Abstract
COVID-19 caused widespread changes in how people worked. The education community was dramatically impacted. Teachers were forced to quickly pivot from teaching students in person on-campus to virtually online. Among the challenges educators faced were the inequity of technology access and unreliable internet options. The move to virtual instruction necessitated creative use of educators’ existing technology skills and development of new skills to teach with technology. Among the technologies that teachers continued to use once they returned to the in-person classroom were video conferencing, incorporating student interactions and feedback into visual presentations, and continuing to explore virtual learning experiences outside the classroom. Some educators’ experimentation during the pandemic with different technology options to guide self-directed student learning shows promise for developing gifted students’ talents and interests.
Keywords: virtual instruction, gifted, technology
During the 2020–2021 school year, COVID-19 caused widespread changes in how people worked and where and how students learned. Educators quickly pivoted from teaching students in person on-campuses to virtually online. This change necessitated creative use of educators’ existing technology skills and development of new skills to teach with technology. It also involved embracing new technology tools. Virtual instruction during COVID-19 changed the way educators taught and how they thought about technology—in both positive and negative ways. The question that remains to be answered is whether the COVID-19 pandemic will go down in history as a defining moment in education for the trajectory of how we teach students moving forward with technology, as some have suggested (Flaherty, 2022), or will be seen as a set-back in student achievement (National Center for Education Statistics, 2022) that commands a return to previously less technology-based practices.
The disruptive impact of closing schools during COVID-19 is undeniable. A National Center for Education Statistics (2022) study of math and reading scores for age 9 students during COVID-19 revealed that students exhibited the largest score decline in reading in over 30 years and the first ever decline in mathematics scores ever in the United States. The declines were minimal for the highest achieving students (top 10%) and dramatic for the lower performing students.
Research on the impact of educational changes during COVID-19 on students identified as gifted is limited. About two-thirds of 5th through 8th grade gifted Turkish students in one study indicated their motivation during the online learning decreased, while one-third indicated it had not changed (Kaya & Islekeller-Bozca, 2022). Parents of gifted students in the Netherlands reported higher well-being for their gifted students when learning at home, compared with at school (Hornstra et al., 2022). They hypothesized that the school context does not always fit gifted students’ specific learning needs. Given that gifted students often encounter classroom instruction at a slower pace than they prefer to learn (Rimm et al., 2018), some gifted students certainly embraced the opportunity to set their own learning pace with virtual instruction. This would provide additional time to explore other areas that interest them.
Over half of the 1900 teachers, principals, and district leaders in a recent EdWeek Research Center survey (Will, 2022) expected the following lasting positive impacts of the coronavirus pandemic on education a decade from now:
• Added flexibility of moving at least some meetings/gatherings online (61%)
• More attention given to student mental health (57%)
• Better integration of technology (55%)
• Ability to offer remote learning when necessary (e.g., during inclement weather; 54%)
As a result of the interruptions to education that the pandemic created, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona suggested this is a “moment to truly reimagine education,” particularly with respect to educational inequities (Cardona, 2022). How much of the reimaging will involve technology?
Lessons Learned During COVID-19
Siegle and Flaherty (2022) surveyed teachers to determine what technology instructional strategies and tools they used during COVID-19 virtual instruction and which tools they elected to carry over into their current in-person classroom instruction. Based on the responses of over 60 teachers, they found positive and negative outcomes of teaching online during the pandemic.
By far the greatest challenge educators faced was reliable WiFi, both in teachers’ and students’ homes. When multiple children in a family were online at the same time, bandwidth became a problem. Teachers also reported they were never sure when students disengaged whether the issue was student motivation or a technology connection issue. One teacher commented, “It was far too easy for students to disconnect physically and emotionally. Bringing them back into live teaching and learning was incredibly difficult.”
Inequality of technology access was also an issue. Teachers often experienced glimpses into students’ home conditions that varied dramatically. As one teacher commented, “I learned that many of our students come from far more disturbing home lives than we ever knew. I learned that children can still learn, and grow, and flourish even in the most dire conditions.”
