In March, 2020, life as we knew it ground to a halt. Schools closed. We stopped visiting family. We stopped going shopping. We stopped going on play dates.
Life started to open back up a few months later, but the “return to normal” that we all hoped for has still not completely happened. This has had an incredible impact on children and education will need to pivot quickly in order to save this generation of learners.
Young children lack social skills and emotional regulation. Elementary children can be withdrawn and don’t have patience in interpersonal interactions. Early teens are searching for belonging. And our older teens have decided that they are not interested in participating in what our world has to offer.
While the parameters of our current situation are different than we have ever experienced, the solutions lie in so much of the learning that we already know. John Hattie’s research shows that teachers have the most influence on student learning. While this research is pre-pandemic, the power of a teacher cannot be diminished. In fact, it is the primary factor that will help our kids move through the challenges that reside from the pandemic.
Teachers are tired. They are frustrated. And they need support. But, teachers, and leaders, are the answer to the challenges we are facing in education. Teachers, because they have the power to ensure that every instructional experience is what kids need to prepare them for whatever is coming next in their lives. And leaders, because they set the expectations and then inspect what they expect in terms of instruction and the ways that we spend our time each day in school.
My message to teachers and to leaders is this: I know that the last 2 1/2 years have been unprecedented. I know that it’s not what you signed up for. But I also know that you signed up to make a difference. So, now is the time to re-up – to reconnect with the reason you started teaching or entered leadership in the first place. This generation of learners needs you desperately. They need your passion, your enthusiasm, and your undying belief that they are the solution to every social and political problem that we face. But, they won’t solve the problems of climate change and economic instability by sitting passively in your classrooms and listening to the lectures of days gone by. Today’s students need a fire lit underneath them and only teachers and leaders who have the belief and passion that will light that fire will be there to see that these covid kids are pretty special, indeed.
Let’s ignite!
