2020 News Stories

Alumna adapts to rapid changes in education while teaching in Italy during COVID-19 pandemic

by Jessenia Rivera

Malina Pakulak knew becoming an educator would require flexibility. Yet, when the global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic struck Italy, forcing the country into a nation-wide lockdown on March 9, Pakulak wasn’t sure what the teaching profession would look like in the coming weeks.
 
“It happened like the flip of a switch,” Pakulak said. 

Having graduated from USF in 2018 with a bachelor's degree in elementary education, Pakulak began her first teaching job as a kindergarten teacher at Aviano Elementary, a Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) school in Italy where her husband, who serves in the military, is stationed.

On February 26, the day after Pakulak’s school shut its doors until further notice, a meeting with the school’s teachers was arranged to discuss one essential question—how were they going to continue to provide the best education for students, given the current situation? 

As Pakulak listened in on conversations and contributed her own ideas, she remembered the experience and skills she acquired while a student at USF.
 
When reflecting on her teaching internships, Pakulak recalls working alongside educators to turn Sessums Elementary, her designated school at the time, into a suitable shelter for families during Hurricane Irma. She also thought back on the action research she conducted in various classrooms across the school district and how it all prepared her for situations of crisis like the current pandemic.
 
“I feel like learning about the importance of inquiry in the classroom helped me a lot in this situation,” Pakulak said. “It instilled in me the need to adapt so I can better suit the needs of students.”
 
After leaving her school campus that day, Pakulak worked quickly to construct a digital plan that was just as much engaging as it had to be educational. Converting her hands-on lesson plans into something that students could do through a computer proved to be a major hurdle, but Pakulak says with time, she was able to creatively adjust how students can learn at home.

In one example, she shared how students were able to turn in their assignments after she had introduced a science lesson about force and motion.
 
“I had the kids use their couch cushions and a cookie sheet to build a ramp and they would roll down their books,” Pakulak said. “So, we were able to adapt things that we do in the classroom with classroom materials to things that they can do at home with their families using household items.”
 
Along with changing lesson plans to fit the needs of her classroom, Pakulak also created a set system in which she and her students can have face-to-face interactions. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, after chatting daily with her kindergarten team, Pakulak holds a video conference through Google Meet with a few students at once in order to maintain a strong connection amid the lockdown.
 
Throughout the video chats, she has not only integrated instructional activities, such as virtual read-alouds and math counting practice, but she’s also made it a time where she and her students can freely communicate with each other.
 
“They’re excited to see me, but I’m excited to see them,” Pakulak expressed. “I think social interaction is what’s helping them get through all of this. I think it’s really important for everybody on all sides.”

With Italy as one of the first countries affected by the coronavirus outbreak, Pakulak has had more time to familiarize herself with online teaching compared to most educators in the United States. She has used platforms such as Facebook to detail how she is navigating her teaching journey, which led Randi Latzke, PhD, an instructor in USF’s Elementary Education Program, to invite her as a guest speaker for current USF students who are completing their last semester of internships before graduation and who were eager to hear Pakulak’s advice.  
 
When asked how the interns can be of help to their collaborating teachers during this overwhelming shift, Pakulak said there are ways they can take initiative without being intrusive.
 
“I suggested that they could possibly ask their CT (this question): are you okay with me recording a video of me reading this book and sending it to our families? That way it’s not saying, ‘hey, what should I be doing?’” Pakulak said.
 
Despite the negative news she often receives about the current situation, Pakulak said she chose to embrace the positive aspects that this crisis has brought forth, such as an increased unity among her school’s community.
 
In the last few weeks, she’s seen how a huge disruption to student learning has driven collaboration and support between educators at her school, and this in turn has shown her how capable she is as a teacher of taking on any challenge.  
 
“Even though I never once would’ve thought this would happen, I’ve been able to adapt and overcome,” Pakulak said. “I never once felt like I couldn’t do it.”