Teacher Stress, Coping, and Resilience During Winter Storm Uri in Conjunction With COVID-19

• In Event: Educational Stress During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Objectives
While COVID-19 has introduced specific stressors to teachers such as increased concern for students (Middleton, 2020) and personal well-being (Walsh, 2020), the compounded effects of Winter Storm Uri resulted in an exacerbation of stress experienced by Texas teachers. The experiences of teachers during covid-19 in conjunction with Winter Storm Uri, where many teachers lost power, water, and the ability to communicate with others, allow us a unique opportunity to explore teaching during a collective and compounded traumatic event.
Theoretical Framework
One way to investigate the relationship between teacher stress and coping during the storm is through the transactional theory of stress. This theory states that the more coping resources one perceives themself to have, the more likely one will be able to cope effectively with perceived stressors (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Brencio & Novak (2019, p.11) state that traumatic events can affect our ability to cope and “make an individual feel emotionally, cognitively, and physically overwhelmed.” Both Covid-19 and Winter Storm Uri fit the definition of a traumatic event due to the potential risk towards life (APA, 2013) and can be seen as an increased stressor that affects their coping resources for the already high demands of teaching. Despite the high levels of trauma and stress, resilience, or “the positive adaptation despite experiencing adversity” was still shown throughout many teachers in our analysis (Herrman et al. 2011, p.2).
Methods and Data Source
This study sought to understand teachers’ lived experiences during Winter Storm Uri while teaching in a pandemic. Specifically, we addressed questions of how teachers' coping abilities were affected during the storm, how their stress was manifested during the storm, and how the storm impacted their work and daily lives. This qualitative study of K-12 teachers was done through online surveying of teachers in a large public school district in central Texas. Using grounded theory, the research team gathered monthly qualitative data on how the pandemic affected teachers as part of a larger study and inquired about how the winter storm had affected their work as a teacher in February when the storm occurred.
Results and Significance of the Study
The information provided from this month introduced distinctive impacts that were due to the combination of the storm and the ongoing pandemic. We relied on thematic analysis to establish five main categories that emerged as a result of the teachers’ reported experiences during the compounded, traumatic events, which is imperative to understanding the role of collective trauma in schools. These categories include instructional impacts, administrative and district factors, psychological impacts, basic resource impacts, and concern for others. With the already high demands of the teaching profession and high turnover rates in the field, these added stressors created an even more chaotic environment that affected teachers’ ability to cope effectively due to the increased demands of teaching during covid-19 and the limited resources teachers had access to during the storm.

Authors

• Sarah Kelton

• Abbie Balat, University of Texas at Austin

• Cassandra Gearhart, University of Texas at Austin

• Madison Blaydes, The University of Texas – Austin

• Christopher J. Mccarthy, The University of Texas at Austin