Southwestern Magazine | Spring 2021

some of that spark, that energy, that enthusiasm. So if you’re not living and learning in that place, something is lost. It’s just not the same.” AN OPPORTUNITY FOR TEACHING INNOVATION Despite their initial reservations, many professors’ attitudes toward online learning gradually changed from deep skepticism to cautious optimism over the summer. By collaborating with the staff at the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Scholarship and working independently, faculty were able to improve on the remote courses they improvised in only two weeks’ time in spring 2020: they designed syllabi for all teaching formats, enhanced their online course development, and became more comfortable with learning technologies to make themselves even more accessible to their students. But Professor and Garey Endowed Chair in Chemistry MahaZewail-Footeisonefacultymemberwhoapproached even her spring 2020 classes with an enthusiasm for adapting to challenging new circumstances. “There’s a negative perception of online learning for multiple reasons. Last spring, we made the switch really quickly. [Students and faculty] had negative experiences at other universities and at larger schools where they don’t connect with students as well,” she says. Hybrid and online courses at SU, however, are rising above expectations, she believes, because of the close mentoring relationships faculty and students enjoy. “At Southwestern, the in-person experience is who we are. But we can take what we’re good at and transition that to the remote environment,” she shares. “I like the creativity. I’m excited because it’s an opportunity!” While teaching her Advanced Lab in Biochemistry and The Biochemistry of Nucleic Acids online, Zewail-Foote developed assignments that still achieved the original learning objectives of her courses. She used whiteboards, videos, video conferencing, real-time collaboration tools, and chat rooms to cultivate the sense of community that characterizes her in-person classes. Although mediated by screens rather than interacting face-to- face, her students remained engaged and motivated. “I was still able to connect with them, and it was still fun,” she reports. In July, the chemistry professor even published a paper describing her positive experiences, “Pivoting an Upper-Level, Project-Based Biochemistry Laboratory Class to Online Learning during COVID- 19: Enhancing Research Skills and Using Community Outreach to Engage Undergraduate Students,” in the Journal of Chemical Education . Zewail-Foote reveals that the online environment can afford certain opportunities, such as introducing her students to instruments or procedures that are not available on campus. She misses the hands-on activities she would normally facilitate in a lab class, of course, but regardless of the venue, her focus remains on students learning how to think like scientists. “I can’t do in-person experiments, but I can help students think about how to solve problems, report and describe the data, and present their findings,” she remarks. “And there are multiple ways to solve a problem, so they still get to learn through inquiry, creativity, and curiosity.” UNEXPECTED SUCCESSES Improved student engagement has been another unexpected benefit of remote learning. Granted, participation has varied from class to class, which is no different from any normal semester of instruction. However, several faculty report that their quietest students have blossomed online—perhaps because those learners aren’t feeling the pressure of thinking through and articulating their ideas while on the spot in the classroom. “I thought the discussion would be really hard, but we’ve had better discussions online than we did in class!” says Pierce. For example, his students used to spend 10–15 minutes each class discussing David Sloan Wilson’s Evolution for Everyone ; those shorter dialogues expanded to 30–40 minutes when online. Sending students discussion questions before class met on Google Hangouts helped immensely. “But I also think there’s something about the different dynamic of doing this online,” he opines. “Students who hardly ever spoke in class now speak up all the time and have really insightful things to say. They were definitely thinking about it before, but they just didn’t speak up. Now, everyone is contributing to discussion.” 2 0 | SOUTHWE S T E RN