COVID Pedagogies: Tools, Content & Strategies

An essential resource for researcher and educators on how to conduct compassionate research based on the interconnected principles of critical thinking, self-knowledge and empathy. This approach treats research as intrinsic and self-evaluation as foundational to how students and educators conduct research. Drawing upon the teachings of bell hooks and Paulo Friere, compassionate pedagogy embraces the ability to relate to others unlike ourselves and helps students and teachers to develop a sense of their place in the world. This resource discusses the benefits of developing this awareness in conjunction with the desire to act for social justice. Compassionate pedagogy that emphasizes the ability to empathize with others, teaches students to be socially and culturally engaged agents of change that applies to all areas of research. Keywords: compassionate research, compassionate pedagogy, empathy, anti-racist pedagogy.
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This resource is for educational developers to use the material in this resource to equip faculty to transform classrooms in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement. Their teaching philosophy is influenced by Frank Tuitt, Paulo Freire and bell hooks on inclusive pedagogy, critical consciousness, critical race pedagogy and education as the practice of freedom. This resource highlights teaching strategies on centering Black voices and belonging in traditionally white classrooms. In their seven guiding principles, they discus bringing voiced and lived experiences in classroom curriculum, a need for an intersectional/interdisciplinary lens, active anti-racist action and leadership, creating identity-affirming and socially just learning environments, inhibiting courageous transparency by faculty and their assessment of positionality, and lastly to practice a resilient emotional labor of love, compassion and togetherness through learning.

Keywords: Black Lives Matter, compassionate pedagogy, critical race pedagogy.
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This resource is a part of a series of papers on the future of art curriculum. Educators Amelia M. Kraehe and David Herman Jr. discuss the implications of anti-black racism in art and art education. In the wake of Black Lives Matter, global protest and the current pandemic, they challenge what this means for art educators as leaders in the field. They share this powerful statement: “In short, as art educators, we can choose to either hold the lines of history by not putting ourselves in the turbulence of transformation, or step into a future that no longer settles for the status quo. Either way, the world will continue to turn, and time will continue to reflect our individual and collective willingness and unwillingness to act.” This resource is written with a sense of motivation and urgency, encouraging art educators to band together in solidarity to fight against racism through art education.

Keywords: BIPOC resilience, Black Lives Matter, critical race pedagogy
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Through the stories of seven Indigenous teachers from central Australia and their experiences, this resource challenges the current flattening of knowledge in colonial educational systems. Instead, they suggest the idea of “good faith knowledge’ and the generative potential of new knowledge produced through collaboration and difference, creating a post-colonial impulse where knowledges intersect without erasing the other. This resource highlights storytelling, dialogue and cultivation of disconcertment as tools for research and learning. At the time of Covid, this resource is highly useful in using the mechanisms and discussions here applied within the context of remote learning.

Keywords: Indigenous knowledge systems, decolonization, relational pedagogy
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This resource analyses the use of learning management systems (such as Blackboard) for cultural inclusivity needed for Indigenous students in digital learning environments. With a focus on holistic, social constructivist thinking, collaborative community-driven pedagogy versus self-focused pedagogy, this resource dispels some of the myths around cultural inclusivity in a detailed chart outlining the role of teachers, students, policy and pedagogy and perceptual gaps between western and non-western learning. They also suggest having a third space within LMS dedicated for cultural support.

Keywords: Indigenous knowledges, social constructivist learning, LMS, online community
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This resource discusses the impact of Covid from the perspective of an international student and their experience with being on lockdown while studying abroad. They highlight the vulnerability felt by students in their studies, both psychologically and physically, and the need for connection vs. connectivity in an online university setting. This is a useful resource for university educators with international students in their classes to understand their increased vulnerability at this time. Keywords: student and teacher well-being, international students
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Berry Barnett calls for cross-sector collaboration among schools, universities, nonprofits, and other organizations that serve to support students and teachers through and post the pandemic. This article challenges how standardized curriculum through preK-12 and university education isn't conducive to the learning environment, especially in times of crisis. Instead they call for a shift to a whole-child approach to education. This article outlines how the pandemic potentially can be the push for change in support of integrated systems, collaboration and care for the future of education.

Keywords: student and teacher well-being, community education
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This resource discusses digitally networked learning environments in comparison to studio-based pedagogy and the inherent barriers of switching from to studio pedagogy to art and design education online. They discuss student feedback which reported a need for idea exchange, feedback and direct collaboration and most importantly — a sense of class community and connection. This resource highlights social constructivist thinking to support students. They map out a format for knowledge exchange between the individual student, the group and objects in design. They suggest using learning management systems with multiple communication channels to build both independent and interdependent learning through relationships and community learning.

Keywords: community education, social constructivist learning, online community, Covid pedagogy
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This resource explores what policymakers can do to prepare educators to get through these challenging times, with hindsight to the impact of Covid on student/teacher needs. In this article, they address student’s academic and social, emotional needs and also for teacher support and well-being. They discuss how educators will need to be able to engage students in their own inquiry and learning, be healing and trauma informed in their practice and be prepared for inequities that surface. They make suggestions on supporting educators with emphasis on collaboration time and finding meaningful connection to other educators, accessibility to resources/organizations that support physical and mental health, and mentoring new teacher roles.

