Silvia Giorgini Althoen, August 21st, 2024
Title
Silvia Giorgini Althoen, August 21st, 2024
Description
In this interview, Wayne State professor Silvia Giorgini Althoen shares the transition from in-person to online teaching, and how the pandemic reshaped her Italian courses.
Publisher
Detroit Historical Society
Rights
Detroit Historical Society
Narrator/Interviewee's Name
Silvia Giorgini Althoen
Interviewer's Name
Taylor Claybrook
Date
8/21/2024
Interview Length
12:41
Transcription
Taylor Claybrook: [00:00:00] Okay, so today is Wednesday, August 21st, 2024. My name is Taylor Claybrook and I'm sitting down with...
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:00:09] Silvia Giorgini-Althoen.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:00:10] Thank you. So what was your initial reaction to hearing about Covid-- when it was spreading and then when the lockdown finally happened?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:00:18] So actually, I was a little more prepared maybe than many of my colleagues, because in Italy it started spreading much sooner. So I had already started reading about lockdowns in Italy, and I remember traveling to Princeton, on February 28th, and I was looking for hand sanitizers, and already in February we couldn't find any hand sanitizer anywhere. And I remember on March 1st, I flew back from Princeton to Detroit, and the next day things started getting bad and things started getting closer to the idea of the lockdown. So it didn't take me quite by surprise as much as it probably took a lot of people, but it was certainly kind of eerie to start seeing things in the grocery store disappearing, even before the official news of the pandemic was given to everybody.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:01:30] And then, what department are you in at Wayne State?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:01:33] I work at the classical modern languages, literatures, cultures. CMLLC.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:01:40] Okay. And what classes do you teach?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:01:43] I teach a wide array of classes. I'm the director of the language sequence. So the basic language courses. And then I teach culture courses in English and also literature classes in Italian.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:02:00] And so when Covid...when the lockdown finally happened, how was your career as an educator impacted?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:02:07] It was...I mean, it was impacted because I love interacting with my students. And missing that contact was really probably the hardest part. But professionally, honestly, I was ready, because I've been integrating a lot of technology. My classes, I had already started teaching a fully online course, so I was familiar with a lot of technology and that allowed me to ease much better into the online format and prepare my students, giving them a sense of continuity. Since we started, we left for spring break in person. We never came back, so we had like two full months together and then all of a sudden we are online. I wanted to give them a sense of continuity from what we were doing before and on...The technology they had been using in class was familiar to my students, so they didn't feel it as bad as many might have. But of course we missed seeing each other. So, we try to compensate with more zoom meetings and, you know, trying to have to watch films together on zoom and keep up the social life, even if we couldn't actually be together.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:03:37] Okay, so you answered my question about the transition from in-person to online. But what was it like when some of the restrictions that Wayne State started to be lifted in 2021, and we started going back in person? I know for a lot of my classes it was I could go to class, but I still have to wear a mask and do the daily screener. What was that like when you were kind of getting back into?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:04:01] I was so happy to be back, Taylor, that really I didn't care about the masks. You may say it made it a little harder because teaching language, the visual, you know, the labial reading, it's part of understanding each other. So that was probably the hardest part, but it was so happy to be back in person. And honestly, I didn't mind at all the daily screener. I though that, honestly, what Wayne State did was the one of the best things they could have done. We were so I mean, I was so ready to be back. And I think a lot of students were too. So masks, no mask, daily screener nor daily screener mandating the vaccine. I don't care. I just want to be back in the classroom. And that was my approach.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:04:53] So what kept you busy during lockdown and who were you living with at the time?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:04:57] So, I was, of course, at home. So both my children were, one was a Wayne State warrior and one was at U of M doing his Masters and my husband. So we were the four of us all together, which was fabulous with our dog. She loved having all of us together. And so we spent it at home most of the time. And so being home with a full family, it meant, you know, going back to when they were little, so preparing lunch and dinner and cleaning, because when you're home, you feel like you have to clean more. Digging out the dog. Because thank goodness here the restrictions didn't prohibit us to go outside with the dogs. Like, in Italy, a lot of people couldn't even walk the dog. So I felt very fortunate that we were leaving and able to at least go out for walks with the dogs. But mostly I was working as if I were going to the office. I mean, I am coming to class, so I really tried to keep a regular schedule. As if I were really teaching, it was a little challenging when we had synchronous classes and my, son was also going to Wayne State when he also had classes at the same time and my husband at meetings. So it was funny. We were spread out all over the house locking doors. That was the kind of, you know, interesting aspect, but it was nice to be together, honestly.