The compassion demonstrated by your sixth-grade teacher is wonderful. I am sure that
experience has helped you build the tools to become who you are today! f COVID-19 caused
a lot of chaos around the world but, like you, I would have expected the professor to
respecting the current learning requirements and apply appropriate accommodations which
would have allowed the student and your group to continue meeting the previously stated
high expectation.Your question regarding the effectiveness of modular learning in our high-
tech world seems to have a lot of attention right now. Because of the pandemic many medical
courses, which were previously 100% in person, figured out a way to move forward with
virtual learning platforms. While there are a number of articles available from these
experiences around the globe, I personally enjoyed an article focusing on the continued
importance of displaying positive emotion during video lectures in order to promote better
learning outcomes (Horovitz & Mayer, 2021).Regarding the effectiveness of modular
learning when compared to in person learning, I really think that depends on the topic,
student, and the overall course expectation. For instance, I would not want a doctor working
on me that has never stepped inside a class or practiced on a cadaver. Additionally, if the
medical students do not meet their classmates in person they are missing out on critical
socialization and networking opportunities within their field of practice. However, the
preparatory lectures and virtual learning labs really can be completed anywhere and if that
learning environment works well for the individual then I think it should be available as an
option. I enjoyed reading about your positive experiences with teachers. I agree that teachers
play an essential role in serving as a mentor, which can be similar to a parental role. I think
about my children, who spend more waking hours with their teacher during the school year
than my husband and me, as we only get a few short hours in the evening. I was saddened to
hear of the unfortunate negative experience with a group assignment and share some
frustrations with group assignments as we had a lot in my graduate program. However, an
article published by the American Society for Cell and Biology cites how roup work is one of
the most widely used and deeply researched teaching approaches in the college classroom
(Wilson et al., 2018). Furthermore, the article talks about group work promoting students’
collaboration to achieve shared learning goals and has been shown to increase student
achievement, persistence, and attitudes toward learning (Wilson et al., 2018). However,
although this article speaks of the importance of group work, like in your situation, it can be a
negative experience rather than a positive attitude towards the learning experience when it is
taken to the extreme. In your case, it appears the instructor failed to recognize the limitations
of completing the group assignment in the event one student has an emergency. I agree that
teachers can be parents as well as just your teacher, they spend a lot of times with students,
and I think it is hard for them to sometimes separate. f A good teacher will provide support
and build rapport with their students (Bernstein et al., 2020) sometimes going above and
beyond what is expected of a teacher, many in turn do have high expectations for their
students as well. f It sounds like your 6th grade teacher helped you through a very difficult
time in your life and a made a positive impact that you still remember. f In you later education
we can look at some information from our lecture and book in that when we look at graduate
education you are more of a mentor/role model and perhaps that is what your professor was
going for, but they may not have done a good job of relaying that. f That professor must not
have done a good job of communicating their high expectations regardless of illness or
emergency and that is something they could potentially work on in the future. f I am sorry to
hear that you were penalized for something that was very much out of your control. I can
absolutely relate to your personal story about your parents getting a divorce and the
emotional toll it must have taken on you. I was in the 4th grade when mine divorced and it
affected my grades tremendously to the point where I would try to just leave class. Your story
about your classmate getting c19 and getting a zero on their group project blows my mind.
Did your professor suggest that the group members should have given the ill group member a
different job within the group? Was the professor upset that the group did not have an
alternative plan for the ill group member? Just trying to figure out what the professor's
rationale was for giving a zero and not understanding a situation that was out of the control of
the ill group member. f To answer your question about online learning yes, I believe online
learning can be an effective form of learning. It really depends on the person though and if
they are able to learn in that fashion. Not all can!. The manner that you described your
positive and negative experiences related to how the different instructors reflected effective
teaching principles of the “good” teacher (Bernstein, Franz, & Chew, 2020) from the Teacher
Behavior Checklist (TBC) who 1. developed a rapport 2. provided accessibility 3.
encouraged you with kindness 4. remained available 4. observed, listened 5. facilitated
learning options 6. helped you meet the expectations for promotion. I am sorry to hear of
your loss. Even divorce of parents is a grieving process. I believe similar to myself, you
began to develop resilience as a child from that loss. I feel the seed planted by the “good
instructor” at that early age was similar to having a substitute parent. That helped form and
develop your strength to stand against the mental attacks in elementary school as well as
graduate school (MEV, Eph. 6: 13) for accomplishing the mission you envisioned. I also
experienced loss at a young age (5 years). My dad was killed but I also had a couple of
“good” teachers during elementary school and a grandmother that grounded me with love and
the scripture. Regarding the “bad” instructor which had no inclination to seek 1. realistic
grading expectations 2. sensitivity or understanding related to the particular circumstance for
you and the others of your group, I salute your strength (Bernstein et al., 2020). Once again,
you and the members of your group endured and fainted not in graduate school in spite of the
instructor not desiring to encourage student-faculty contact nor cooperation (Bernstein et al.,
2020). I grasped scripture as I also encountered a negative experience in more recent
educational pursuits related to memory and physical attacks (MEV, Gal. 6: 9).
f f f f f f f f f f To answer your question related to modular learning, I believe that modular learning
compared to traditional learning can be effective for individuals particular to the specific
needs. The student may prefer this mode because of the different learning environment. The
options including traditional learning are advantageous only if it fits related to factors such
as: age, learning ability, socioeconomic status and at this time pandemic considerations.
Individuals no longer fit neatly into cohort or classroom pace due to conflicts regarding time
management, the pandemic and obligations such as work and family (Dargo & Dimas, 2021).
References
Bernstein, D. A., Franz, S. & Chew, S. (2020). Teaching Psychology, 3(20). ISBN – 13 978-
0-367-14394-7 (digital).
Dargo, J. M. & Dimas, M. (2021). Modular distance learning: Its effect in the academic
performance of learners in the new normal.
Journal of education teaching and learning, 6(2). 204. doi: 10.2673/jetl.v6i2.2672
Modern Evangelist Version (2014). Breakthrough Jubilee Bible. Military Bible.
