Blog & Calendar
Blog

7 teachers on the start of a school year like no other


Fast Company talked to teachers across the country about their challenges, fears, and hopes for this uncertain time. Our very own Owen Riley, Upper School Digital Media and Documentary Studies Instructor, was interviewed.  See the excerpt from his interview below.  Click here to read the article in full.
 
OWEN, PHOTOGRAPHY AND FILM AT A PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL IN SOUTH CAROLINA
 
I feel pretty safe. I really feel [okay as long as] everyone’s on the same [page] with masks and with the hand sanitizing, with the cleaning and the mitigation standards that I set for my own rooms because I have two classrooms. I was a photojournalist for so long before I did this, so I’m used to risk. When things get scary, I tend to slow down and calm down, which is really weird. I also realize there’s a risk no matter what. You can get sick anywhere. But I also, as a teacher, I really love what I do and I love my students and the school. I just have a need to get back to that classroom.
 
We are also being trained pretty extensively this summer on techniques to teach online in case we go to this sort of hybrid method or full online. The idea of setting up these projects and goals and creating classes where it’s not really about coming to class every time. It’s about setting up your expectations and your assignments and allowing them to work at their own pace and to have options of the way they want to execute things. It’s a little more fluid and a little more autonomous the way we’ve learned to teach online. You have to be more clear and more detailed in the way you assign and getting them involved as groups together online.
 
It would be impossible for me to say, “Oh no, I don’t have any worries whatsoever,” but I’m pretty confident. I’m confident in the team I work with and I’m confident in my students. I am confident in myself. And it’s going to be weird and it’s going to be a little uncomfortable. And like this entire COVID thing has been, but I’m ready to dive in and hopefully, we’ll have a really successful year and hopefully, we’ll get a fix for this virus. That’s my dream anyway.
Back
No comments have been posted

    • Please note these photos were taken prior to Covid-19.

Christ Church Episcopal School (“CCES”) admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at CCES. CCES does not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, national or ethnic origin, creed, religion, or sexual orientation in the administration of its educational policies, admission policies, financial aid, scholarship or other programs, or athletic or other school-administered programs and activities.