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:06:33] And what was it like interacting with your family that lived outside of your home? Wheter that's in America or in in Italy. What what did that look like?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:06:42] Actually, it made us all much closer with the American family. My husband is from Wisconsin. His... One of his sisters lives in Massachusetts. We will have ...they woudl have a Friday night, they would play cards online all together on an online platform. And there was a lot of fun. So everybody was looking forward to their Friday playing cards. For my family initially I have three...my nephew has three children, so we woudl have every Sunday, I would have storytime with them. I would just read them stories and you know, translating from English into Italian, some storybooks. And so that was great because he gave us all something to do. They really were locked down. They couldn't go anywhere. So three young children in a very small apartment that was for them was the highlight of the week and for me was so exciting. So we spent about two hours, two hours and a half on Sundays telling stories, singing songs together. It was amazing. It actually, but now they are back to their activities and we can't see each other anymore every Sunday, so I'm missing that.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:07:54] How long have you been at Wayne? When the lockdown happened?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:07:58] So the lockdown was in 2020. I started in 2010. So ten years.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:08:03] Okay. And. How different are your classes now compared to pre-COVID? Now that everything's kind of...COVID is not gone. But, you know, we're out of those restrictions. So what is it like now?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:08:18] So not much changed pedagogically for me because I've always been a firm promoter of technology in the classroom. So I've used technology before Covid, and I'm very excited of all the improvements that technology had during Covid. So now the integration, it's even more seamless into the classroom. So pedagogically, not many things change the way I approach the classroom. Students have changed. So now our concern is more trying to get those students back to what was being in college before Covid, what was like college life. It was creating connection, networking, socializing, and in the classroom right now, we don't see that, everybody is really isolated. So I'm making now more an effort to create activity to help collaboration, socialization, making students talk to each other, getting to know each other, be comfortable around each other. That was something that I didn't need to do before. And now it's really clear effort that I have to put into any lesson, because the moment you say, okay, you have three minutes now, just need a break. They all go on their phone and I say, no, there's no phone. You either can walk, go to the bathroom, play with this ball, throw the ball, talk about anything. But it really has to be said before they would just go and talk with each other. Now you really have to remind them that that's a choice. And that's kind of sad.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:03] So is there anything that you're looking forward to in the department in the coming school year? I know we're going back to school in..this next week, in a few days. Yes. What what are you looking forward to the most?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:16] Oh, it's always exciting to go back to school to meet new students, new classroom, to see some returning students, and, you know, and just, I don't know, every a beginning of the semester is kind of, you know, a little anxiety because I never feel like I'm ready to start. But then the moment I get in the classroom and I see those faces, I just get all excited for them. And it's, you know, I'm always looking forward to the first day of class with a mix of anxiety, but excitement too. Yeah.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:50] How many classes are you teaching?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:52] Four.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:55] How big is the...well, which classes are they?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:58] So one, it's a cross listed class with nutrition, food and science is the history, science and culture of Italian cuisine with 36 students so that it's a highly experiential classroom. We do tastings, we do recipes. So it's kind of challenging it's going to be interesting. So we have these many students, I usually have 30. It's not a big difference. But it is because the lab is still the same. So we'll see how it goes. And that's always fun to to teach. Tiring because it's a lot of work and that's and... It's a hybrid classroom. So we meet for discussion one day a week. The rest of the week they're prepared by themselves. The other two are language classes. One is a combine third and fourth semester together. So it's like the finishing of the basic sequence along with the fourth semester. So it's intermediate class, and then the last one is a literature class. So I'm really excited. I haven't taught this class for a while, so I'm really looking forward to it because I'm introducing the AI chat bot. So I can't wait to see how students interact with Dante or Boccacio in the AI chat bot as well. So I'm very excited.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:12:22] So it sounds like you're going to have a lot of students this year.
