Students are experiencing difficulties. What about the teachers?

Nota da administração: No seguimento do crescente número de estudantes internacionais em Portugal, o Uniarea começará a publicar alguns artigos em inglês, sendo este o primeiro.

The Covid19 crisis is something that is affecting all of us. There are several scenarios happening right now, such as students taking classes online, teachers teaching online, etc.

In either scenario, it is perfectly normal to feel overwhelmed with information and to feel anxious. Having been locked up at home for so long and being taken by surprise made us lose the routines we had. At these times, we must give priority to our mental health, we must look at things as they are, analyze the problem, look for reliable information and then act.

It is also important to know how to manage time. Good time management is about balancing our obligations and hobbies. Patience is a virtue and we must seek to learn from the adversities of life. As hard as it is to see, everything has a positive side and we should take advantage of the time we have to invest in ourselves.

Many of us, as students, may already be tired of this whole situation, but before we complain, we cannot forget the teachers too. Teachers had to reinvent ways of teaching and, for many, digital platforms were not part of their routine. The online environment is not the same as the classroom environment. As a general rule, there are students who need more help and support in some subjects that are taught, and at this stage, teachers feel that there is not much they can do to help these students. There are also other situations that differentiate online teaching from face-to-face teaching, such as, for example, the teacher trying to teach a class and suddenly the teaching platform goes down. All of this is an added stress for teachers.

As students, the least we can do is communicate with teachers, give our feedback and collaborate. It may not seem like much, but I believe it makes a difference for those on the other side of the screen (our teachers). There must be daily contact and the exchange of experiences between teachers and students, so that classes can improve daily.

I leave you with a question, which we all must reflect on, before complaining about the time we were at home:

If a state of emergency had not been declared, would people be at home on their own initiative? Or would they continue to behave unconsciously?

Right now, there are those who are fighting in the hospital against a new virus that has attacked the world. You, at least, can be at home, in the comfort of your home. Do not forget this and more importantly, be responsible for you, but also for the other!