‘Like a rug had been pulled from under you’: The impact of COVID‐19 on teachers in England during the first six weeks of the UK lockdown

Abstract

Background. On 20 March 2020, in response to COVID-19, UK schools were closed to most pupils. Teachers were required to put remote teaching and learning in place with only two days' notice from the government. Aims. The current study explores teachers' experiences of this abrupt change to their working practices, and during the 5-6 weeks that followed. Sample. Twenty-four teachers from English state schools were interviewed, representing mainstream primary and secondary schools and a range of years of experience and seniority. Methods. Participants were asked to tell stories of three key scenes during the first 5-6 weeks of lockdown: a low point, a high point, and a turning point. A reflexive thematic analysis of their narratives was conducted. Results and Conclusions. Six themes were identified: uncertainty, finding a way, worry for the vulnerable, importance of relationships, teacher identity, and reflections. Teachers' narratives suggest that, after an initial period of uncertainty they settled into the situation and found a way forward, supported by strong relationships. However, they remain extremely worried about the most vulnerable pupils and want more joined-up thinking from the government on how to support them effectively, along with clarity from policymakers to enable planning ahead. Teachers reflected on how to use their learning during this period to improve pupils' experiences of education post-COVID-19, and on how aspects of shared teacher identity have worked as stressors and coping mechanisms. These initial interviews form the baseline for a longitudinal interview study of teachers' experiences of COVID-19 in England. On 20 March 2020, after the announcement of a national lockdown, England's schools were closed to all pupils other than key workers' children and those deemed vulnerable. By this date, schools in 137 countries were closed as a result of COVID-19 (The World Bank, 2020). These decisions have affected 1.5 billion students around the world and 11.2 million primary and secondary school pupils in the UK (The World Bank, 2020; UNESCO, 2020a). This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

The Psychological State of Teachers During the COVID-19 Crisis: The Challenge of Returning to Face-to-Face Teaching

“…From that moment, a strict lockdown began, and Spanish children and adolescents were confined to their homes for more than 6 weeks ( Idoiaga et al, 2020a , b ), after which a de-escalation phase began in which the restrictions were gradually eased until the beginning of July ( Gobierno de España, 2020a ). Therefore, school and university teaching were transformed overnight into a virtual modality and remained this way throughout the 2019–2020 academic year ( Al Lily et al, 2020 ; Besser et al, 2020 ; Kim and Asbury, 2020 ).…”

“…United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) (2020a) has already identified confusion and stress among teachers as being one of the adverse consequences of school closures, due to the abruptness of such measures, uncertainty about their duration, and a lack of familiarity with distance education. The unpleasant work-related emotions associated with the depletion of psychological resources has long been a topic of frequent discussion among education professionals, policy makers, and researchers ( Kim and Asbury, 2020 ). This may occur because the long-term nature of the problem leads to exhaustion by creating less confidence in their ability to do their jobs and makes it more difficult to manage student behavior ( Burić and Kim, 2020 ).…”

Desafios do processo ensino aprendizagem frente à pandemia do novo coronavírus

“…Em dezembro de 2019, surgiu o novo Coronavírus na cidade de Wuhan, Hubei, China, o coronavírus 2019 causado pelo SARS-CoV-2, e a partir de então gestores locais e nacionais vem aderindo a parâmetros econômicos e sociais como solução ao surto da doença, fez-se necessário muitas mudanças inclusive na educação que certamente exigem esforços físicos e mentais, à medida que a pandemia vai avançando faz-se necessário com urgência estratégias de engajamento por ambas as partes, pois o ensino a distância é um obstáculo frente as diferentes condições socioeconômicas de muitos alunos e professores (Bezerra 2020;Kim & Asbury , 2020).…”

“…Instituições educacionais, Faculdades e Universidades estão em confronto com uma sucessão de obstáculos profundos e difíceis no curto prazo, porém a ameaça maior está presente nos efeitos em longo prazo da pandemia. As condições de vulnerabilidade de jovens e crianças frente ao ensino a distância são considerados os maiores obstáculos a serem enfrentados pelas escolas e professores, os mesmos se sentem inoperantes em amparar aqueles que mais necessitam de atenção e envolvimento (Kim & Asbury 2020;Oliveira et al,2020). O fechamento das instituições de ensino teve impacto considerável na educação em vários países, mas necessário para redução do risco de contaminação da doença, em consequência dessa medida outras estratégias tiveram que ser adotadas como o uso das tecnologias remotas, que vem sendo uma ferramenta reguladora no processo ensino aprendizagem, e uma complementação aos demais métodos de ensino (Bezerra, 2020).…”

Beyond the School Walls: Keeping Interactive Learning Environments Alive in Confinement for Students in Special Education

“…School closure has aroused serious challenges for students, teachers, and families, as the shift toward an online education has not been easy to adapt for any of them (Cen et al, 2020;Kim and Asbury, 2020). However, those students with special educational needs (SEN) and their families are facing even greater problems.…”