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Educational Excellence

on “my teaching experiences in the face of the apprenticeship, trying to overcome new challenges
challenge of distance education.” by harmonizing students’ emotional well-being,
Torres’s purpose in online classes was to reinforcing their technical skills, and complying
narrow the distance between student and teacher, with institutional requirements regarding students’
offering concrete strategies within virtuality retention rate and academic achievement. As an
to help them work on scientific skills without educator, Morales mentioned that “maintaining
losing perspective on the context of research. unaltered his vocation and commitment to
Her strategies involved considering the different providing an education of excellence is critical.”
learning styles, the profile of the student, and “Therefore,” he said, “all students are accountable,
available digital resources to maximize time and and implementing conventional and innovative
meet goals and objectives of the class: “Using a strategies is vital.” That is, although his
variety of strategies awakens and increases their interaction with the students was utterly virtual,
interest.” Torres mentioned that she always aims he considered it necessary to maintain a routine
at developing her science class in a practical and to monitor students’ progress: attendance, active
active way: “The value of the artistic and creative class participation, academic achievement, and
works is integrated not only in the digital format individual needs. Morales mentioned that it was
but also on paper. The use of live-demonstration essential to maintain close communication with
laboratories, lab activities made from home, digital his students, providing them feedback, positive
simulations, real-time games, and virtual games reinforcement, and opportunities for improvement
is essential in the learning process.” Her students and applying alternate assessment and evaluation
worked on environmental projects from home and techniques to meet the needs of all students. He
were assessed with encouraging results as they also considered it necessary to expose students to
presented their online projects. For Torres, the enriching learning experiences that would enable
educational environment plays a very important them to develop language skills and essential
role in online classes: lifetime competencies; accordingly, he engaged
We were digitally transported to the humid students in performance tasks to accomplish
forest, and we listened to the song of our his academic goals and objectives: “Despite the
Puerto Rican coqui, and we were virtual teaching modality, I was aware that my English
visitors to the African savannah, where we courses’ students needed challenging performance
enjoyed the arrival of elephants, birds. and tasks that would help them in reinforcing
other mammals to drink water and interact in competencies such as communication, critical
a pond. thinking, informational skills, and technology.”
He highlighted that educators must maintain high
Morales expectations of students in the virtual modality;
The second video, “Teaching Experiences students must be consistently challenged and
and Students’ Engagement in Remote and Online encouraged to excel in all personal and academic
Courses,” was presented by Dr. Jose Morales areas. As an example, he noted,
Sousa, who teaches online and remote English Students did a book and film review as part
courses at the college level. His particular of their final project. They had to analyze
interest is in inclusion of technologies to improve a book and the film version critically,
writing skills and ensure students’ participation establishing the similarities and differences.
in the virtual-learning experience. Participating They did an oral and written report of this
in this project led him to reflect on the remote project, challenging them to activate higher-
teaching modality, the overall teaching-learning order thinking skills. Undoubtedly, they
process, and students’ responses to the strategies implemented creative and critical thinking
and methodologies implemented in the virtual skills, information and technology skills as
classroom. Likewise, he embarked on a journey of well.

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