TOLEDO, Ohio — How many have felt the struggle of teaching your kids at home? The pandemic shook up how kids get their education. But it's also caused education majors in universities across the country to pivot the way they're preparing to enter the profession.
"If I had a crystal ball I would've never guessed this is what we'd be doing," said University of Toledo Judith Herb College of Education Dean Raymond Witte.
The COVID-19 pandemic turned the world upside down. That included schools and the age-old job of teaching.
Witte said last year, teachers had the impossible task of switching to an entirely new way of teaching in just a matter of weeks.
"Educators are creative by design and that fits well especially under these kinds of conditions," he said.
Students studying to become teachers and those in placements are entering a different classroom. Senior and early education student Juliana Pyle says she's always wanted to be a teacher. Both of her parents were teachers and she knows how important the job is, but says it's been hard to adjust.
"It's a lot different from being in the classroom to being online and looking at your students," she said, "and especially with the early grades because there's not much they can do on the computer."
Witte says they've adjusted their curriculum to fit the changing landscape of teaching, but students in placements are contributing just as much to the course.
"Students come back and they kind of help us teach and modify the material as well," he said, "because they're learning this works but yet, this doesn't work."
Pyle hopes the pandemic puts a harder spotlight on the value of teaching, especially seeing how parents have been affected this past year. She admitted she's had her struggles with her career choice, but believes it's what she was born to do.
And she hopes other aspiring teachers stick with it.
"Knowing that you're helping the future of our country and these kids' lives, you can make such a difference," she said, "so just stick with it and power through."