This browser does not support the Video element.
Teacher calls online classes a nightmare amid pandemic
A Marion County teacher's desperate plea prompted the school board to start a task force to ensure students get the best education they can during distance learning.
MARION COUNTY, Fla. - A local teacher says online classes have been a nightmare.
“What’s the point, right? What is the point? We are all ready to just quit.”
It started with a post on Terry Kinder’s Facebook post. It was a video she shot one morning in her car outside the school where she teaches 7th-grade civics in Marion County.
“It’s just never-ending,” she said in the cellphone video. I
It was a tearful, weary plea for help in the age of virtual learning. The video and her letter to the school board gained traction and went viral.
MORE NEWS: What does Phase 3 mean for wearing masks in public in Florida?
“I started getting messages from teachers around the world, like literally around the globe, saying this is exactly my story. This is exactly how I feel too,” Kinder told FOX 35 on Friday.
That shared story includes technology issues with virtual calls and students not being fully focused at home.
“I’ve had kids log in from the food court at the mall and then they’re walking around the mall with their family,” Kinder said.
MORE NEWS: Florida moving into Phase 3 of reopening, no limitations on restaurants
All of this led to her speaking at a school board meeting this week, where based on her story, the board proposed a task force.
“Putting together and publicly, I’d like to ask Ms. Kinder if she would sit on that task force,” said one of the school board members at the meeting.
Kinder told FOX 35 she’s glad something good is coming from her Facebook post and letter.
“I’m at my breaking point where I’m ready to quit anyway. What’s the point of not saying something and at least trying?” Kinder said.
She says the task force overwhelms her a bit with everything else she has on her plate.
| SIGN UP FOR THE FOX 35 NEWSLETTERS |
“At this point, I’m pulling my hair out and I can’t sleep and I can’t eat and I’m stressed to the max.”
But, she is participating and hopes it’ll be worth it.
“I’m glad anyone who’s willing to listen at this point. I will continue to speak.”
She’s speaking up for the many struggling, stressed teachers out there right now.
Watch FOX 35 News for the latest news.
This browser does not support the Video element.