Virtual learning as a whole has been beneficial in considering who is able to learn traditionally in a school setting and who might not be. There are many factors to consider when we think of who might be excluded from an average university experience, and how we can adapt classes and courses to be more inclusive and accessible for all. While I often missed the connection in class during the lock-down/quarantine, I felt a sense of ease when it came to school as suddenly I was able to roll out of bed and join in, skipping the commute. Certain courses I felt it was necessary to be in class for, as I needed access to resources on campus to ensure I was getting my moneys worth (film photography wasn’t the same with no access to the dark room and needing to pay for London Drugs to process my film). I think at the very least during a lecture based course that it should be easy to access voice recordings from the classes if one misses due to work, sickness, or mental health. Many of my instructors who have taken the time to accommodate this need said it has been no big deal, and is fairly simple to continue doing.
I struggled to care about my painting courses (3 hours once per week) when they were online. It was an uncomfortably long time to spend staring at a screen, and lacked a lot when it came to critiques of our artwork. On the other hand, I was able to attend more artist talks that took place during the evening due to the zoom component, as I found I wasn’t always up for leaving my house at that time after a full day of school/work. I think there is a lot of flexibility required when it comes to teaching and learning, and it is best to be able to incorporate these practices as we want to meet our students where they are at, and ensure they have resources available even if unable to attend consistently for any reason. As far as resources go, I saw the whiteboard function on Zoom used often in Art Education, and we spent time researching the beautifully archived pieces available online through many galleries. It may be a bit dry to go through as a class, but there is so much to explore, I often take inspiration from the Tate site. Attached is a photo of a whiteboard from art ed 103 I took during Covid. I loved the interactivity and obviously liked it enough to take a photo.
