The Social & Emotional Impacts of COVID-19 [Video]

This two-part video series follows my conversations with Dr. Robert Avossa. Listen in to hear us discuss how we can stay well - emotionally and socially - during this time. 

From daycare through to higher education, to say things look “a little different” this year would be a gross understatement. Last school year ended with remote learning, and it appears many of us are headed into another school year in that same fashion. Distance learning has been “crash-tested” so to speak, and many of us want to know just how effective it can be. That said, our team wanted to put aside conversations of academics and instead focus on the social and emotional impacts of distance learning. 

Watch and Listen to Our Conversation: Part 1

In the first part of our conversation, Dr. Avossa and I discuss the following:

• The essential function of schools and teachers, aside from education,
• How educators can connect with their students on things aside from regular coursework,
• Suggestions for parents to help their children cope during this time of change, 
• Tips for teachers,
• And alternatives to fully-remote education. 

Watch and Listen to Our Conversation: Part 2

In the second part of our conversation, Dr. Avossa and I discuss the importance of communication. In this video, you can specifically hear us talk about:

• Keeping the lines of communication open, 
• Finding support networks, 
• Discussions of internet connectivity issues, 
• Tips for teachers to be creative,
• And showing thanks, joy, and appreciation.

Dr. Avossa's Big Takeaways for Educators

If you’re an educator and do nothing else but skim through this post or the videos above, we hope you’ll take the following tips from Dr. Avossa to heart:

• Leaders: your actions matter now more than ever. Lean into your role.
• Communicate now more than ever.
• Educators: we must support one another, be honest, and hold ourselves accountable.
• Expectations are high, but mistakes will happen, and that’s okay.
• Don’t feel pressured to do something that is unsafe for your staff or for your students.