Additionally, keeping younger students engaged was more difficult than keeping older students engaged. “I learned that young children need to see, touch, and feel things in real life.”
In addition to having reliable technology and a strong internet signal, educators indicated document cameras, virtual fieldtrips, a reliable set of go-to apps, and Google Classroom and the Google Suite were essential for successful teaching. They also commented on the importance of families promoting student learning in the virtual environment. One educator noted, “I learned that students who had family support at home did far better than those who did not. In fact, those students actually jumped ahead of expected grade performance standards.”
Popular Apps Used During COVID-19 that Educators Continue to Use
Many of the apps that teachers learned to use during COVID-19 are now part of their classroom toolbox. One educator noted that teaching during the pandemic, “made it possible…to see the possibilities of using tech as a way to show creativity and learning”
Another noted, “It forced me to think out of the box and make my presentations more interactive and fun.”
Yet another said, “I became a better teacher as well; more aware of my audience response and better able to engage my students.”
The most popular live interactive video platforms used during the pandemic were Google Meet and Zoom. Educators continue to use them for meetings with parents and to connect with students when they are unable to attend class. Google Classroom and Kami (https://www.kamiapp.com/) continue to be two popular platforms for managing student work. Many schools were already using the Google Classroom platform for student assignments prior to the pandemic. However, the pandemic solidified using these platforms for a paperless environment at many schools.
Educators turned to products such as Pear Deck (https://www.peardeck.com/), Nearpod (https://nearpod.com/), and Formative (https://www.formative.com/) to collect student responses and feedback in real time while making presentations. Most of these programs integrate with Google and Microsoft products and can be incorporated into slide shows to promote student engagement while providing teachers with valuable student feedback.
With students at different locations, teachers found the need to create demonstration videos. These demonstrations sometimes included instructions on how to solve a mathematics problem, conduct an experiment, use an app, or navigate a Web Site. Screencastify (https://www.screencastify.com/) became a popular option for video recording the computer desktop, browser tabs, or the webcam feed. Educators found they could build understanding checks into their videos by including pauses and adding questions to monitor student engagement. Edpuzzle (https://edpuzzle.com/) became the go-to app for the purpose of editing videos and making them more interactive.
With students spread across the virtual landscape, Jamboard (https://jamboard.google.com/) and Padlet (https://padlet.com/) enabled them to share their ideas and interact with each other. Both programs allow multiple users to contribute and organize ideas. Some found Wakelet (https://wakelet.com/) was an easy way for them to organize links from the web into visual connections for students.
The most difficult aspect of teaching virtually was keeping students engaged. Educators reported students enjoyed reviewing material through game formats. Blooket (https://www.blooket.com/) and Kahoot (https://kahoot.com/) were two popular trivia and review platforms. Foreign language instructors turned to teaching language through activities and games with programs like Conjuguemos (https://conjuguemos.com/).
Virtual field trips were popular during the pandemic and continue to be popular. Teachers will find Google Arts and Culture (https://artsandculture.google.com/) and the Nevada County Superintendent of School list of virtual fieldtrips (https://sites.google.com/nevco.org/distancelearning-classroom/phenomena-virtual-field-trips?authuser=0) filled with options.
Without a doubt the pandemic was an education challenge. As educators experimented with different technology options, some began to use it to guide self-directed student learning, as well as to monitor and document student progress through interactive apps. Continuing down this path, educators may finally begin to create unique learning situations customized to students’ needs based on data collected from a variety of sources (Field, 2007). Perhaps, we are seeing a glimpse of a future where the learning ceiling placed on gifted students is lifted and they have an opportunity to fully develop their talents and interests with the aid of technology.
Bio
Del Siegle, PhD, is the Lynn and Ray Neag Endowed Chair for Talent Development at the University of Connecticut, where he directs the National Center for Research on Gifted Education. He is a past-president of NAGC and recipient of their 2021 Founder’s Memorial, 2018 Distinguished Scholar, and 2011 Distinguished Service Award.
Footnotes
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding: The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
ORCID iD
Del Siegle https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5579-9217
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