stayed the same?”

Mrs. Ferris: What’s changed the most is the sheer access to information. I started teaching in 1987, so a lot of that was prior to technology. If the teacher had a computer at her desk, that was unusual. I was still running off things on a ditto machine.

Research is a lot easier for teachers to attain. Before, if I wanted to find out about best practices I would have to get a professional journal and read an article or a book. Now, it’s at my fingertips. I feel like I’m a lot more up-to-date with best practices. I don’t feel like, “Oh this was written 10 years ago and I’m just getting my hands on it now.”

I read a lot of Tim Shanahan who is a big guru in the science of reading. He was one of the original researchers back in the 2000s. Now, I feel like I have more immediate access to his information.

Mrs. Ferris goes on to share that while kids have changed, they’ve also stayed the same.

The experiences they used to come in with as kindergarteners or first graders are very different. Now, a lot more attend preschool and pre-K programs, they have access to technology at home before they get to school.

At the same time–and what I think a lot of teachers forget, is that developmentally they are still the same. 

A five-year-old is still a five-year-old. A six-year-old is still a six-year-old. And that’s not going to change with technology, because that’s just a part of their human development.

An example of this is how kids still learn through play. When we got so much technology, and especially when the curriculum came down really hard, there was no more time to play. But that’s how kids develop a lot of language and personal skills. How to problem-solve, how to deal with conflict, and how to get along with others. When you give them an opportunity to play, they get to figure it out.

We can’t run it like a business. Students are not products, they’re people, so we need to make sure that we’re staying in tune with what they need and not just assuming everybody needs the same thing.

Me: “What was it like to teach during the pandemic? During that time, did you find yourself leaning on any educational tools?”

Mrs. Ferris: It was completely unexpected and not anything I ever imagined in my lifetime. You had to change on a dime. You needed to be able to figure out how to communicate, and how to connect with kids through a screen. You missed that personalization, you missed those relationships, I think that was a big piece.

I have to say, one of the things that surprised me was how good the first graders were at using the technology. I think sometimes the teachers struggled a little bit more than the kids, especially at the beginning.

I was fortunate that our district has one-on-one devices, so every kindergartner through eighth grader had an iPad or a Macbook. We had been teaching that way for over ten years so the kids already knew how to utilize technology which I think was a saving grace. There were so many districts across the country that did not have the same access that we did, and so I felt like we were definitely at an advantage.

I had to figure out how to have an engaging lesson through a screen. So much of teaching younger kids is hands-on. No longer could they manipulate math tools. While reading, if I showed them a book, they had to look and listen through the screen. They couldn’t turn the pages. 

One of the things that really suffered was their writing. So as I’m teaching writing, I’m not able to teach them how to hold the pencil. I can’t see what they’re doing with their grip. I can’t really see how they’re forming their letters. During guided reading, I couldn’t sit next to them and help them point to the words as they were reading.

So that took a lot of figuring out—a lot of experimenting and trial and error.

Despite the immense difficulties, Mrs. Ferris was able to adapt to the circumstances with the help of other teachers and online tools. 

Teachers–not just me–but across the nation were amazing when it came to problem-solving and figuring out how to do something that nobody in the world ever expected us to be able to do.

I used an app called Seesaw. It was a great tool for the kids to use, especially in the early primary grades. I could read a story, or they could read a story and record their voice so I could hear and follow along as they were reading. If there were questions they needed to respond to, students could draw or write their responses in the app. Additionally, parents have access to it. 

We could [as teachers] respond to the kids either through recording a message of how they’re doing, or putting comments and emojis in our feedback, give them a thumbs up, something like that. It was a great tool to use when the pandemic came because it was something that we had already been using in the classroom.

I’m very thankful this happened in the age of technology. If it happened 10 years ago I don’t know how schools could have gone forward. I think we would have been completely shut down

Me: “Today, what tools do you use the most in the classroom and how do they affect your daily routine?”

Mrs. Ferris: We still use Seesaw every day. Kids also have access to audiobooks they can listen to. 

Our school uses apps such as Epic and Bookflix that give them access to hundreds of books. Students can scroll through a whole library and can either listen to or read a book on this app. 

There are assessments online too. One program called i-Ready allows us to see where kids are in reading and math. We use those data points to help us understand what skills they have, what skills they don’t have, and what step we need to teach next. Then, i-Ready will create an individualized learning path for each student. It’s a diagnostic assessment which means that when something is too easy, the program will adjust the questions for them and help challenge them [and vice versa].

Of course, the diagnosis is just one data point. You take what you observe in school and your anecdotal notes from being with them every day and put those together to formulate a plan for what the child needs.

Me: “Do you think there are certain grade levels that benefit more from educational tools than others?”

Mrs. Ferris: I think that every grade level can benefit from technology. I think they just have tools that meet needs in a different way.

We have first graders who are coding. I mean–it’s a very simple level, but it’s the beginning of that skill.

The older kids can access more than the younger kids, and the younger kids are getting earlier exposure so when they get to be in the upper grades they have a better understanding of what they can do with technology.

But to me, it’s not about the program or the apps that are out there. It’s more about giving them the tools on how to problem solve, the tools on how to ask questions and be inquisitive. 

The programs that they’re learning in kindergarten are going to be obsolete in so many years. So really, what we need to be focusing on is teaching them to ask and answer questions, and how to problem-solve. It’s about being able to give them the tools of how to utilize technology that’s not even been invented yet.

Me: “Are there any educational tools you wish you had? What kind of support do you think teachers need to feel empowered in the classroom?”

Mrs. Ferris: Well, I know there’s a whole big thing right now about AI and how that’s impacting teaching. I don’t know where that’s headed, but I think it’s important to keep teachers on the cusp of change.

I also think it’s imperative to have district administrators stay connected to the classrooms. I think sometimes once they get to the district level, it can be difficult for them to make frequent visits. Making those real connections is a critical piece of putting kids first.

We’re in a suburb of Chicago that has the means and resources to make technology a priority. There are many, many states and cities across the country that are not as fortunate as we are. I would love to see some resources come from the government so that it’s a level playing field because right now the tools you’re going to have access to depend on your zip code.

They need to figure out how to keep a level playing field for all kids across the country, not just the ones who are paying a higher tax bracket. I could get on a political soapbox, but you would need another Zoom call for that

Part Two anyone??

Me: “How do you see educational technology impacting the future of teaching?

Mrs. Ferris: Accessibility and being able to get information more instantaneously. Staying abreast of the best practices and research that’s out there.

I think also being able to have teachers communicate. Whether it’s community groups on Facebook or Instagram, I can talk to teachers who are teaching in California, New York, or Florida. And kids are kids, it doesn’t matter where they’re growing up. They all have the same successes and issues, so being able to have that access is definitely going to help unify teachers and help them learn from each other.

Sheri Ferris is a devoted educator with a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction. She has participated in several committees in her district including Language Arts, Science, and Math to help research and pilot new curriculum. Sheri’s legacy is one of unwavering commitment to fostering strong educational foundations for young learners. As she embarks on her final year of teaching, her impact remains a testament to her dedication and passion for helping children flourish.