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:12:25] Yeah, it looks like I have at least 60. Yeah. Oh, yeah.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:12:33] That's very exciting. Do you have any other thoughts or questions that came up during the interview? [No.] Okay. I will stop.
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:00:09] Silvia Giorgini-Althoen.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:00:10] Thank you. So what was your initial reaction to hearing about Covid-- when it was spreading and then when the lockdown finally happened?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:00:18] So actually, I was a little more prepared maybe than many of my colleagues, because in Italy it started spreading much sooner. So I had already started reading about lockdowns in Italy, and I remember traveling to Princeton, on February 28th, and I was looking for hand sanitizers, and already in February we couldn't find any hand sanitizer anywhere. And I remember on March 1st, I flew back from Princeton to Detroit, and the next day things started getting bad and things started getting closer to the idea of the lockdown. So it didn't take me quite by surprise as much as it probably took a lot of people, but it was certainly kind of eerie to start seeing things in the grocery store disappearing, even before the official news of the pandemic was given to everybody.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:01:30] And then, what department are you in at Wayne State?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:01:33] I work at the classical modern languages, literatures, cultures. CMLLC.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:01:40] Okay. And what classes do you teach?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:01:43] I teach a wide array of classes. I'm the director of the language sequence. So the basic language courses. And then I teach culture courses in English and also literature classes in Italian.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:02:00] And so when Covid...when the lockdown finally happened, how was your career as an educator impacted?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:02:07] It was...I mean, it was impacted because I love interacting with my students. And missing that contact was really probably the hardest part. But professionally, honestly, I was ready, because I've been integrating a lot of technology. My classes, I had already started teaching a fully online course, so I was familiar with a lot of technology and that allowed me to ease much better into the online format and prepare my students, giving them a sense of continuity. Since we started, we left for spring break in person. We never came back, so we had like two full months together and then all of a sudden we are online. I wanted to give them a sense of continuity from what we were doing before and on...The technology they had been using in class was familiar to my students, so they didn't feel it as bad as many might have. But of course we missed seeing each other. So, we try to compensate with more zoom meetings and, you know, trying to have to watch films together on zoom and keep up the social life, even if we couldn't actually be together.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:03:37] Okay, so you answered my question about the transition from in-person to online. But what was it like when some of the restrictions that Wayne State started to be lifted in 2021, and we started going back in person? I know for a lot of my classes it was I could go to class, but I still have to wear a mask and do the daily screener. What was that like when you were kind of getting back into?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:04:01] I was so happy to be back, Taylor, that really I didn't care about the masks. You may say it made it a little harder because teaching language, the visual, you know, the labial reading, it's part of understanding each other. So that was probably the hardest part, but it was so happy to be back in person. And honestly, I didn't mind at all the daily screener. I though that, honestly, what Wayne State did was the one of the best things they could have done. We were so I mean, I was so ready to be back. And I think a lot of students were too. So masks, no mask, daily screener nor daily screener mandating the vaccine. I don't care. I just want to be back in the classroom. And that was my approach.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:04:53] So what kept you busy during lockdown and who were you living with at the time?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:04:57] So, I was, of course, at home. So both my children were, one was a Wayne State warrior and one was at U of M doing his Masters and my husband. So we were the four of us all together, which was fabulous with our dog. She loved having all of us together. And so we spent it at home most of the time. And so being home with a full family, it meant, you know, going back to when they were little, so preparing lunch and dinner and cleaning, because when you're home, you feel like you have to clean more. Digging out the dog. Because thank goodness here the restrictions didn't prohibit us to go outside with the dogs. Like, in Italy, a lot of people couldn't even walk the dog. So I felt very fortunate that we were leaving and able to at least go out for walks with the dogs. But mostly I was working as if I were going to the office. I mean, I am coming to class, so I really tried to keep a regular schedule. As if I were really teaching, it was a little challenging when we had synchronous classes and my, son was also going to Wayne State when he also had classes at the same time and my husband at meetings. So it was funny. We were spread out all over the house locking doors. That was the kind of, you know, interesting aspect, but it was nice to be together, honestly.