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A Case Study: Teachers at the Front Line of School Communities During Times of Crisis

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Transforming Teaching: Wellbeing and Professional Practice

Abstract

It has long been understood that teachers are the most important in-school factor influencing learner achievement, satisfaction, and happiness and are also pivotal members of the school community. Like schools, they have a key role to play when the community at large experiences stress, environmental degradation, natural disasters, economic hardship, rapid digitalisation, or breakdown. Yet, during the pandemic and other world events throughout history, teachers find themselves at the front line having to navigate all the responsibilities they were trained for in addition to maintaining calm and a sense of normalcy. This chapter will draw on international data collected during the 2020 pandemic and focus on the intertwining learning and wellbeing issues at the individual and societal levels that enable or hinder the education, learning, and wellbeing of individuals and communities. Drawing on my extensive research in teacher wellbeing, I argue that as the most critical in-school factor, teachers have a positive and productive role in maintaining and sustaining individuals and communities. This chapter will demonstrate that the links between learning and wellbeing are increasingly challenging in modern complex societies, which often juxtapose the demands for efficiency and the priorities set for educational sustainability.

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Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank the participants of this research study during COVID-19 in 2020. I would also like to acknowledge Dr Brendan Bentley from the University of Adelaide for his statistical assistance with the survey data and Associate Professor Mathew White for the joint concept of this research study.

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  1. School of Education, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Faye McCallum

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Correspondence to Faye McCallum .

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was approved by the University of Adelaide’s Office of Research Ethics, Compliance and Integrity (Approval No: H-2020-065).

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McCallum, F. (2022). A Case Study: Teachers at the Front Line of School Communities During Times of Crisis. In: Transforming Teaching: Wellbeing and Professional Practice. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4945-6_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4945-6_5

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