March 16th marked the 1-year anniversary of our Education for Change schools’ transition into distance learning. Back then, the thought of returning to in-person school after Spring Break of 2020 was considered possible... However, it is now Spring Break 2021, where we find ourselves on the cusp of returning to schools partially re-opening.
The opportunity to reconnect with students, their families and our school colleagues in-person elicits excitement after a year of distance learning. Finding ways to provide play and art therapies virtually; pushing into student’s Zoom classes to provide behavior interventions; striving to connect with students who go video off/mute and communicate through the Chat; parents working while having their children at home, experiencing Zoom fatigue; and redefining boundaries while working from home, are some of the many ways we’ve adapted to working completely different from what we’ve known. Adapting to this setting has been an ongoing process and required much effort, creativity, flexibility, and persistence to support our students while also witnessing the impact of the pandemic on our communities.
Within these adaptations we have also found silver linings such as: time saved not commuting; opportunities to take a walk during the workday; more autonomy over daily schedule; the ability to jump on a Zoom call when setting up an in-person meeting would be complicated and being able to work outside of the Bay Area if needed. After a year, we have gotten used to some of these silver linings while also finding ways to connect “good enough” with our students, their families, and colleagues. The excitement of returning to in-person may be counterbalanced by the loss of what we have gotten used to, along with additional questions regarding safety and uncertainty of what re-opening will look like.
With so many details getting figured out (which students return, what will the schedules look like, what space will I have, will students have the support they need, is it safe enough, etc.?), this can be overwhelming to hold all at once. As I hear these questions, three thoughts come to mind:
- Adapting to change, even a change we want, takes energy.
- Tolerating uncertainty is hard and takes energy.
- Staying grounded in our locus of control is helpful, but at times. is easier said than done.
Blog Post Written By: Mark Thibedeau, Clinical Supervisor
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