What Does Pandemic Privilege Look Like? The Exacerbation of the Public/Private Divide in Times of COVID-19

• In Event: Pedagogy of the Pandemic: What Teachers' Experiences Reveal About Educational (In)Equity and (In)Justice During COVID

Abstract

Purpose
This paper examines how the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated inequalities between public and private school systems around the world. The unprecedented shift to remote learning has pushed teachers and students into their homes to rely on their own access to internet and materials, making painfully clear the vast inequality in educational opportunities across the global public school/private school divide.

Theoretical Framework
The study is grounded in the literature on teacher practical knowledge and teacher inquiry, which positions teachers as intellectuals whose experiences and practical knowledge can and should inform teacher practice and policy. Teachers, therefore, are uniquely positioned to understand the educational inequalities brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 2010; 2015; Clandinin, Caine, & Lessard, 2018; Clandinin, 2019; Craig, 2018; Elbaz, 2018; Rosiek & Clandinin, 2016). This study asks: (1) what distinct kinds of challenges are teachers in both public and private schools reporting during this pandemic; and (2) how are teachers able to respond differently to challenges across such contexts?

Data sources and Methods
This paper draws on interviews with teachers in the United States, Mexico, Spain, South Korea, and Thailand that were part of a larger study engaging in-service teachers in semi-structured interviews via Zoom remote conferencing technology. The entire data set was analyzed to identify a variety of pandemic related challenges teachers faced. Particularly interesting cases and themes were selected for development, the public/private school divide being one.

Results and substantiated conclusions
Access to technology: Private school teachers have generally received professional development on integrating a variety of technological resources into the virtual classroom in ways that will enhance learning eve after a return to in-person learning. Teachers in international public-school contexts are often left without such guidance or technological resources.
Student engagement: The access to technology in private schools supports student participation, allowing teachers to focus primarily on academic concerns. International public-school teachers experience disturbingly low levels of student access to technology and thus participation. U.S. public school teachers appear to have stronger, though by no means uniformly adequate, support from their districts to support access to such resources.
Autonomy: Private school teachers have higher levels of autonomy regarding content, lesson-planning, and technology integration. U.S. public school teachers have considerable autonomy, however this is often experienced as a lack of support. Public schools in international contexts experience both a lack of clear guidance and prohibitions against independently making changes to respond their particular situations. These teachers often express feelings of abandonment and disregard by their educational administrators.

Implications and scholarly significance
The teachers in this study identified vast inequalities regarding access to technology and adequate professional development regarding its implementation, which have exacerbated inequalities in student engagement and participation. While teachers are best positioned to identify and act upon such inequalities, many are not provided with the autonomy to do so. This study provides insights on how the practices of United States public school teachers to respond to both academic and equity concerns could inform public schooling practices in international contexts.

Author

• Kevin Donley, University of Oregon