Learning during the pandemic has been different and challenging for all, but it has also impacted those student-athletes who are fulfilling their student teaching requirements. In honor of Future Teachers of America Day, which is celebrated annually on November 20, we conducted a Q & A session with a handful of our senior student-athletes who are completing their teaching assignments this semester: Rachael Farah (women's cross country & track and field), Abigail Graves (women's tennis), Jocelyn Hammons (women's track and field), Karissa Hatchell (softball), Philip Horsman (men's cross country & track and field), and Abby Vampatella (women's basketball).

1. What made you decide to go into teaching and what are your specific areas of study?
Farah: I love kids! I think that their minds are so engaging and eager to learn. I love the opportunity that I have to learn what they are passionate about or what their strengths are and really show them how to be successful in that. I am a Spanish and elementary ed major with a SPED concentration.
Graves: I am a double major in math and secondary education. I've always wanted students to find joy in math, even when the problems are hard! I'm determined to show them the fun in math. Also, being a coach has always been a dream of mine.
Hammons: I have had a huge passion with the idea of working with children and helping build young minds. I am an early education major.
Hatchell: I am an early childhood education major. I knew from a pretty young age I wanted to be a teacher. I fell in love with helping students have those ah-ha moments and have a desire to provide students a safe and loving classroom where they can grow holistically. 
Horsman: I decided to go into early childhood education in my sophomore year. I was a biology major prior and that was just not working for me. I decided to try the major out as it was always on my mind and I knew it was time for a switch. Immediately, I knew this was the profession I was called to be in.
Vampatella: I am an elementary education major and a history minor. I have felt called to teaching since the beginning of high school. I think God has given me a gift with children and a heart to serve them. 

2. How has the Gordon Education Department prepared you for going into the classroom?
Farah: I love Gordon's Ed Department. They get you in the classroom freshmen year, which is not common, and because of the small class sizes the professors are able (and eager!) to really provide you with immense support. They have years of teaching experience and are willing to share and help you feel confident in the classroom.
Graves: The Gordon Education Department prepared me for going into my classroom by giving me unique opportunities to sit in many different classrooms. It helped me establish my own ideas for who I want to be as a teacher. I have learned a lot about spreading God's love to student's which I will take with me in my future classroom. I am very thankful for my math and education professors who have pushed me to become the best math teacher I can be.
Hammons: The Gordon Education Department helped me prepare for the barriers you will experience in a classroom and learn to overcome the fears and stresses that are involved with approaching those barriers.
Hatchell: The Gordon College Education Department has given me the tools to succeed in the classroom. They have equipped me with the logistically means to succeed like lesson planning materials and more while installing in me a sense of confidence in my teaching abilities. 
Horsman: Coming into the major, I had no idea how much time and energy the education professors and advisors put in to making this program what it is. From putting students in classrooms freshmen year and working tirelessly to make sure all students are classroom ready when they graduate, they do it all!
Vampatella: The Gordon Education Department is amazing- I could go on forever about them. They do an amazing job of getting us into the classroom starting freshman year, and helping us understand how to cater lessons to all different types of students. Our classes are engaging and applicable, and the professors are extremely intentional.

3. How has COVID impacted your experience?
Farah: COVID has effected my experience in that now, I only have 10 kids in my classroom at a time. This, to be honest can feel overwhelming at times, not to mention if it was a regular school year and I would have more like 20 students at a time. While COVID has been frustrating, everyone is learning together, and I am able to ease into my student teaching better this way.
Graves: Getting a placement this semester was delayed by COVID. I had to get 60 hours of teaching in much less time. Teaching both to students in the classroom and online at the same time has been quite the challenge to conquer.
Hammons: COVID-19 has made the visual classroom experience hard for me to learn what a real live classroom looks like and structure within it.
Hatchell: For my full time practicum I am currently placed at North Beverly Elementary School. District wide, Beverly is doing all that they can do ensure student and faculty safety while also providing an in person learning experience. At North Beverly, I see my students in person every day for an abbreviated time. Within the classroom, we are following all COVID guidelines. Working with younger students, this has prompted my supervising practitioners and I to get rather creative as we kindly remind our students to keep their masks on. 
Horsman: This semester for my part-time student teaching, I have been teaching online with 29 second graders over Zoom! Yeah...29. Getting the attendance down took some time at first, but it's better now! To say it's been a learning curve is an understatement, but I have reason to believe that we're getting the hang of it!
Vampatella: My student teaching experience is way different than it would be if COVID didn't exist! I'm in an all remote classroom. I still go into school, where my teacher is, but then we log on and do school for six hours with 27 different faces online! This is very difficult and much different than I was expecting, but it is teaching me flexibility, a skill I do not naturally have. COVID is going to change the way schools operate forever, and while it has made my student-teaching experience unprecedented, I am going to be well prepared for these changes.

