Covied-19 has changed the way we do business as a school. As the outbreak of the coronavirus escalates and many school leaders scrabble to revise the teaching and learning methods; one would be remiss not to consider the vulnerabilities of our at-risk students and families.Marginalized groups who are poor or stricken with poverty mindsets will face many challenges staying above the devastation that will come as a result of the coronavirus epidemic.For the sake of clarity let’s define poor vs. poverty. Poor is about liquid cash and assets. Poor means your resources are low, your money is low, and you have limited access to resources. Poor families still have family support, they still value education and are taught that education is the key to a better quality of life. Poverty on the other hand is a lack of something that you need on the inside. Poverty is embedded in crisis, trauma or a scarcity of life essentials. Poverty is a mentality tied to feelings wrapped in emotions. The lack manifest into a mindset that negatively impacts the mind, body and soul.Children in poverty don’t have access to reliable caregivers who offer a sense of stability and predictability. They typically come from single parent homes with parents who tend to be emotionally detached. Out of the impoverished mindset, a set of mental values have developed. These values play a significant role in how impoverished families interact with the educational system.
The mental values of the impoverished mindset are:·
Devalue of education- the impoverished mindset does not value formal education because to them it doesn’t fix the immediate. However, street education does, so more time is spent learning how to become street smart.
· Poor work ethic and attendance– the impoverish see work as a temporary fix to a current need. More time is spent on finding jobs vs. establishing careers. Personal needs determine how much effort is put into working and when to report to the job.
· Disrespect for the process- the impoverished mindset feels entitled to the systems that were developed out of welfare. When these systems are challenged or designed to generate change disrespect begin to surface.
· Difficulty following directions- Brain stems in the impoverished mindset during challenging moments will take flight, fight or freeze.
· Anger and hostility to authority figures-Two risk factors of poverty students are a lack of emotional and social structure and stress.
These students prior to Covid-19 spent large amounts of their daily life living in stressful settings. Many of these students suffer from acute stress that steam from some type of abuse, trauma or violence. For these kids being quarantine at home for the sake of being safe from Covid-19 may not actually be safe. Other students may suffer from chronic stressors which are high levels of stress sustained over a long period of time. These students will find it hard to focus on remote learning when they are focused on surviving. As educators we must consider the characteristics of marginalized groups when creating our distance learning plans.
Three active steps to take to assist at-risk groups with transiting to remote learning:
1. Build relationships with caregivers. We must stop calling distant/remote learning, homeschooling as they are not the same. Parents who homeschool make a conscious choice to do so. The closing of school and the implementation of remote learning due to coronavirus was not a choice made by any parent. At-risk populations often stem from parents who were also at-risk when they were in school. Therefore, distance learning plans should keep the bulk of the responsibility for the teaching and learning on the teacher. Parents become supporters of the process by ensuring their child are active participants in the online classroom. Don’t assume parents will know how to support online learning. Schools must develop parent expectations that clearly inform parents what to do to help the process. Remember if the impoverish mindset values show a disrespect for the process, then we must be intentional in creating an environment that will generate respect. This can be done by approaching parents in a non-threatening way. Consistently communicate the need for their help and partnership. Then provide resources that will develop a partnership relationship. Such as, calling to check on the family when students don’t show up in the virtual classroom. Providing simple step by step literature describing what parents can do to support the virtual classroom. Train parents on how to interact in the virtual classroom through virtual parent meetings. Use some of unallocated funding to purchase basic household needs such as toilet paper, paper towels, basic shelf life foods and attach incentives to parent attendance.
2.Check in on the wellbeing of your students daily- Every home situation is not safe and secure. Some homes prior to Covid-19 were filled with abuse and neglect. School was the safe haven for these children. At school students could escape from the stresses of home and receive hot meals. A national pandemic naturally causes stress levels to heighten as families deal with the uncertainties of what to expect daily, loss of employment, and financial stress. Create fun ways to check on the wellbeing of your students, by having students send you emoji faces depicting their current feelings. Include social and emotional lessons in the virtual classroom and use strategies such yoga or meditation.
3.Keep students engaged in positive experiences. Learning the curriculum is important use this time to be creative with designing learning experiences allowing students to be creative. Also find ways to keep the class together doing fun things such as movie night, virtual bingo, virtual spirit week or hosting a virtual day party.