‘Unleash the beast in you’, maths teacher urges

As I sat on my bed watching my twin girls sleeping peacefully, I was anxious and wide awake, waiting for the stroke of midnight to feel the true impact of COVID-19 and the lockdown on the 2020 academic year and its matriculants.

As expected, and now confirmed, my other children (my students) made me exceptionally proud, achieving the excellent results that they did in these extremely difficult, fearful, and trying times. As the phone calls of gratitude and appreciation from my pupils and their parents come streaming in, I felt the tension of this very challenging past scholastic year lighten in my feet and shoulders.

Fear and uncertainty about the unknown not only caused me much anxiety as to how I would manage my own biological children, but also for the many other pupils in my care. As a single mom, a Grade 11 form supervisor, as well as a matric mathematics teacher and head of department at Yeshiva College, I felt like I was dropped in the deep end of a fast swirling whirlpool.

I chose to swim successfully and with a positive attitude on the rather complicated route to the finishing line. Within a short time, I had to upgrade my internet access to run four devices at a time in my house.

Realisation set in that I didn’t have the hardware for four people to be in different Zoom meetings concurrently. I quickly made a plan to ease this unexpected extra expense. Teaching online was my next challenge. First, I was a frustrated technophobe of note, and second, how were my pupils going to watch me write the maths on a board I didn’t have at home? This is essential for effective and successful maths learning to take place.

I was extremely grateful when my oldest brother lent me his rather sophisticated iPad for an indefinite period that still hasn’t been exhausted. In my limited spare time, I attended Zoom lessons and webinars to become proficient in the use of this tablet, and the most appropriate apps for teaching maths. The benefit of my new skills fast became apparent to my children and myself. Now back in the classroom in 2021, I’m still teaching using this device. There are many pros, which I now strongly believe outweigh the cons.

Learning and absorbing maths is closely related to your emotional state. Adding to the turmoil of uncertainty and concern about family members’ health, I noticed a difference in the emotional connection made with pupils sitting in front of me, compared to online classes.

I lost eye contact over Zoom, and was unable to read body language, making it difficult to read the level of concentration and acquisition of knowledge. I also struggled to gauge the emotional well-being or lack thereof of my pupils.

They also lost out on my facial expressions and hand gestures, which speak volumes in my explanations, and create an exciting vibe for learning maths. To remedy this disconnect, I sent many videos and voice notes explaining to individual pupils where their shortfalls were.

I calmed many parents’ and children’s anxiety over the finals and results. Two of the most important lessons we all learnt were to be patient with one another, and to be kind to ourselves and others. You truly have no idea of the obstacles in their path.

Even though we were all taking strain with the “new normal”, we still managed to have some fun in our online classes. We had visitors (friends that have emigrated) from around the world join our sessions. It was fascinating to catch up with these former students, and to discuss the different approach of their learning systems.

We were privy to appearances made by people’s pets and parents in our Zoom classes, giving us insight into each other’s backgrounds. This created tolerance, mindfulness, and respect for each other. Forgetting to mute and unmute oneself, or leaving your camera on or off invoked some good humour and banter among the pupils.

Due to the ban on social gatherings which caused a decline in social interaction, our Saturday night jols transformed into doing past papers over Zoom. A lot of fun was had by all. This process definitely added to the successful results our pupils achieved as many more papers were done.

On Friday morning, we acknowledged our matric class of 2020 and their parents by hosting a tea at Yeshiva College. I had the opportunity to tell them how proud I am of them for grabbing their horse by the reins, and taking charge of their holistic development. I commended them on their resilience, strength, determination, and ability to adapt and soar to heights we thought were unobtainable.

To motivate them further, I say, “Unleash the beast in you. You have the power. Travel far on your unique tangents, and make your rainbows shine bright in the world.”

These wonderful young adults touched my heart. I cried as I waved goodbye.

• Ilana Flaum is a Yeshiva College matric maths teacher, head of the maths department, the Grade 11 form supervisor, and a single mom.