4. How has your time as a student-athlete better prepared you for being adaptable during this time of uncertainty?
Farah: It has really challenged my flexibility, but I love change and the new ways to find solving problems.
Graves: It has helped me stay quick on my feet and be ready to react to unexpected changes. Being a teacher right now takes a lot of extra preparation, so my time management skills learned from being a student-athlete have been very useful. I'm excited to take the skills I have learned from being a teammate into my teaching career with my fellow teachers.
Hammons: Being a student-athlete during this unpredictable time has made me understand the new normal and still have community within my team. Change is hard for me, but realizing things can change any moment, I'm glad that i have my teammates with me to overcome this hard time.
Hatchell: I don't think anyone was necessarily prepared for such an uncertain time like COVID, but I do believe being a student-athlete has taught me to be flexible. Life is full of unknown and uncertainty especially now, but I believe that it's all about our attitude. We can use this time to grow and develop new skills or we can let this time beat us down and defeat us. As an athlete, I've been taught not to give up, adapt, and move forward. 
Horsman: This is my fourth year on Gordon's cross country team but I've been running all my life. Having a constant like running keeps my world sane even in the midst of all the crazy stuff that ensues all around us. The skills that being a student-athlete has taught me are too many to count. From time management to being a constant in uncertainty, the list goes on.
Vampatella: Because I am all remote, there are numerous problems every day. Students cannot logon, or certain websites are not working, or their brother needs the laptop. My teacher is able to adapt so quickly to the circumstances she is given, and I have learned a lot from her. She is amazing. The dedication she puts into ensuring her students have the best possible education given these bizarre conditions is admirable, and I have been working to mimic her ethic. I have also learned the importance of giving myself grace right now. Numerous lessons that I have taught have not turned out how I wanted them to, but I am learning to understand that is not the end of the world, and I can adjust and learn for the next lesson.
 
5. What have been some of the greatest challenges and the greatest joys of teaching?
Farah: The greatest challenge in teaching for me is making sure that I make every student feel valued and important, while scaffolding them to their academic needs. I want every student to feel valued and it is my job to make sure they hit a certain standard, that balance is difficult. The greatest joy is being told I am someone favorite teacher!
Graves: One of the greatest challenges is when a student doesn't understand the steps of solving a problem, even after many retakes of the explanation. That leads into one of the greatest joys for me. When a student finally puts the steps together and understands the problem, the look on their face is priceless. I want my students to know I am going to help them until they understand fully and know hard work pays off.
Hammons: I've dealt with some lessons that would not workout or not prepare myself well enough to help all barriers students may have. Despite those setbacks, when you see a child understand a lesson, the motivation, determination, and inspiration the student expresses make me feel like I can do this and it's ok to not be perfect.
Hatchell: One of the biggest challenge I have personally faced this year teaching is the inability to have physical interaction with students. In early childhood classrooms, it is all about high fives, hugs, and more. COVID has eliminated this factor. On the other hand, students are just so excited to be back in school. They bring so much joy an energy into the classroom that it is impossible not to feel happy. Even though this experience looks different, I wouldn't change it for the world.
Horsman: There are so many factors to consider when teaching in a diverse classroom and many challenges that could arise. Gordon does a really good job of placing student teachers in schools of all different backgrounds in order to be prepared. I think the biggest challenge I have had was working in a classroom of 15 three year olds. There were a lot of communication barriers in the classroom and it turned out to be more than I expected. It was hard at first but it was so worth it. By the end of the semester, I never wanted to leave and it was and still is my favorite class to this day.
Vampatella: I do not think people understand how much work teaching is. It is So. Much. Work. A teacher must be able to teach the content standards to students of all different skill levels, taking into account learning disabilities and behavioral problems. She must also teach and enforce social and emotional skills, which are equally if not more important than the academic part of school. However, the reward that comes from teaching makes it worth it. Relationships are extremely important to me, and being able to foster personal connections and help students grow is one of the most satisfying feelings. I have felt called to this profession for a while, and when you try to follow the Lord's path, He is going to give you with joy and fulfillment. 

To learn more about Gordon's Education Department click HERE.