"Building the Plane While Trying to Fly": Exploring Special Education Teacher Narratives During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• In Event: Online Service Delivery and COVID-19: Special Education in Uncertain Times

Abstract

In March of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in unprecedented changes in public education. This study employed a qualitative narrative inquiry research design to explore special education teacher narratives related to their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Analysis of data from daily internship experience journals and virtual focus group sessions yielded three overarching themes, which are described using participant quotes to provide a framework for narrating the shared experience of these teachers. The collective narrative gathered from these teachers’ stories are critical to assisting teacher educators and school administrators in understanding practical considerations to inform preparation of special education teachers for future pandemics, similar crisis events, and/or for teaching special education from a distance (online).

Authors

• Heidi R Cornell, Wichita State University

• Donna M. Sayman, Wichita State University