As a chef and culinary arts professor at George Brown College, I design and teach culinary demos, culinary labs, and sustainability, leadership, and entrepreneurship theory courses – and thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have spent much of the past two and a half years doing so remotely and online.
While pivoting to online teaching, I was determined to create a rich learning environment that was inclusive, accessible and truly engaging. Little did I know that this pedagogical shift would be as much of a learning experience for me as it was for my students.
With that in mind, I’d like to share my reflections, tools and tips about teaching remotely. In this blog post, I’ll tell you what I’ve learned about:
- Empowering students to co-create learning environments that meet their needs.
- Bringing my authentic self to class, including “dad jokes” and puns, strolls through my greenhouse and gnocchi-rolling demos with my 9-year-old daughter.
- Incorporating equity, diversity and inclusion into the curriculum.
- And rolling with the unexpected moments like barking dogs, belching spouses and snoring students.
I hope my blog post will encourage you to reflect on and share what you’ve learned from teaching, working and learning online during the pandemic.
Jason Inniss is a chef and culinary arts professor at George Brown College’s Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts.
