A teacher goes back to school, and into forced isolation.
Joan Williams didn’t get much of a summer vacation. In fact, life has been more hectic and worrisome than ever for Williams, a music teacher in Hillsborough County, Florida. Once the state shut down schools in mid-March, a two week break that wound up lasting the entire school year, Williams had to scramble to figure out how to deliver music education to the 800 students she saw every week at her elementary school.
Soon after the remote school year ended, Florida became a hotspot for COVID-19, with thousands of new cases being diagnosed every single day. For that reason, the Hillsborough school board voted to start the first month of the new school year with remote learning, but the state’s governor insisted on the option for in-person, too. As a result, Williams has been working around the clock to have the right plan to keep kids safe.
“The most noticeable difference I’ve seen in pre-planning is the emphasis on delivery and safety,” she says. “Now we are adding masks and temperature checks on top of the ‘normal’ active shooter drill procedure.”
This will be Williams’ tenth year as a teacher, and by far her most unusual one. Over half of Williams’ usual 800 students will be coming into school in-person, creating an unprecedented challenge. She has to figure out how to teach two entirely different kinds of lessons simultaneously; the only thing harder than giving music lessons over the internet to a dozen children sitting alone at home might be teaching children how to play instruments in a classroom where social distancing, PPE and other precautions are required.
“I am definitely more stressed than I was fresh out of school, back when I had the privilege of having no instruments with which to work being my primary concern,” Williams says.
The hardest part, however, is what has to happen after Williams leaves the classroom each day. Given the ultra-contagious nature of the virus and the rapid transmission that has caused states to see an almost instant spike in positive tests after reopening schools, she is not willing to take any risks with the health of her family. Instead, she’s going it alone.
“I wish I didn’t feel like returning to work and doing what I love means the best choice is to isolate myself from my family,” Williams says. “I cannot imagine my life at school without hugs and I suppose I must do without them when I get home, too.”
You can send Joan your words and Hearts of gratitude at https://sendthanksnow.com/people/joan
