A Light in Students’ Lives: K-12 Teachers’ Experiences (Re)Building Caring Relationships During Remote Learning

Karyn E Miller

doi:10.24059/olj.v25i1.2486

Abstract

This study illuminates the experiences of K-12 educators as they strove to (re)build caring relationships with students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was conducted during a graduate course for experienced K-12 teachers in the spring of 2020 at a four-year comprehensive university in the United States. Data was collected from reflective learning journals and asynchronous peer discussions, which captured educators’ experiences as they transitioned to remote learning in real-time. Qualitative content analysis was used to identify pertinent themes. Findings suggest that remote learning revealed relationships in need of repair. Educators practiced authentic care and cultivated connectedness by 1) acting as warm demanders, 2) responding to students’ social-emotional needs, and 3) trying to bridge the digital divide. The article concludes with implications for practice and areas for future research as schools, districts, states, and countries consider the “new normal” in K-12 schooling.

Highlights

This study illuminates the experiences of K-12 educators as they strove tobuild caring relationships with students during the COVID-19 pandemic
● How did educators establish and/or maintain caring relational bonds with students during remote learning?. This qualitative study is part of a larger action research project that explores the value of self and shared reflection in graduate teacher education. It was conducted during the spring of 2020 at a four-year comprehensive university in the southern region of the United States in an online asynchronous graduate course for certified, experienced K-12 teachers
Findings indicate that relational bonds and authentic care were at the forefront of educators’ concerns before and during the transition to remote learning

Summary

Introduction

This study illuminates the experiences of K-12 educators as they strove to (re)build caring relationships with students during the COVID-19 pandemic. While attention has focused on schools’ struggles to provide quality instruction and close the technology gap (Dorn, Hancock, Sarakatsannis, & Viruleg, 2020), limited research has examined how schools addressed students’ social and emotional needs for care and connection amid the pandemic. This study investigates this understudied area by illuminating educators' voices as they confronted the challenge of (re)building caring relationships remotely during the spring of 2020. The final section discusses the results in light of the existing research on caring online learning communities and concludes with implications for practice and further research

Methods

Results

Conclusion