Easing Back Into an In-Person Semester

In six or so weeks, many faculty members will be returning to campus for the fall semester and they will do so mostly or largely by returning to the face-to-face, rather than the remote, classroom. From Zoom back to—if you will forgive me—a real room or a lecture hall of some sort.

It’s been a long stretch of time away from being the head of the class and having students within an arm’s reach—since March 2020 or around 17 months. Students and faculty members, not to mention to university staff, parents, administrators, and trustees, among others, are excited to be back to a (mostly) normal situation.

Still, I think we should all ease back into our once-upon-a-time routines. There is no rush and we need to remember that many students (those who were first-year students in the fall of 2020 stand out, for example) know only remote teaching experiences. A fully face-to-face classroom will be a bit of a brave new world for them. As an educator, I urge you to take your time and become reacquainted with how things used to be and to help your students do the same, whether they are first-year students or seniors who will graduate in spring 2022.

Tips for the Transition Back to Campus

As you migrate back to campus, consider the following:

Students and faculty members have grown used to Zoom or other platforms. Getting back into the swing of face-to-face discussion may take a little while. Many colleagues reported during the height of the pandemic that discussion was less dynamic than that found in in-person settings. Students have been away from such settings, and the soon-to-be sophomore class hasn’t had experience with them. Encouraging and grading discussion is important—but ease into it by sharing with students what you expect and why.

Office visits are unfamiliar. Students have grown used to sending emails to professors over the last year and a half. They are not accustomed to dropping by faculty offices to chat or to ask for help with assignments and the like. Encouraging them to come by is a good idea but don’t be surprised if they continue to rely on email or other electronic methods for a bit. I suspect that many colleagues will use Zoom for office hours and student meetings for a while—and maybe that’s OK, especially if students’ vaccine status remains unknown.

Hybrid experiences may be here to stay. Many faculty learned to like some aspects of online teaching. Don’t be surprised if you or your colleagues decide that one remote class a week in a given course seems like a good idea for whatever reason. Online, asynchronous courses, perhaps especially in winter or summer sessions, may be here to stay, as well. Don’t fret about them—they now have a place and serve a purpose.

Face-to-face meetings of the faculty may now always have some virtual attendees. Committee meetings, department meetings, and even general meetings of the faculty may go back to being face-to-face, but some members may Zoom in out of convenience, scheduling issues, travel, health, or some other cause. The same may be true for traditional domestic and international academic conferences—they will likely have some virtual components and virtual attendees. The world has changed, and so have people’s expectations.

Course platforms like CANVAS, Blackboard, and others are likely here to stay. Students have no doubt grown used to the convenience of these platforms and so have many instructors. Better to use them than to avoid or complain about them.

So, as the fall semester draws closer, think about what things from the past year and half you want to retain or drop, as well as those teaching activities that were very familiar not so long ago—how can you reshape them to your new reality while at the same time helping yourself and your student become (re)acquainted with them? I think you will agree: It’s best to ease into it all, at least this coming fall.