News

With more and more schools and universities closing due to the Coronavirus pandemic striking the world, the demand for online learning and distance education is rising.

Drs. Adrienne Brundage and Craig Coates recently led two webinars for the Entomological Society of America for both students and teachers to help them adjust to the online distance learning format that is in high demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coates said the ESA was looking for instructors willing to help hold a webinar to teach faculty and students about how to teach and learn in an online format.

Some of the resources available to teachers and students include images of insects and specimens using digital microscopy, lists of links for suggested equipment and software to purchase that are required for online learning, and resources on pedagogies and how-to teaching online materials.

“The primary goal was to provide some positive encouragement that it can be done, there are ways to adapt in-person lectures and labs to an online environment, and provide some tips on how to do so most successfully for our students,” Coates said.

Brundage has been teaching several of her classes online and wanted to share her experiences with others that are working on transitioning their face-to-face classes to an online format.

“I’ve taught online for around a decade now, and I have made A LOT of mistakes along the way,” Brundage said. “Since everyone is being thrown into this situation with little prep now (and when I made my mistakes I had the benefit of time!) I was hoping I could help them out and make the transition a bit easier.”

Both have heard positive responses from the total of 80 student and teacher students that made up the sessions on Thursday and Friday held via WebEx.

“I think both the students and the professors enjoyed the presentation,” Brundage said. “I really want to create a situation where we’re sharing resources and helping each other, because we will all benefit.”

Coates said this was a great way to help those to transition to an online format and to share learning experiences, as well as to create a central repository for instructors to use.

“I think was a good opportunity for those that may have suddenly been thrust into an online teaching role to get some ideas and best practices from our experiences,” he said.  “We are also creating a repository with shared resources, videos, photos, rubrics, teaching plans, case studies, etc, that faculty can use at other institutions and share into themselves.”

No, but use good judgment in avoiding bites from mosquitoes and ticks

by Laura Muntean, Texas A&M AgriLife Communications

At this time, there is no scientific evidence that COVID-19 is transmitted by mosquitoes and ticks, explained Texas A&M AgriLife experts.

“Ticks, like mosquitoes, are blood-feeding external parasites,” said Pete Teel, Ph.D., Texas A&M University interim head for the Department of Entomology in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.  “The viruses they are known to transmit to humans must survive and grow, or replicate, inside the tick as well as survive through tick developmental stages.”

Mosquitoes, ticks and other blood-feeding arthropods are vectors of other viruses and pathogens.

“People still need to exercise caution and good judgment in avoiding bites,” said Zach Adelman, professor in the Department of Entomology. “But there is no evidence that a coronavirus can survive being digested by a mosquito, let alone transmitted to another person.”

As a result of social distancing, people are also spending more time outside. This is understandable as many outdoor activities like running, biking, etc., are very compatible with social distancing, explained Kevin Myles, professor in the Department of Entomology.

“One unintended consequence of this trend is that people may be increasingly exposed to mosquitoes and other disease vectors as the weather warms. As a result, everyone should be reminded to wear appropriate clothing and insect repellant when spending time outdoors, as vector-borne diseases continue to pose a threat to public health, in addition to flu and COVID-19,” Myles said.

The virus is thought to spread mainly from person-to-person including people who are in close contact with one another—within about six feet—and through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs.

The World Health Organization has also reported there is no information nor evidence, at this time, to suggest that that novel coronavirus could be transmitted by mosquitoes.

The American Mosquito Control Association is monitoring the situation.

For more information regarding the Coronavirus, visit Texas A&M AgriLife’s Disaster Education Network.

To help prevent the spread and protect yourself, wash hands under soap and water for at least 20 seconds, use a hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol, avoid close contact and practice social distancing.