Teaching Trauma and the Effects of the COVID 19 Pandemic

Trauma and the Effects of the Pandemic on Teaching

Introduction

In one of the rare expectations in global history, more than 1.5 billion learners suffered a learning disruption due to the Coronavirus pandemic (Bozkurt et al., 2020). While at its peak, the Pandemic forced more than 180 countries across the globe to suspend learning and temporarily close schools, leaving 85 percent of learners globally out of school (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Most learners across the globe adopted distant learning away from their respective learning institutions through remote learning channels like radio, TV, internet, or their combination (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). As a result, inequality in access to data packages, devices to support remote learning, and data is one of the enormous challenges that has become evident (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). However, the marginalized, particularly students with disabilities or special educational needs, have become at more risk (Drane et al., 2020). Intersectionality with a disability, gender, ethnicity, age, and poverty can lead to several forms of exclusion and discrimination (Bozkurt et al., 2020). As a result, education, health, social protection, and other sectors must consider everyone when tackling the Pandemic to guarantee continuity of inclusive services to everyone. Takin, a bold step that bridges the growing inequality gap, is vital for the future (Dawadi et al. 2020). Otherwise, distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities.

Besides, opportunities for remote learning might not be accessible or available for several learners, necessitating various channels to share educational content in minority and local languages like using captions, sign languages, graphics, and audio (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Moreover, access to services that include support provided by resource personnel, assistive technologies, or meals is no longer available (Dawadi et al. 2020). Besides, most social and child protection services closed. Further, increased domestic violence makes people most vulnerable, particularly learners with various disabilities who suffer the most (Bozkurt et al. 2020). This results in more stigma among disabled children.

In addition, parents and caregivers of children with disabilities have found it challenging to provide exceptional services to these children for a more extended period than they were used to (Drane et al., 2020). Some caregivers are reported to have neglected such children; as a result, putting their public life, health, and social being at risk. Accordingly, there is a need to involve caregivers and parents in juggling several responsibilities at home (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). These parents with learners that require diverse learning needs due to disabilities struggle so much due to distant learning; hence, they require more support to help their children learn. Many parents resort to teachers to look for support (Bozkurt et al., 2021). However, those who cannot receive support from teachers depend on the communities (Drane et al., 2020). Therefore, learners’ well-being and education will likely be compromised without practical support and collaboration between parents and teachers.

Finally, this paper will discuss how covid-19 Pandemic enhanced the educational inequality gap for learners with disabilities in terms of educational opportunities, access to learning content, exclusion, and emerging educational barriers and challenges experienced by learners with disabilities.

Background Information

Learners with disabilities are the most vulnerable, encountering several forms of exclusion associated with health, social, equity, gender, and education. Those disabled children from low-income families highly feel this exclusion (Drane et al. 2020). Moreover, the learning and schooling deficit children with disabilities experience are the most challenging barrier to earning an income for their families (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). This affects communities, households, and individuals and contributes substantially to the nation’s human capital gap. Children with disabilities are likelier to be out of school, less likely to go to school, and less likely to finish primary school. Therefore, most likely lack basic literacy skills (Dawadi et al., 2020). The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the systemic inequalities in the protection and inclusion of disabled children.

Other than the closure of schools, the Pandemic also brought the global economy to a complete halt due to control measures (Drane et al., 2020). As a result, various inequalities for the marginalized groups, including children with disability. Due to the economic recession, governments redirected their financing priorities to meet urgent demand in the financial and health sectors (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). As a result, most children with disabilities, particularly from poor backgrounds, have suffered from nutritional deficiencies.

Besides, even before the Pandemic, children with disabilities experienced disparities in academic opportunities (Drane et al., 2020). For instance, most of them had a low expectation of educational achievement, tracking into less rigorous programs and courses, and less experienced teachers. For instance, many children with disabilities graduate from high school (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Such disparities, including an absence of opportunities for advanced learning, and quality content from well-trained teachers, have suffered harsh consequences like low college attendance rates, fewer chances of having professional skills required for success in a job or higher education, and reduced academic achievement.

The Paper’s Position

Distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities (Houtrow et al., 2020). Learners with disabilities, particularly those from low-income families, have encountered multiple significant vulnerabilities since the coronavirus. Most children with disabilities relied on a school to provide services like language and speech therapy, physiotherapy, rehabilitative care, and other services that ceased due to school closure (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). Moreover, children with disabilities have also faced additional barriers in accessing critical information related to public health in inclusive health care systems (Houtrow et al. 2020). Consequently, the lack of a robust basic health care system, control measures, and effective infection prevention added to the fact that primary health care centers are also minimizing the number of services provided substantially, and children with underlying health conditions are left at more grater risk to get infected.

Subsequently coronavirus pandemic has pushed many countries to adopt technology to recover from learning loss. Also, in several developing countries with low income, the distance learning perspective has been through digital online learning portals, broadcast media, and radio (Houtrow et al. 2020). Nevertheless, digital disparity among learners is influenced by access to the internet, teacher ability, electricity, and other equipment that have further scaled learning disparity, particularly for children with disabilities who have additional hindrances to accessing the content (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). The Pandemic has compounded exclusion causing 40 percent of learners with disabilities in the middle- and low-income areas to be left without any support in their education.

In addition, due to remote learning, learners with disabilities have been significantly excluded. For instance, several options for remote learning are not accessible to deaf and blind learners (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). As a result, they require additional support like sign language and simplified messages to understand safety and health measures (Houtrow et al. 2020). In some families, parents have been unable to support their children using Braille texts or sign language. As a result, these children with disabilities have not been able to learn at all compared to their counterparts (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Such a state not only stigmatizes them but also leaves them behind in academic and career growth.

The Pandemic has also exposed and widened the disabilities’ inequitable education opportunities (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). Previously, children with disabilities have been among the most marginalized and vulnerable populations. Unfortunately, the Pandemic has further contributed to this marginalization to more extraordinary lengths. The abrupt closure of schools affected most children with disabilities’ mental and physical well-being (Girelli, 2020). In return, they lost critical social, emotional, and cognitive learning and development opportunities (Houtrow et al., 2020). Caregivers and parents of children with disabilities have found it challenging to provide exceptional services to these children for a more extended period than they were used to. Some caregivers are reported to have neglected such children; as a result, putting their public life, health, and social being at risk (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). Accordingly, there is a need to involve caregivers and parents in juggling several responsibilities at home.

However, according to (Lei & Gupta, 2010), distant learning brought about by the Pandemic has offered learners with disability more convenience in getting an education. According to them, students who have been physically challenged no longer burden themselves with moving long distances that usually pressed them over time (Russ & Hamidi, 2020). According to them, 90 percent of disabled children do not even go to school due to the incapacity to travel long distances (Dawadi et al. 2020). They argue that commuting is why disabled students find it impossible to attend college or university because even though most of them might have a relative helping them gain access to a bathroom, moving up and down to classes every day is unbearable.

Nevertheless, Lei and Gupta’s use of one lens to make such a significant conclusion is biased and discriminatory. There is a range of learners living with disabilities apart from those physically impaired (Warren & Bordoloi, 2020). For instance, they never considered those learners with mental challenges, hearing impairment, or sight issues. Distance learning has subjected students with disabilities to further inequitable educational opportunities (Houtrow et al., 2020). Opportunities should be equitable to everyone. An opportunity that only benefits a small fraction of the population cannot be merited.