SBVC Student Credits Instructors for Ease of Transition to Online Learning

Having taken online classes before, Danielle Alamillo wasn’t new to remote learning, but she had no idea how it would work during the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Colton resident has been a student at SBVC for two-and-a-half years, and is a biology major. When the college announced most classes were going online because of the virus, she initially felt anxious, as this was “a huge transition.” Alamillo knew campus leaders were taking into consideration “everyone’s best interests and convenience,” but she was “unsure how the particular science classes I was taking were going to go — they are challenging enough with in-person interaction.”

Alamillo found that her instructors — Prof. Tatiana Vasquez for biology and Prof. Michael Torrez for chemistry — were able to deftly handle this new way of learning. They were “exceptional,” she said, and went “above and beyond to make the transition as smooth as possible. Without their care and help for their students, I would have struggled so much more than I did.”

The course material was not easy, Alamillo said, and it “required much more dedication than it had before.” She stayed connected with her classmates through Zoom and via text, and they leaned on each other, setting up study sessions and making every effort to answer each other’s questions or listen as they shared their concerns.

Being at home all the time did start to wear on Alamillo, and she would find herself losing focus. “Staring at a screen can become really tiresome when trying to learn and absorb new information,” she said. During those tough moments, Alamillo stayed motivated by doing a different activity, “so my mind wouldn’t explode, such as yoga or just going outside in the evening and enjoying my surroundings.”

After having an hour or two to herself, her mind was at ease, and Alamillo could get back to work.

“I definitely learned that sometimes you have to mentally check out in order to allow yourself to stay positive and to keep yourself from drowning or suffocating from the overwhelming stresses that are out of your control,” she said.

Going from in-person instruction to online in a matter of weeks was “not an easy transition,” Alamillo said, but she feels “very fortunate” to have had professors and classmates who were “dedicated and extremely helpful in providing a less stressful transition. Having that support and care really helped me get through the pandemic and school.”