A few weeks ago, GZAAT decided to re-open after a long break due to Covid-19. Since the pandemic is not over yet and although the daily cases are decreasing, obviously, there are some guidelines that every school should follow. Because of the new regulations, GZAAT went through several physical changes in order to bring the students back to school safely.
Let's start with classes - a place where students spend most of their time, they underwent the most critical changes, not only for students but for teachers as well. In contrast to other schools where students sit at their desks, GZAAT is special with its teaching style, which is built around the Harkness table, where students are expected to contribute regularly to classroom discussions. Considering now the students are required to keep the distance and stay at least 2m apart from each other, not all of them can use the Harkness table. They are separated from each other, some of them are still able to remain at the table, while others have to sit outside of the circle. On the floor, we can easily notice red marking tapes, which indicate where chairs should be placed, to keep the distance between students. To find out the possible effects this change might’ve had on the lessons and the quality of education in general we interviewed a few students. One of the juniors, Masho Khatiashvili, says, “I think Harkness table gave us a great opportunity to participate in class discussions and the teacher paid equal attention to all students. From my point of view that is the main problem with the new model. However, I consider that in this critical situation school had no other choice and this is the best option they could’ve come up with.” We also wanted to know the teachers' attitude towards this change and interviewed the Physics teacher Archil Makashvili. “Going through the pandemic has been and continues to be a very challenging experience for both the teachers and the students. When we were doing lessons only online for a lot of students this was extremely difficult. While some of them did feel even more comfortable that way (in some cases) a lot of the students were very frustrated. Of course, that is a product of the fact that one of the main parts of this school which is the Harkness table was no longer present. Now that we have gone back to live lessons we have returned to the Harkness table. However, there is, of course, the need for keeping a safe distance thus we can not sit near the table in the traditional fashion. However despite not being the same, I think what we are doing now mirrors that method really well, Students are still in a circle looking at each other and are much more lively and active than online. I would of course love for everything to be back to the way it was, but I think this is more about getting the feeling that we are already through with the problem. In terms of academics and overall feeling during the lesson, I think the distancing is not interfering that much with the feeling of being around the Harkness Table”.
Another noteworthy change was made in school lounges. Previously, lounges were popular during the lunch breaks and even during shorter breaks. Students used to gather and spend most of their time there. Even some school events were conducted in the lounges. Now, the large sofas are removed, and similar to classes, there are red marking tapes to keep the distance. A junior Keto Antidze states, “I think the rearrangement of the lounges undoubtedly affected interaction with our schoolmates. We always used to get together and have fun there, now due to circumstances we have to be distanced and consequently fewer people gather there. Lounges brought joy to our daily school life and I hope we will be able to gather there as we used to, as soon as possible.”
Overall, because of the pandemic, GZAAT was forced to make the changes listed above, however, so far students and teachers are doing well and still work as productively as earlier. We all hope to have everything back the way it was before, but while the whole world is challenged by Covid-19, we also learn to adapt to the new circumstances.
Edited by Elene Berelashvili
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