Teacher on front line of pandemic 'frontier'

When Tara Bova was planning for her classroom at Blanchard Elementary in Cape Girardeau, she knew this school year would be different. What she's discovered in the weeks since has been a need for collaboration and support -- and innovation.

Bova, who is teaching third grade entirely online this year, said collaboration has been key so far this school year, not only between other teachers, other buildings and administrators, but also with students and their families.

"Honestly, the biggest thing is just building positive relationships," Bova said. "We are their cheerleaders and their biggest supporters."

Learning online is a new adventure and taxing on many families, she said.

"Extreme patience and willingness to try -- and fail at -- new things is big," Bova said. "Things will go wrong. Things will not work quite right. We're on a new frontier together."

Tara BovaSubmitted

Making an education experience from the ground up is not easy, and, Bova said, the bond between teacher and families is crucial.

"They are no longer bystanders to the school day," Bova said of families. "They know every tech issue I have, every flaw. It's all broadcast to them."

Bova teaches third grade, entirely online.

Blanchard Elementary teacher Tara Bova poses in her classroom in this undated photo in Cape Girardeau.Submitted

Where in her previous work as an in-person classroom teacher, she'd share photos and messages with parents of the cute happenings, "now, they're living it with us every day," she said.

Students are accustomed to having interactions with their peers, and that's largely missing from the virtual classroom experience, Bova said, so she makes a special effort to do fun things that increase interaction: pajama day, virtual scavenger hunts, Zoom sessions where students can see and interact with each other.

On Bova's end, planning a 40-minute lesson can take hours. A quiz that might take 20 minutes for her students will take Bova more than an hour to formulate questions and answers, and make sure it behaves properly.

She relies on students and their families for feedback on how well a lesson translates, since in the classroom, that's a more immediate process. Online, she can't necessarily see if a student is struggling.

Bova has a lot of sympathy for parents, who all have different situations, and who might not have been prepared for this.

"We are here to support them and make them thrive in this situation," Bova said.

That can take a lot of forms. Everything from students acting up to how to access grades online is ongoing.

"This is such a humbling experience for me," Bova said. "I don't have all the answers. I have to rely on so many others."

But, with a sense of community, it's so much easier.

Each teacher has an individual approach, Bova said, but at the core, it's about an authentic connection. "I want my classroom, no matter if it is virtual or in-person, to feel like a little family," Bova said. "We no longer work as separate entities, but instead work completely in unison with one another. It is a huge commitment by everyone. We are in this together."

A growth mindset is important, and talking about feelings and struggles helps too.

"Open lines of communication are crucial," Bova said. "Allowing families to be a voice, and to be an ear to listen when they're feeling overwhelmed."

As the year is unfolding, Bova said, the sense of being overwhelmed is lessening all around: "At the beginning of the year, parents were getting overwhelmed at the amount of tech, but now, we're into a routine."