JESUIT PERSPECTIVES • SPRING 2020 15
part of school and daily life as Jesuit
adeptly transitioned to virtual learning.
What wouldn’t have been conceivable
as recently as 10 years ago was successfully
implemented in real time with
barely a hiccup. And while everyone
missed the depth of personal interaction
and camaraderie and brotherhood that
could only be experienced at Jesuit –
campus was closed and all clubs and
sports had been suspended – academically
the school stayed on track.
"I don't think I can name any other
school (that has) been as prepared as
Jesuit," Zachary Reich ’22 said. "I could
not have asked for anything better.”
For a few on the faculty, notably math
teacher Peggy Martin, not all that much
changed. Since coming to Jesuit in 2013,
Martin has pioneered an expansion into
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mandatory live lecture, one mandatory
recorded lecture, and then gives the
students a choice between another live
or recorded lesson.
Martin, who teaches Pre-Calculus
Honors, eventually found that about
95 percent prefer the video recorded
lessons. Of the 101 students she teaches
this year, only four preferred a live
lecture.
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because when
they do it digitally,
they are in control
of their education,"
she said. "They're
in control of the
pace. They don't
have any distractions."
With recorded
lessons, students
can speed up,
slow down, or skip
around in lectures.
With her students
learning at their
own pace instead
of adapting to the cohesive classroom
pace, Martin said her grades "have never
been higher."
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head Kevin Ball '03, it was much more
of a challenge, as Ball taught studio art
classes with ... well, no studio.
"We incorporated all of the stuff that
we have at the studio into an iPad or
photography or apps," Ball said. "There's
a lot of experimentation going on, a lot of
resourcefulness."
Ball and his students worked frequently
with a drawing application called Autodesk
Jason Kwo ’21 was among some 800 Jesuit
students hunkered down at home with virtual
learning this spring
SketchBook, and he encouraged
his art students to try new mediums,
such as photography, or any of the
countless artistic apps available, such as
HEAVYPAINT, which Ball learned about
from AP Art student Vincent Girgenti '20.
Theology teacher ������������������������������, who
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that while recorded lectures and
discussion forums made for a smooth
transition to virtual learning, the richness
of personal interaction didn’t
fully translate to remote
teaching. However, he
discovered advantages.
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questions on Canvas and
required students to comment
on at least two other students'
posts. For example, his Christian
Morality class for juniors
answered the question,
"Under what circumstances
might the state have a moral
right to impose the death
penalty?" These online forums
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implement them when Jesuit
returns to live lessons.
"Everybody wants to get their opinion
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discussions have been very good for the
students who are normally more quiet.
They have a platform to say what they
think without the pressure they might
perceive in the classroom."
While students such as Reich appreciated
Jesuit’s quick pivot to productive
online learning, they missed the social
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provides.
"I feel isolated when I'm at home," said
Reich, who is an altar server, soccer
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"I've done a lot of things since Spring
Break that I'd love to talk to people
about. I miss my clubs. I’ve really
missed going to the Chapel of the
Holy Cross."
Initially, the virtual school period
was to last at least through March
27. Eventually it was delayed until
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the curve” via social distancing.
But on April 18, Florida Gov. Ron
DeSantis announced schools would
be closed for the remainder of the
school year. That declaration also
scuttled any hope of completing
the springs sports seasons (p. 20),
which had been suspended since
mid-March.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 16
Spanish department head Denise Diaz
and the faculty prepared for Jesuit’s
transition to 100% virtual learning in
just a few days in mid-March
For the final quarter of their senior year,
Raleigh Bulleit and the Class of 2020 were
connected to the school via their iPads