teaching

Compassion – Let’s Have More of That in 2023

/ Dave Eberwein / Leave a comment

Welcome to 2023!

Dr Bonnie Henry

Fingers crossed that we’ve turned a corner. What a memorable past 3 years these have been since the pandemic started. We have done very well as a school district and a province. Yes, there have been a few stumbles along the way, but overall, we’ve come through things really well. Not bad for not having ever gone through something like this before.

Yet, there is still criticism about how we handled the pandemic (perhaps some of it justified) but there has also been a lot of personal and negative attacks. And in particular, social media, has been the platform where comments can be ruthless, insensitive, often misinformed and sometimes threatening.

Here in BC, Dr. Bonnie Henry (the provincial health officer) has been a regular target of these attacks. Throughout these past 3 years she has remained a beacon of calmness, intelligence and thoughtfulness. You may have disagreed with some of her decisions, but she had the best interests of the people in her sightlines– and she did so professionally and consistently. In my eyes, she is a hero. And yet, there has been a rather continuous stream of callous, personal attacks on her character — much of it through social media.

That is unacceptable.

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“You People Are So Inspiring!” and Other Microaggressions

/ Dave Eberwein / 2 Comments

My daughter is studying to become a counsellor. She has an innate ability to connect with others, and in particular with children — I view her as a “child whisperer”. In her studies, they have been discussing microaggressions and she thought it would make a great blog topic. She was right!

Let’s start with a definition:

MICROAGGRESSION – A term used for commonplace daily verbal, behavioural or environmental slights, whether intentional or not, that communicate hostile, derogatory or negative attitudes towards stigmatized or culturally marginalized groups.

Remember, they can be intentional or unintentional slights. The important part is that they communicate negativity.

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The COVID Learning Loss and Catching Up

/ Dave Eberwein / 4 Comments

“COVID Learning Loss”

“Pandemic Delay”

“Student Learning Gaps”

I see and hear these catch phrases all the time. Just Google ‘COVID Learning Loss’ and you’ll see what I mean. Here’s a sampling of some articles that point out how learning has been affected during the pandemic:

Pandemic learning loss is real and kids need help to catch up, education experts say

Learning loss due to school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic

The pandemic has had devastating impacts on learning. What will it take to help students catch up?

As Superintendent, I hear about the COVID effects:

“How are you going to have students catch-up?

“Many students are further behind now than they would have been if the pandemic never happened.“

“What will you prioritize to make up the difference?”

“How will you accelerate learning so that they are up-to-date?”

I understand the concern being expressed. I do.

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