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Public speaking in a pandemic

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We are taught from a young age that public speaking would be an important aspect of not only our educational lives, but future careers.

It is daunting for several people, and the idea of talking in front of more than five individuals can cause physical pain.

At Northern EssexCommunity College, there are a lot of opportunities to present in front of crowds.

The Covid-19 pandemic had changed how students learn in more ways than one.

There are a lot of things that could go wrong in the process of public speaking.

Clara Petry, second year student is not unfamiliar about going over those things in her head.

“My worst fear would probably be messing up in front of everyone, or maybe being judged. One thing that I strongly dislike about making presentations is when I can see the audience and they may appear uninterested.”

It is easy to get lost in the anxieties about performing rather than learning what the teacher prepared.

“I honestly believe that there is no need for public speaking .Sure, it is a great opportunity but from my experiences, I get more anxious about making apresentation and perfecting it rather than the actual topic of the presentation itself,” said Petry.

A full year o  fonline school has given an entirely new perspective on how things were done in the past.

“One good thing about online school is what for some classes, I have had to record a presentation.What I like about that is that I don’t have to view my audience,” she said. “On the other hand, one thing that I don’t like about online classes is the whole zoom thing. It makes me nervous to speak out and show my face, which many students can probably relate to.”

Although there is not much in this moment that professors can fix about how presentations work, there are things that could be done to take the pressure off of the individuals.

“It would help if the audience was more engaged, which would be nearly impossible because no one really cares about presentations to  begin with (which makes things worse),” said Petry. “There is so much pressure on the person who is presenting, either the speech being worth half your grade or even just making sure it’s perfect. Taking the pressure off would help ease the nerves.”

Another student has a similar take on the idea. Jordan McGovern is a third year student at Northern Essex Community college, and her major is in early childhood education.

“My worst fear for public speaking is that all of the attention is placed onto me. If I slip up even a little bit,  everyone will notice right away,” she said.

There are things that she does to calm her nerves before  making a presentation.

“A tip that has helped me would be to take deep breaths and to take your time speaking in front of people,” she said. “What also helps me is trying to picture I’m somewhere else while presenting, and before the presentation it helps to take my mind off of things by listening to music, coloring or some type of exercise.”

Besides her own personal tips, there are things that professors could do to make the situation less tense.

“Professors can talk their students through the whole process with public speaking,” McGovern said.

Unlike the previous student, McGovern thinks that public speaking is a necessary evil.

“Yes there is a need because in the future, you have no idea what your job could be like and public speaking could possibly be a very important skill that can make or break your career.”

Even though everyone’s future is uncertain with online school, the transition made things a lot easier.

“The transition to online school does help those who suffer with social anxiety because they can do the school work in the comfort of their own house with no judgment,” she said.

Another factor that could lessen the nerves is from the audience’sperspective.

“The audience can help the speaker feel less anxious if they are patient with the person speaking and let them get through the speech in their own way,” she said.

The switch to online school is not a total negative thing. For example, those who have tod eal with social anxiety and fears of public speaking are able to do it from the safety of their own home.

No longer do we have to obsess over the reactions of our peers, or stay up days before the presentation takes place. There are several students just like these two who either benefit from the transition to online school, or could use the guidance of the audience and professors around them.

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The ups and downs of online learning

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It has been a full year since Northern Essex Community College made the shift towards online learning to fit the regulations of Covid-19.

Even though there has always been an option to participate in virtual classes, this is an entire new take on the idea. There are zoom meetings, and some professors even offer a one on one meeting time in case a student is havin gtrouble in their course.

Each student at Northern Essex Community college is handling the shift in a different way. Some are thriving, and others are struggling to keep up with deadlines.

Here is a take from a second and third year student at Northern Essex Community College.The covid-19 pandemic has placed a hold on the future of multiple students.

Second yearstudent Clara Petry (environmental science major) has had a lot of ups and downs with thet ransition to online education.

The shift to online school was abrupt, and brought on challenges and experience that she did not expect.

“While I was originally planning on spending a third year at NECC, I will now be transferring to UMass Lowell in the fall. I don’t think I can handle aanother semester of online courses. Most of the courses I need are science ones, which would b etoo challenging to take online,” she said.

After being asked if she believes online school pushes the limits for being overly challenging, her response was “I think so. Especially the tests I’ve had to take. It is harder to know what to expect on the online tests because there is a bigger workload and Ibasically have to teach myself from the book.”

This is another reason why Petry prefers taking courses in person, “Online classes come with more work, and I do not feel as engaged in what  Iam learning as I would in person, especially with the science classes I have to take,” she said.

Once this student has completed a full year of online school, she has learned a few things from this experience.

“Before the pandemic, I probably would have thought that an online class would be easier and less time consuming,” she said.

She also noted that there was one pro of online school despitethe drastic change it had on her plans and learning style. “One of the pros of online school is that you can create your own schedule of when you will study and work. That is one thing I will miss about the pandemic when I may be taking early morning classes in the future,” she said.

Overall, the experience of online learning for this particular student was overwhelming and not something she would have thought she had to do at this point of her educational career.

The experience was different for third year Design major, Marie Huges.

“Virtual learninghas helped me so much. But for future plans, I have no idea. I would take more classes on film ifI could, but I have no idea for a job since the pandemic is still in our hands,” she said.

Attached with online learning comes the opportunity for zoom meetings. They can be great things for students,but also cause anxiety for others.

“I, and maybe some other people do not have zoom meetings except I have ones on Tuesday for animation. If the professor records the link, then I learn better during the meeting because I tend to zone out,” she said.

A new take on education being held virtually is the idea that it is helpful and positive.

“I focus better if I just do the work and read and watch lectures rather than a teacher telling me the lecture and not remembering it. It’s quick and easy for me, even in troubling times,” Huges said.

There has been a lot of speculation over the past year of the effect that the pandemic had on virtual learning.

Some believe that if they had to do it under any other circumstance, it would have been a better experience.

“I think it’s the same experience as this one. My ex took an online astrology class and he was getting everything done without following the exact schedule. I have never taken any online classes back then, but now I do know what they are like,” Huges said. 

It is impossible to summarize what the change to online school is like for every singlestudent at Northern Essex Community College.

At the end of the day, the lives of students have been changed due to the shift, and not one person has a similar viewpoint on the subject matter.Even though the two students, Clara Petry and Marie Huges have different experiences withonline courses, it’s important to recognize the pros/cons of it, and how students have been affected