VOA慢速英语--在网上教学中，教育者边教边学

In Teaching Online, Educators Learn as They Go

School districts around the United States were not ready for online learning when the coronavirus health crisis¹ hit – and it affected² students.

Research on test scores over the past year suggests that students' learning slowed down. A study by the Center for Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) pointed³ to school closures and the switch to remote learning as likely reasons for the problem.

Lawmakers and parents have said the return to in-person classes is important for this school year. But education experts say online classes are here to stay and that students need to know how to learn online to be prepared for college and the workforce⁴.

Christine Pitts is an education expert with CRPE. She said that it is hard to judge the effectiveness of last year's remote learning. Many school districts had to make a quick change to remote classes during the health crisis and were not prepared.

"We know that virtual⁵ learning is not going to go away in a post-COVID world," Pitts said. "But we also know that it cannot be the same as emergency learning."

Pitts said there is little research on how to structure online classes. She said few education researchers have looked at online teaching methods at the kindergarten through 12th grade level.

"Not having that evidence makes it really hard for systems leaders, for teachers, for superintendents⁷ to make those decisions about how to design remote learning moving forward," Pitts said.

Educators do have some research about how to structure online learning.

For example, research suggests that children learn better when they can physically⁸ move around. Online classes could support this kind of behavior by asking students to take walks or do activities away from the computer, argued Katie Taylor in the publication The Conversation. She is a professor of learning sciences and human development at the University of Washington.

Learning the best methods for online teaching has taken some time, said Judy Perez. She is an educator with 20 years of experience in online education at the kindergarten through 12th grade level. She is also the head of iLearn Collaborative in Colorado. It is a non-profit organization that trains teachers in online teaching methods.

Colorado passed a law in 2007 that expanded online and hybrid⁹ classes in the state. Hybrid classes mix online and in-person instruction.

Perez began teaching virtual instruction in 2001 when "we didn't know what we were doing. We were just trying to figure out, how do we teach in this space?"

But over time, she and other experts were able to develop training methods and measure student performance in online classrooms.

Last year, Perez said many teachers in the districts she worked with before the pandemic were surprised. They found they were able to make the change from in-person to virtual learning quickly when the pandemic started. She said, however, that student learning was affected by how well-trained a teacher was in online instruction.

"I think you would see a difference in student...learning depending on how well-trained the teachers were and those that just jumped into this environment," Perez said.

Taking a lesson meant for the classroom and simply moving it online does not work, she said. Teachers need to be able to use the online environment and computer technology to keep their students interested. They also need to build relationships with their students, said Jill Pelligrini. She also trains teachers for iLearn Collaborative.

"What we've been doing with our training is really focusing on that student engagement¹⁰," Pellegrini said. "How do you build community? How do you build relationships?"

Pitts said that kids learning at home have made parents more involved in their child's schooling¹¹. It has become easier for parents to see what their children are learning and how they are progressing. They can ask teachers questions about what is being learned.

It is something "that we want to pull forward into whatever remote learning occurs" in the future, Pitts said.

Perez said that all students should have some experience with online learning. Those that do not will have a harder time when they go to college or enter workforce-training programs that use online instruction, she said.

Perez added she does not recommend fully¹² online schooling. But she said hybrid classes could be better for students needing special consideration like athletes and those with disabilities or health problems.

Pitts noted¹³ that there is little research about how to teach virtual classes, what classes are easier or harder to teach online, or what kinds of students are best for it.

"It's such an understudied type of teaching," she said.

Words in This Story

district –n. an area established by a government for official government business

remote — adj. done from a distance; away from a place

superintendent⁶ –n. a person who directs or manages a place, department, organization

figure out –v.(phrasal) to understand or find something by thinking

optimal¹⁴ — adj. the best; the most effective way

focus –v. to place attention on something

virtual — adj. existing or occurring on computers or on the Internet

engagement — n. the act or state of being involved with something

occur –v. to take place; to happen

type –n. a kind of something

1 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

2 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

3 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

4 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

5 virtual   

adj.实质上的，事实上的，实际上的

参考例句：

• This reply is a virtual acceptance of our offer.这一回答实质上是接受了我们的建议。
• At that time the East India Company was the virtual ruler of Bengal.那时东印度公司是孟加拉的实际统治者。

6 superintendent   

n.监督人，主管，总监；(英国)警务长

参考例句：

• He was soon promoted to the post of superintendent of Foreign Trade.他很快就被擢升为对外贸易总监。
• He decided to call the superintendent of the building.他决定给楼房管理员打电话。

7 superintendents   

警长( superintendent的名词复数 )； （大楼的）管理人； 监管人； （美国）警察局长

参考例句：

• Unlike their New York counterparts, Portland school superintendents welcomed McFarlane. 这一次，地点是在波特兰。
• But superintendents and principals have wide discretion. 但是，地方领导和校长有自由裁量权。

8 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

9 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

10 engagement   

n.订婚，婚约，约定，约会

参考例句：

• I can't see you on Monday because I have a previous engagement.星期一我不能见你，因为我有约在先。
• It was my mother's very own engagement ring.这正是我母亲自己的订婚戒指。

11 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

12 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 optimal   

adj.最适宜的；最理想的；最令人满意的

参考例句：

• What is the optimal mix of private and public property rights in natural resources?私人和国家的自然资源产权的最适宜的组合是什么？
• Optimal path planning is a key link for the sailing contest.帆船最优行驶路径规划是帆船比赛取胜的关键环节。