By Bruce J. Stewart
Are you a teacher, counselor, or educator? What will you celebrate today with your students or colleagues?
The English word, celebrate, differs only slightly from its Latin root, “celebrare.” “Celebrate” is derived from the Latin celebrare, meaning “to assemble to honor.” The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines celebrate as 1) to perform (a sacrament or solemn ceremony) publicly and with appropriate rites; and to honor (an occasion, such as a holiday) especially by solemn ceremonies or by refraining from ordinary business.
As schools begin to reassemble for in-person learning, it is time to celebrate. It’s time to honor the students for their forced resiliency. It’s time to welcome them back with gratitude and empathy for experiencing difficult and unique learning challenges. Without a doubt, the emotional capacity of teachers, parents, and students has been tested during the pandemic.
Some students may return to the classroom having embraced online learning which has accelerated their academic skills. Some students may return to the traditional classroom with observable academic advancement. However, many students may return to the classroom with their academic progress negated.
A child’s learning loss during the past 12 months can be attributed to several factors, including:
- inadequate or minimal access to online resources
- a chaotic home environment
- for older students, the necessity to work to help support family living expenses
- minimal encouragement and no emotional support from parents or guardians
- emotional harm stemming from Covid related trauma, i.e. death of a parent, grandparent, etc.
A child’s learning loss resulting from these factors presents new challenges for educators. The issues of educational equity and equality should be at the forefront as schools move towards “normalcy.” The new normal is likely to see even greater discrepancies in academic progress between students in the same grade level. The new normal will emphasize emotional support for students.
What steps should teachers and educators take to address these new challenges?
The restorative discipline philosophy offers a compassionate philosophy and methodology as students return to the classroom. The following suggestions will help teachers expand their outreach to welcome students and to ensure equitable access to resources.
- Understand that learning loss was an unintended consequence of remote learning through no fault of the student.
- Celebrate the presence of each student by honoring their return to the class community.
- Expect that some students will be suffering the trauma of the loss of a “loved one.”
- Share empathy for high school students whose employment contributed to the family income.
- Remember the following 4 super powers of teachers love, cheerfulness, faith, and enthusiasm.
- Explore, collaborate, and discover equitable resources within the school to help all students.
High school students returning to the classroom may carry additional work responsibilities in homes for which they have been providing financial support. This presents a unique situation. The family has relied on their income, yet their return to the classroom requires their daily presence at school. The additional strain on the student may jeopardize their academic success. A teacher’s empathetic understanding of this predicament by offering some flexibility in assignments can ease the student’s probable anxiety.
It’s also time to celebrate the resiliency and mental toughness of your colleagues. Reflect on your own personal and professional growth during the past year. Discuss with your colleagues how overcoming the adversities of the past year have opened your minds to new ways of thinking.
Ultimately, moving forward following trauma or adversity becomes a choice. However, the skills you have learned and the acquisition of greater mental toughness will facilitate greater teaching success. Your students, especially the young children who experienced learning loss will benefit the most.