How well do the students really know their teachers? Outside of the classes, they don't know much about them. Especially during these times, when for most of them, it's the first time they're meeting teachers, and unfortunately not even in person. It's exactly the same for teachers, as there are so many students they have to teach and meet in zoom classes. Luckily, GZAAT has started to organize online lounges for students and teachers to interact outside their typical lessons. They meet via zoom calls, where they talk about various topics regarding different things, including life before GZAAT, their hobbies, advice, and many more. I asked some of the students that attended the meeting to tell us their opinion about them.
Kato Dadiani had this to say about her experience: "I think it is a great idea to have any kind of social activity with students and teachers interacting in these times. Especially since we are now in 9th grade and it is the first year of high school for us, we've just entered this community and are new to everything. Because of that, we didn't have any chance to get to know our teachers, with whom we spend most of our hours. This was a great opportunity to introduce ourselves and to get to know others in a more unofficial setting. Overall, it was super fun and interesting. We even learned some things when listening to the teachers' experiences. I loved it, and I'm looking forward to more meetings."
Sofi Asatiani also enjoyed her experience: "I liked it a lot. It was my first time meeting some of the teachers there, and it was good to get to know them. I liked that there were not a lot of people attending one meeting, as it gave us time to present ourselves and engage in conversations. Other than getting to know the teachers, we also got to know some of our classmates better. It was really fun because we got to talk about things we usually don't get to discuss during classes, which gave us an opportunity to see a completely different side of our teachers.”
Other than asking the students, I decided to ask one of the teachers that attended the meeting, Dato Shapakidze, about his opinion. "From the beginning, I have liked the idea very much. It has many good faces. Firstly, it allows us to fill the gaps in our relations caused by this unusuality. We all lack live contacts, communications, sharing emotions with each other and that is the exact place where you may relax, give away and also receive a charge of positive energy at the end of the working day. Secondly, it is a space where teachers and students can meet each other and discuss something which is, frankly speaking, not written in the curriculum. The ordinary class time is fully occupied with the teaching and learning process. especially now, when the academic time is so shrunk and limited. So, the online lounges create a window of opportunity to listen to students in an out-of-class atmosphere where they are talking about their hobbies, beliefs, inspirations, etc. It was also very interesting to hear the same from teachers as well. All in all, I had a wonderful evening and would be eager to participate in the forthcoming events."
I had the opportunity of joining one of the calls myself, and I definitely agree that it gives a great chance to both teachers and students to get to know each other better, which can be helpful for numerous reasons. I recommend everyone who can to participate in the meetings.
Edited by Mariam Khaduri
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