In-person classes have started and has been an experiment in finding out what works best for students and teachers.
Many have mixed emotions about the transition, including Dr. Erin Ash, an associate professor in the Department of Communication. Initially, Ash was nervous about the hybrid model classes. “I’m going to be honest, at first I was really anxious about coming to campus. But the first day here with students was the best day I have had in 6 months. Teaching is what I do and not being in the classroom for so long was really strange,” said Ash.
The university has been committed to bringing students, faculty and staff to campus safely. Clemson has also launched an awareness campaign, Healthy Clemson: United as Tigers. United as Tigers advocates for the personal responsibilities that each person has to create a safe environment on campus and in the community: social distancing, frequent hand washing, responsible living, participating in self-assessments and limiting group sizes.
During in-person instruction, Clemson has ensured physical distancing by evaluating where chairs need to be placed/taken away and adjusting entry points so that some hallways and stairwells are one-way only.
Ash has not only acted on the precautions per university rules, but has assured that her classroom is thoroughly cleaned and safe by wiping down chairs and tables, wearing masks and sitting at least six feet apart at the designated seating arrangement. However, at the end of her third week of in-person instruction, she made the difficult decision to return to fully virtual class because of the technical side of hybrid style teaching.
“I really care about my students, that is the most rewarding part of the job for me and I have really missed forming relationships and interacting with my students. Ultimately, I felt like the students who weren’t able to come for different reasons were not getting the same experience. It was really difficult to manage people on Zoom and in class at the same time. I just couldn’t find a good way,” said Ash.
Emily Linhard, a senior marketing and sports communication major, is currently in one of Ash’s communications courses and agrees with the professor’s decision about the move to complete virtual teaching. “I am fine with our class going completely online. I was a little bummed since it was my only class that was hybrid but it was annoying to drive to campus for only one day and one class. I think [the] online format works best for our class since it is hard to manage with half the class on Zoom,” said Linhard.
President Clements continues to send e-mails to the Clemson family updating the progress of in-person instruction and on-campus activities. Concluding the third week of in-person instruction, President Clements has informed the university that like other institutions, COVID-19 cases are increasing; however, they have fallen in the past week at 249 positive cases. Since in-person classes have begun, 1,287 positive cases have been reported.
Moving forward, Ash is trying her best to have a positive outlook considering the circumstances. “I am not a very optimistic person in general and these days I have to work really hard at it. I think at this point we are all just really tired and I feel like I am missing a huge part of my career and what makes my life meaningful. My biggest fear is I hope that students don’t hate my class and I am not failing them,” said Ash.
Her motto for the remainder of the school year is to get through this, learn as much as we can and be good to each other.
