I feel that an update is necessary as things have changed since my last post. I will not be writing much about the general situation now as I feel that most people have already lived through something like this and the news is covering this. Instead, I will focus more on my family’s and my situation and my feelings about it.
General update
So things have been escalating day by day. All schools are closed and many have moved online. Many service businesses have been reduced in capacity. My family and many others have chosen voluntary self-isolation.
The original school closures were due to end on May 28th but this has been extended to June 14th. A full lockdown might be imposed to contain the spread and trace the sources if things do not significantly improve .
This has already been a challenging time. Many are fearful as we watch the case numbers increase each day. Private businesses such as my two employers face uncertainty over their businesses.
My personal situation
Originally I was supposed to have two weeks off from my main job. I was looking forward to spending this time with family, however my main employer realised that this situation could continue for some time, and made a last minute decision to move classes online. This has meant learning two different online meeting platforms for my two jobs at the last minute-challenging to say the least.
Personal challenges
Online teaching is very different from classroom teaching. So far, we have all been spending a lot more time preparing than we would have done-preparing classes, learning software, websites and platforms, as we work out how to create a meaningful, engaging and inclusive learning environment for our students.
You spend most of your day sat teaching through a screen, which makes you tired in a completely different way compared to standing in a classroom and looking at students face to face.
Then there is the impersonal aspect-although you are speaking to your students, microphones are muted, screens can be off so you cannot see some students, and it is not always clear who is in the classroom and when. I have found it very hard to generate good conversations in online classes so far. Sometimes it can feel a little lonely. This is exacerbated by the fact that now there is no office banter either.
The biggest impact on us as a family is the time spent indoors, and knowing the reason we are avoiding going out. The only times we leave the house are to buy groceries or go to the roof for some air. We are now considering food delivery as more cases are being reported in markets and supermarkets.
We have also cut off face to face contact with all extended family and friends for now, which provides its own challenges. Technology has been a blessing though, allowing us to stay safe, stay in touch and continue working.
Personal benefits
There are benefits, though. If you have been following previous posts, you will know that time with family has been a big priority for me, and I have been considering ways to improve this. It seems that the current situation has temporarily solved this and we have really enjoyed the time spent together.
I now have zero commute time-I have saved 18+ hours (per week) in travel time. I can just walk into my “office”, start working instantly, and I can see my family in the breaks. When I finish work, I am already home.
I can prepare lessons at home with no distraction. My preparation time has already improved as I build my routine and systems to minimise unnecessary work (see previous posts for tips on this). There is less paperwork now, and the paperwork that exists I can type quickly and upload instantly. I expect things will continue to improve as we learn how to use the technology and students get used to it.
My feelings
The looming threat is inescapable, it hides in the background of everything. Every conversation, every rooftop walk, every other thought. There is something about standing on a rooftop, knowing you can go anywhere in sight vs knowing you are restricted to that rooftop and your apartment. Nevertheless, life must go on.
Yesterday was my big day out. I went to the hot zone of the current outbreak. I would have felt more nervous if it were not for the fact that I was going to receive my first vaccination. If it were not for this, I would have avoided the big city like a….virus? I am very grateful to be vaccinated, and I hope more and more people are able to receive theirs soon.
I actually felt excited to have my first real venture outdoors in two weeks. It reminded me of when I completed my first quarantine when I entered the country-after two weeks of isolation, I was excited to get outside and feel the wind on my face. Although this time is a little different-the apartment is bigger, I am living with my family and the case numbers are significantly higher.
Regarding work, in many ways I am getting what I wanted-I have much more time at home with family and the freedom and focus of working from home, but without the freedom to leave our home for now. (I realise this is self-imposed, but it is for the safety of us and others and to protect our income.)
Although this is a challenging time, when it is safer to go out, I think on balance, I will still prefer working from home, but I do not think this will continue to be an option with my current employers once restrictions are lifted. I may start looking into options of doing this longer-term, but my experience last year shows me that I can usually earn more in a physical school than online as you are often competing with lower-income countries that pay much lower rates.
I am not sure if my previous idea of shifting more hours to my part-time job will still be viable, as, even though we are teaching online, our hours are already reduced and parents here generally put their students into extra classes like mine to give them somewhere to go while the parents are at work. It is unclear if demand will remain as we move into the next academic year. Time will tell.
Hope
Although this is a challenging time, I do see a lot of hope:
The daily national case numbers appear to be reducing overall and businesses and individuals are making clear efforts to stay safe. All businesses require hand sanitising and temperature checks on entry, and they all have a QR code or sign sheet to help with contact tracing, which staff check before you can enter. There is also a government app to notify us if we have been exposed, and more vaccines are on the way. This includes a locally developed one.
It seems like everyone is taking this seriously now and I believe the keys to ending this pandemic are getting vaccinated and protecting and looking out for each other.
Stay safe everyone, look out for each other, and look after your physical and mental health!
https://wordpress.com/post/monochromeglasses.wordpress.com/179 -Mental Health – A spike in cases, threat of lockdown: my feelings.
thejourneyx 