Keywords: student and teacher well-being, community education, educational policy, Covid pedagogy
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This resource discusses the socio-economic challenges of Covid and its impact on teacher learners, students and faculty at Simon Fraser University. They discuss how the circumstances of the pandemic bring a pressing need for socio-emotional wellness, support and connection in online learning/teaching. They question what kind of educator do our students need us to be at this challenging time? What support do they/I need to ensure that connection, community and care of self and other are met? They suggest strategies to address heightened responsibilities towards vulnerable students, suggesting strategies such as the use of pass/fail option over letter grades. This resource highlights the possibilities of education post Covid, such as enhanced learner autonomy and positive change in regards to the climate crisis. This resource proposes steps to working towards a new “normal” in education that embodies intersectionality and care. Keywords: teacher and student well being, critical race pedagogy, online community, decolonization.
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This resource identifies the key factors and attributes specific to studio based pedagogy that have been effected by the switch to online platforms, such as the need for collaborative peer learning and material exploration. Using Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as a research framework, they share their findings from a detailed survey for university students from year 1-4 and faculty members about their use of technological platform and tools, artistic production and experiences working from home. This tool helps educators to understand the needs of students to integrate their learning goals with external lives in navigating new digital learning environments.

Keywords: Studio pedagogy, Covid pedagogy, online community
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This resource looks at student/supervisor relationships within studio pedagogy. One of the main components of studio based pedagogy is the close relationship between the supervisor and the student and their engagement with their works in progress. This article discusses a variety of common constructions and structures of teaching in art, design and architecture, unpacking the complexities of student development and learning. This article is useful for both teachers and students in art education to reflect on the learning/teaching styles they’ve adapted, and from this awareness move forward past restrictions and potentially create new pedagogies for more fulfilling and autonomous learning models.

Keywords: studio based pedagogy, art education, new learning models
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This resource discusses research collection, distribution of digital information and censorship and its effect on educational research and students post Covid. This resource outlines tips and strategies for students and teachers to conduct critical research skills and gathering digital information. This resource warns about the dangers of fake news and the spread of misinformation and weaponization of data through social media platforms, the use of AI and deep fakes for computational propaganda, and AI algorithms in public search engines. Black also shares digital student research creation projects on art and the Anthropocene in addressing digital deceit. In the move to online learning, students will be faced with conducting their own research through online databases. This can be overwhelming for students and can lead to information overload. This resource will help teachers to prepare their students on how to analyze their sources and becoming accountable agents in their own learning.

Keywords: student agency, censorship, research-creation, digital art, creative responses
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In this resource George Seimens shares a learning theory defined as “Connectivism”. He discusses how learning patterns have changed since we have entered the digital age effecting the way students experience learning. They emphasis constructivist thinking and real life learning as an example of how students pursue their own learning through actively seeking to make meaning and connections in the constant flux of their lives. Connectivism is the integration of principles explored by chaos, network, and complexity and self-organization theories. This theory aims to prepare students to be life-long learners through shifting environments by encouraging students to be agents in their own learning, with focus on the pursuit for knowledge instead of adapting to set conditions and relying on what they already know. Connectivism begins with the reflection of the individual and extends to their surrounding network, to learn through relationality in evolving communities of learning.

Keywords: social constructivist learning, online community
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This resource shows an interesting case study of online participatory art practices in China published through social media platforms under the hashtag “anti-pandemic”. People take to these online platforms to share paintings, posters, clippings, and music postings of everyday life from various personal locations. These artworks act as a collective form of resilience against the hegemonic norm of narratives in art pushed forward by an authoritative government and ruling institutions. This resource highlights the power of the ordinary and everyday lived experiences in art to generate public compassion and connection in a global pandemic and the empowering possibilities from exhibiting art through online platforms.

Keywords: creative responses, BIPOC resilience, pandemic art, creative responses
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In an open call for papers on “The Future of Art Curriculum”, this resource the highlights the conversations, pedagogies, instructional resources and tools for assessment from futures thinking educators and artists. Kraehe speaks about her own experiences with teaching in collaboration with her colleague and their experiences with the transition to online teaching, where they saw an opportunity to offer students a curriculum that would help both students and teachers cope with their various dislocations through their art assignments in class. In this resource, she shares student work and their creative responses.

Keywords: Covid pedagogy, online community, collaboration, art education, creative responses
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This website compiles a list of free digital resources based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to teach people about anxiety and how to cope.

This website shows three artists from Toronto and the documenting new work and how Covid changed their practice.

This curriculum document discusses my experience with hosting online open studio sessions that foster a designated space for classroom connection and community building.

This short article shares some advice for students/teachers adjusting to online learning platforms. It acknowledges the sudden shift to online learning as emergency remote teaching and learning.

This short Ted Talk explores the need for support and resources for teachers and their well-being from the “secondary trauma” and “compassion fatigue” felt from supporting student trauma.

An online resource/discussion page for faculty of studio based art and design instruction to share strategies, pedagogy and support for instruction in the age of “Social Distancing”.

A guide to avoiding “creative savior complex” when working on social impact projects.

A collection of observations, speculations, and hopeful propositions by OCAD Faculty Association members in times of COVID-19.

A compiled list of online instructional resources and for augmenting and enriching art education programs from K-12 and beyond. Includes ideas for instructional art exercises, artists, museums and films online.

A list of online resource links, articles and organizations for educators to talk about race and social justice through art with their students.

An Instagram page community page for educators and the latest in social justice work.

A written reflection on Covid, colonialism and resillience written by Toronto writer M. NourbeSe Philip.

This podcast episode discusses the relationship between stress and the emotional effects on our bodies, discussing ways to work through and complete the cycle of stress in order to recover and heal. The strategies they suggest for working through stress involve physical activity, breathing, positive social interaction, laughter, affection, crying, creative expression and imaginative thinking.