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:06:33] And what was it like interacting with your family that lived outside of your home? Wheter that's in America or in in Italy. What what did that look like?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:06:42] Actually, it made us all much closer with the American family. My husband is from Wisconsin. His... One of his sisters lives in Massachusetts. We will have ...they woudl have a Friday night, they would play cards online all together on an online platform. And there was a lot of fun. So everybody was looking forward to their Friday playing cards. For my family initially I have three...my nephew has three children, so we woudl have every Sunday, I would have storytime with them. I would just read them stories and you know, translating from English into Italian, some storybooks. And so that was great because he gave us all something to do. They really were locked down. They couldn't go anywhere. So three young children in a very small apartment that was for them was the highlight of the week and for me was so exciting. So we spent about two hours, two hours and a half on Sundays telling stories, singing songs together. It was amazing. It actually, but now they are back to their activities and we can't see each other anymore every Sunday, so I'm missing that.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:07:54] How long have you been at Wayne? When the lockdown happened?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:07:58] So the lockdown was in 2020. I started in 2010. So ten years.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:08:03] Okay. And. How different are your classes now compared to pre-COVID? Now that everything's kind of...COVID is not gone. But, you know, we're out of those restrictions. So what is it like now?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:08:18] So not much changed pedagogically for me because I've always been a firm promoter of technology in the classroom. So I've used technology before Covid, and I'm very excited of all the improvements that technology had during Covid. So now the integration, it's even more seamless into the classroom. So pedagogically, not many things change the way I approach the classroom. Students have changed. So now our concern is more trying to get those students back to what was being in college before Covid, what was like college life. It was creating connection, networking, socializing, and in the classroom right now, we don't see that, everybody is really isolated. So I'm making now more an effort to create activity to help collaboration, socialization, making students talk to each other, getting to know each other, be comfortable around each other. That was something that I didn't need to do before. And now it's really clear effort that I have to put into any lesson, because the moment you say, okay, you have three minutes now, just need a break. They all go on their phone and I say, no, there's no phone. You either can walk, go to the bathroom, play with this ball, throw the ball, talk about anything. But it really has to be said before they would just go and talk with each other. Now you really have to remind them that that's a choice. And that's kind of sad.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:03] So is there anything that you're looking forward to in the department in the coming school year? I know we're going back to school in..this next week, in a few days. Yes. What what are you looking forward to the most?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:16] Oh, it's always exciting to go back to school to meet new students, new classroom, to see some returning students, and, you know, and just, I don't know, every a beginning of the semester is kind of, you know, a little anxiety because I never feel like I'm ready to start. But then the moment I get in the classroom and I see those faces, I just get all excited for them. And it's, you know, I'm always looking forward to the first day of class with a mix of anxiety, but excitement too. Yeah.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:50] How many classes are you teaching?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:52] Four.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:10:55] How big is the...well, which classes are they?
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:10:58] So one, it's a cross listed class with nutrition, food and science is the history, science and culture of Italian cuisine with 36 students so that it's a highly experiential classroom. We do tastings, we do recipes. So it's kind of challenging it's going to be interesting. So we have these many students, I usually have 30. It's not a big difference. But it is because the lab is still the same. So we'll see how it goes. And that's always fun to to teach. Tiring because it's a lot of work and that's and... It's a hybrid classroom. So we meet for discussion one day a week. The rest of the week they're prepared by themselves. The other two are language classes. One is a combine third and fourth semester together. So it's like the finishing of the basic sequence along with the fourth semester. So it's intermediate class, and then the last one is a literature class. So I'm really excited. I haven't taught this class for a while, so I'm really looking forward to it because I'm introducing the AI chat bot. So I can't wait to see how students interact with Dante or Boccacio in the AI chat bot as well. So I'm very excited.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:12:22] So it sounds like you're going to have a lot of students this year.
Silvia Giorgini Althoen [00:12:25] Yeah, it looks like I have at least 60. Yeah. Oh, yeah.
Taylor Claybrook: [00:12:33] That's very exciting. Do you have any other thoughts or questions that came up during the interview? [No.] Okay. I will stop.
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Citation
“Silvia Giorgini Althoen, August 21st, 2024,” Detroit Historical Society Oral History Archive, accessed April 29, 2025, http://detroit1967.detroithistorical.org/items/show/1058.