POST COVID – 19 EDUCATION: IMPERATIVES FOR COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE IN TEACHING By Salihu Yahaya

(This paper was prepared for presentation at the INTER CONNECTED EDUCATOR – Unveiling of TeacherX.org (virtual) event of 5th December, 2020).

INTRODUCTION

The global system is currently assailed by the severe disruptions caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Though a public health crisis, the impact of this pandemic on education, transportation, manufacturing, tourism, and lifestyle is devastating.

The pandemic exposed the weakness and fragility of our Education system. Particularly, the lacuna in the area of the various linkages necessary for a robust collaboration required to provide quality teaching and learning in our schools.

Within the period of one year that the world has lived with this pandemic, the disruptions it has caused in the system will have long-term consequences, which will include but not limited to increase educational inequalities and poor performance.

The COVID-19 crisis however, gives teachers the opportunity to re-assess what type of teachers they want to be and what type of children they want for the future. One the platforms available to teachers to drive the new professionalism in teaching, in the Post COVID -19 Education system is a virile Community of Practice in Teaching.

IMPACT OF COVID 19 – on Education

One of the major fallouts of the COVID – 19 induced school closure and other incidental educational activities is the unique and critical role that schools play beyond students’ academic instruction, – the realization of the additional role in the provision of other critical services and support.

School closures and the resultant attempts to keep the learners engaged exposed several previously existing challenges.

Teaching and students’ assessments moved online, on an untested and unprecedented scale, with a lot of trial and error and uncertainty for everyone.

Teachers lost their autonomy and authority. What COVID -19 has brought about, are all alien to hitherto critical aspects within the teaching – learning setting. Indeed, pre-COVID -19 Educational setting are a near impossibility and/or too dangerous to maintain within the current situation

The current situation has compelled teachers to do something different post-COVID-19

TEACHING BEFORE COVID – 19

Teaching prior to the COVID -19 pandemic was characterised by, but not limited to; lecture throughout; taking care of the students’ entire day; focused on making students prepare for their exams; monitoring assignments – to assess students’ performance levels to ensure all the students perform equally; not keeping any visual aids or computer screens in the classroom; in some cases, charts, blackboards, and other digital tools are widely used; ensuring strict discipline; tendency to modify teaching style with group activities and learning.

TEACHING IN POST COVID – 19

Educators must now realize that times have changed – the learning system has/must change – e-learning must be in vogue, as it has found relevance, become popular and now almost mandatory.

There will be more workload due to the social distancing – teachers will have to put in more time – devise more effective teaching technics to save time/energy.

Teachers will need to exhibit great creativity – adopt teaching styles that will sustain the students’ interest – especially during e – learning lessons; they should also now have an opportunity to be more efficient by reconciling their professional and personal life; should be fun-loving; they should adopt a more inclusive and student-centred education, didactic methodologies, such as cooperative learning (based on student collaboration); provide a wide range of participatory activities, including debates, small working groups, authentic learning activities (concerning real-life situations), storytelling, role playing, educational games and simulations, audio and visual laboratories, or arts, music, theatre, and dance.

NEW FRONTIERS

These teaching requirements have fostered a new professional approach to teaching – which will rely heavily on the concept and models of Community of Practice in Teaching in respect of: selection, relevance, adaptation and presentation of content of knowledge; classroom management and learning assessment and evaluation.

Teaching based on a collaborative relationship amongst colleagues and teamwork as a major flank in the new approach to school management and teaching.

Teaching will feature a greater reliance on mentoring, leveraging on school based Continuous Professional Development.

There should also be the forging of new partnerships with parents, students, civil society organisations retired teachers, as well as bi – lateral and multi – lateral organisations.

Prominence of digital classrooms, with teachers who are internet savvy, digital experts and digital specialists. Teachers who are at home with the many online educational tools

The Post-COVID 19 Teachers require extensive exposure, in order to be primed for the unprecedented transition to the incorporation of E-learning or distance learning, strengthening of STEM and Computer Science Education, the mainstreaming of logic; critical thinking and problem – solving skills in learning; teaching of Coding and Basic Programming Skills; the inclusion of Robotics and Artificial Intelligences in the curriculum as well as the use of Learning Management systems to track both One – on – One and Online Learning.

CHALLENGES

Achieving the Community of Practice in Teaching through the Interconnected Educator concept should start with the dismantling of “silos” at policy and agency level. The current state of policy flux and weak inter agency coordination, disrupt connections, interrupt communications and interferes with collaboration.

It is also imperative that the Teacher Education Curriculum should factor – in elements necessary to produce X factor teachers – mainstreaming logic, critical thinking and problem – solving and computer skills.

CONCLUSION

The COVID -19 pandemic provide opportunity to reflect and address some of the issues which had impacted negatively on the Education system.

The identified gray areas that are required to adapt to the Post COVID -19 Education system largely fall within the scope of more collaborations and cooperative engagements by Education professionals.

It is therefore pertinent that a system that will leverage on stakeholders’ common concerns and passions, their interacting more robustly in sharing innovative ideas and solving problems, such as provided by the Community of Practice models will offer veritable platforms for quality Post COVID – 19 Education.

Stakeholders need to bear in mind that the success of the Community of Practice approach depends on how relevant its focal intervention areas are, the level of excitement it generates and the value it adds to the individual members and the system at large.

Finally, since this disease is not likely to disappear in the near future, proactive individual, corporate, national and international actions are required to save lives, protect economic prosperity and ensure sustain quality Education delivery.

Salihu Omehi Yahaya, Bsc (Hon), Ibadan; PGDE, ABU; MDS, NDA.
Teacher, School Administrator, Education Quality Evaluator, Development Policy Analyst and Climate Change Governance Expert.

https://katuka.info/2020/12/15/post-covid-19-education-imperatives-for-community-of-practice-in-teaching/

Lincolndemo

Lincolndemo (Olalekan Adeeko) is a Technology teacher. He teaches mostlyK-12

students. He is from Nigeria.