Greetings from the University of South Florida in Tampa, where we work with new teachers entering the field here in the 7^th largest school district in the United States. What an incredible opportunity it has been to supervise and coach our Noyce Master of Arts in Teaching science teacher candidates. They completed their full-time internships as teachers of record within our high-needs schools, preparing and implementing lessons to integrate the science curriculum in ways that meet the needs of our students, who represent a wide range of diverse cultural backgrounds. Covid-19 certainly added a new layer of challenges this academic year. Many students struggled financially even more than ever as a result of the pandemic. However, we found that the Noyce teacher candidates were receptive to collaboration for seeking ways to adjust their teaching in order to present the science concepts and classroom framework that best supported the students. While the past academic year was a tough one, we gained a deeper understanding and appreciation for shifting supervision and classroom teaching strategies to optimally support the needs of the students. As the university supervisor, I found that I needed to increase my support of the socioemotional development of our candidates alongside the pedagogical coaching and specifically the coaching for awareness of inequities that many students may face. I am curious to hear about how the pandemic has impacted other university supervisors as well. Thank you.

Hello Stephanie,

Thank you for sharing this video.  I can resonate with a lot of this as I work with student teachers and novice teachers.  Was the format of your teaching online, in person, or both? It was certainly a challenging year. 

If you have some time, please take a look at our video, http://videohall.com/p/2031

Hi Paige, Thank you for watching. In that video, I had actually had just come in from getting my 2nd Pfizer shot when we recorded my message so I'm laughing because I look a little out of it and disheveled. But - well - that pretty much could sum up this whole year! We had options to work withour candidates in-person or online. Here in Florida, our teachers have been back in brick-and-mortar since August 2020, but students had the option to learn virtually. Thus the simultaneous teaching in-person and online which was extremely exhausting for all. I was given permission to join my teacher candidates' classrooms in-person and so I did. We have used some online tools in the past to try to observe virtually. Mixed reviews - some love it others did not. I found that I missed quite a bit by not being in the classroom with my candidates and so I masked up with the K-95 and headed in. And I am so happy that I did. So much of the coaching that I do centers on having a grounded connection with the candidates' classrooms and students. As our candidates realized the struggles their students faced, I sensed that I was better able to coach and support their pedagogical development through a social justice framework as a result of being in the classroom with them. Many of the conferences with my teacher candidates did occur on Zoom (or text at 3 a.m.) and this all worked well for everyone (considering the busy schedules). I'll hop over and watch your video now!

Hi Stephanie! Great video, I really enjoyed it! 

The pandemic has brought on a whole new set of challenges and has changed the way we teach. The adaptation of our teachers here in Florida is amazing, thank you again for sharing! 

P.S. Love your mask in this! 

Thank you for sharing your Noyce project. This past year has certainly brought a more intentional focus around social-emotional support for both teachers and students. I hope that we continue to focus on this dimension, as I believe such support is critical to teacher retention and job satisfaction. Duke’s Noyce Project is focused on helping early career teachers maintain a work/life balance through the incorporation of mindfulness exercises. We chose this focus prior to the pandemic, but it has proven to be quite serendipitous over this last year. Kristen

Very nice presentation of your project! Yes this year has been like no other, and your focus on how to navigate teaching with your Scholars through the pandemic is to be commended. What are some examples of specific culturally responsive pedagogy strategies your Scholars learned to use in teaching? It is noted that some Scholars also may have needed to address issues of mental health and also the digital divide. What are strategies you shared with them so they were better prepared to deal with such issues with their own students?

Stephanie- first congratulations on navigating a very difficult year with incredible challenges.  I find your focus on the socioemotional support and shifting to supportive coaching helping the student teachers see inequities and grow their awareness of social justice in the classroom.  What were some of the strategies you used and how did the students react/implement them?  

I congratulate you for continuing to innovate in your classes in times of pandemic.

Hi Stephanie! I'm a USF alumna, so you already have bonus points in my heart! I loved seeing how your resiliency during the pandemic turned into an opportunity to coach in a new way. It's amazing to see how everyone pivoted to a new style during this time, and you should be very proud of this work. Also, I love your mask! 

#GoBulls!

 Stephanie, I was also a University Supervisor of Noyce Scholars this year and did not see them in person until our socially distanced graduation last week as I observed and conferenced with them on Zoom. I agree it was not the same as in-person observations and I am glad you were able to do so safely. I look forward to getting back into the classrooms with my interns hopefully this Fall! I also completely agree our roles changed this year to more of counselor. I also noted it was very valuable to get my interns together via Zoom throughout the year so they could compare notes and support each other. Wow- what a year it was for us all! Congrats!

Thanks for sharing! Great video and program.

Thank you for highlighting your project and your honest reflections as to how the pandemic has impacted Noyce programs. 

Thank you for sharing your experiences in this video.  Educating students can be stressful even in normal times, so to continue to move forward the way you have during the pandemic is very impressive.

My question is about the filming of the video:  What lead you to record segments in masks?  I haven't seen a lot of videos yet, so I'm sure you're not the only ones.  I'm just curious what the deciding factors were.  Did it have to do with filming in person vs online (worrying about the quality)?  Was it difficult to record while socially distancing, or something else entirely?

Thank you in advance for your reply!

I completely agree with you that the socioemotional factors for our Noyce fellows and their students require a greater focus. We are making this the focus of our summer workshop. Thank you for your video.