Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1380872
learning environment very quickly," says Garcia, a member of San Benito High School Teachers Association. "The sense of urgency made a dif ference in pushing, promoting and supporting projects we were already working on, including revising curriculum." Science teachers now access online simulations that allow students to do interactive experiments remotely and collab- oratively with their peers. In chemistry, for example, students can adjust the volume, temperature and mass of ingredients online, re-creating the experience of students sitting at lab tables together. "We flipped learning by recording our lectures and allowing students to do hands-on learning in simulations during class time," says Garcia. "e pandemic definitely gave our team a chance to be more creative." Embracing professional development Many who put off voluntary professional devel- opment before the pandemic found themselves attending an array of virtual workshops after school and on weekends once schools shut down. e trainings have sharpened their skills. Wright, for example, attended ever y work- shop available to transition to distance learning, and was excited to become more comfortable with technology. Garcia helped organize a professional devel- opment workgroup called "Fan Favorites" that helped teachers in her district adjust to online instruction. Instead of using the term "best prac- tices," which can be somewhat intimidating, teachers shared their favorite ways of doing things. e workgroup was a big hit. "We are building the plane as we're flying it. If we find some- thing that works, it's an instant Fan Favorite, which doesn't have the weighty expectation that comes with being a best practice," Garcia says. "We ask teachers to share what works for them. We are learning and growing together, and there is beauty in that." A s G a r c i a's d i s t r i c t m o v e s t o hy b r i d , t h e s e s e s s i o n s w i l l c o n t i n u e . "We are building the plane as we're flying it. We are learning and growing together, and there is beauty in that." —Isabel Garcia, San Benito High School Teachers Association Says San Benito High science and math teacher Isabel Garcia, " The pandemic definitely gave our team a chance to be more creative." Becoming open-minded, flexible and patient Amy Rangel, a music and band teacher at Glen- dale High School, found herself in a quandary when the pandemic hit. Her students could no longer play together as a group. Playing and prac- ticing music on Zoom or Webex doesn't work for an orchestra — there are time delays and techni- cal glitches, and it's hard for the conductor to give directions to a specific section. Rangel had to shift her thinking. "I still wanted them to have the feeling of playing as a group, so I shared my sound with them and they played their instruments along with me or with a demo recording," she says. "I couldn't hear them, but it gave them a sense of not playing alone." A member of the Glendale Teachers Association who was honored on e Kelly Clarkson Show and was a finalist for 2019 Music Educator of the Year Grammy, Rangel also added solo projects and music appreciation activities. "My goal was to keep them playing and not just become a paper-and-pencil music class." Students made their own choices of music and recorded videos of solo performances. Many were excited about having the freedom to choose what to play, she says. 23 J U N E / J U L Y 2 0 21 Amy Rangel