Elena Spathis

Teachers all over the world face a similar dilemma: how to regroup during the summer while still taking small steps to prepare for the new school year?

As a high school Spanish teacher I often ask myself: would my students feel comfortable using the target language with a complete stranger in a foreign country?

Teaching often seems like running a marathon—we train and prepare, we push ourselves, and we keep going no matter what the circumstances.

Teachers and students are finding their formerly jam-packed, planned schedules on a sudden hiatus. Schools have emptied out, as have nearly all public places.

In what seemed like a span of a few hours, teachers needed to frantically shift to virtual instruction. All schoolwide events and extracurricular activities were suddenly cancelled. Feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, and disappointment slowly settled in and took charge.

As we all anxiously await our schools’ reopening plans, much remains unknown. A series of potential scenarios could take place with short notice. While our schools may adopt hybrid schedules that combine an in-person format with a virtual one, we should be ready to transition to full-time virtual teaching at any given moment.

It has been such a whirlwind of a year, especially as educators; we have been forced to revamp and rethink our methods in this unprecedented time. After scrambling to teach virtually last spring, many of us returned to our classrooms in a hybrid format this fall, while others are still teaching completely online. Our profession as we know it changed in what seemed like the span of a single day.

My district, like so many others, opted for a hybrid model this fall, combining in-person classes in the mornings with online classes in the afternoons. As you can imagine, I realized quickly that I had to rethink my methods, get creative, and be innovative.

Every year, National Foreign Language Week serves to highlight and honor all languages. In our increasingly globalized, interconnected society, it has never been more crucial to promote the value of language learning.

This past year was one marked by change, loss, and unimaginable hardship. For teachers and students, the ordinary school year as we knew it quickly became a distant memory. Even the classroom looked like an unknown space, with desks and chairs spread far apart.

After one of the most unpredictable, tumultuous years of teaching in the books, the time has come to rethink, revamp, and reprioritize. We teachers often put so much pressure on ourselves to do more. Likewise, on top of managing our families and personal lives, we are frequently given extra duties and responsibilities at school outside of teaching.

Teachers are leaders within their own classrooms, but we look to our respective leadership figures for inspiration, motivation, and support. Our leaders have the potential to ensure the school culture is a positive, upbeat one in which everyone is given the opportunity to thrive. I have spoken with many educators over the years, and one of the main qualities they look for in their leaders is approachability.