How Access to Technology Affects WA Student Wellbeing in a Pandemic

By Alice Hall

Much of our daily lives have been impacted by the global pandemic of the Coronavirus.  Separate to developing and implementing new approaches to teaching and learning via digital platforms, many teachers have found themselves reflecting on their states of wellbeing and resilience as education professionals, not to mention the effect the last 12 months has had on our students.  As a result, our understanding of ‘wellbeing’ has arguably taken on new dimensions and played a different role in our lives of late. Previously, comfort, socialising and fun occurred in person, in community and in other physical social environments. Now, many of these elements are restricted, and technology is playing an increasingly bigger role in our lives (Gupta and Pathania 2020).

Technology can contribute through a myriad of ways to student learning and wellbeing, affecting engagement, progress and social interaction (Cheng and Chau 2009). Many different education technologies have been developed, including online forums such as Microsoft Teams, Firefly and Moodle, student websites including SchoolTube and creativity applications such as LifeForms (Parrish 2016). It is the Coronavirus pandemic, however, that has changed how we as educators use technological applications to support student learning, and indeed many educational platforms have increased and improved their provision throughout 2020. Burgeoning educational technologies available to educators such as Google Classroom are becoming increasingly important (Zhang 2016), and it could be argued that these platforms are used not just for student learning, but also for social interaction and well-being.

As part of the research for this article, over 50 students, teachers and members of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) were surveyed at Westminster Academy. Many different thoughts and opinions about technology, wellbeing and the pandemic emerged, but what was a clear theme across all demographics was the issue of mental health, and how crucial effective management of our mental health is at this time. Members of SLT discussed concerns over student and staff mental health, teachers consistently referenced the importance of allowing for support of student mental health and wellbeing during lessons, and learners showed clear consideration of how their mental state and welfare is affected on a day-to-day basis.

It is clear that educators are considering how this increased access to technology can impact upon student wellbeing during the pandemic. Clearly new management of our wellbeing has arisen, so How can we use technology to help our wellbeing?

Teachers at WA are well aware of the increased knowledge needed to support student mental health and wellbeing in 2020. One teacher said it is necessary for educators to be “physically, mentally and emotionally healthy to do the job of teaching. This could mean having prepared and thought about the lesson deeply enough to execute it calmly and effectively… [things like] sufficient sleep, food and mental rest to regulate our emotions effectively and be able to manage and support a class of young people, are important at this time”. Another teacher stressed the need for educators to upskill, stating multiple things had helped her develop her practice across the pandemic, “Having the technology skills to be able to use the various mediums and resources, or the time to be able to upskill through training [is important]. The physical space and infrastructure to teach (quiet, desk, appropriate chair, reliable broadband et cetera)… and the mental capacity to be able to approach this with ingenuity, positivity, enthusiasm”. The physical demands of online teaching were also noted; “hours on Zoom is not good for the eyes, head or back!”. Students also offered their opinions on what it meant for teachers to be fit for practice at this time, with one student stating “it really does depend on which student you ask. Personally, I think live online lessons is probably the best for supporting the wellbeing for students (to some extent)”.

There are, of course, benefits to increased access and provision of technology to support our students and their wellbeing (Gupta and Pathania 2020). One member of SLT wrote of the sense of community they felt when seeing over 100 students on a Zoom call, and of the benefits to their wellbeing the continued sense of structure offered. There are challenges to providing this provision, such as the reticence of students to turn cameras on during Zoom calls, but overall the belief was held that this act of community, bringing learners together through technology, supported the wellbeing of students and made them feel as though they were not alone whilst in isolation. Other educators and members of SLT also agreed upon the benefits online events and performances could offer, stating “Online physical activities have also helped with students’ health… Last year I also arranged for instrumental lessons to continue to support with the students’ wellbeing.” Additionally, “some students thrive in an independent learning setting, particularly those that feel confident using digital tools and are highly competent computer users. Many enjoy the ability to work at their own pace and have a high degree of anonymity (e.g., doing work and asking questions without potential embarrassment from their peers). Online opportunities can enable access to cool interactive opportunities and have an element of community in the ability to collaborate easily with others. However, I feel many students still feel isolated and sometimes online opportunities heightens their sense of feeling alone when they’re at their laptop and know they can’t always be seen or heard”.

Overall, there was a sense that online activities added value for young people learning from home, and many different teachers and members of SLT alike noted the positive elements of routine, social interaction and a sense of purpose they offered, “online school has allowed me to shift my attention from the bad things that are happening during the pandemic” and “it lets me focus on things other than Covid-19 or the pandemic which is good for my mental health”. Others also noted the power of a friendly face; and spoke of the impact simply seeing their peers and teachers on a regular basis has for wellbeing. 

There are also many challenges to provisions offered online during the pandemic, and no doubt many of us have experienced these first-hand. Members of SLT spoke of the challenges to student reading comprehension levels when teaching online as well as encouragement of learners with low self-esteem. One teacher spoke of how challenging they found it to differentiate during their lessons, noting that “it is difficult to differentiate online because we just do not have that face to face contact; we cannot check for misconceptions easily and we cannot check students are focusing on the work and trying hard. I think we should accept it is never going to be perfect online, however I do [think] that consistency with lessons, well-planned lessons, regular feedback and high expectations are imperative to ensure all students remain engaged.” WA students themselves were also keenly aware of the challenges of utilising technology and online classes for learning: “online school generally felt like a blur…we have missed out on so much school which has caused us to fall behind”. Conversely, students surveyed were aware of the importance to the wellbeing of the community as a whole. One GCSE student wrote “I think it’s good we are not going [to school] as it’s better to save lives rather than give kids education in person. Online lessons at least are somewhat effective”.

Overall, most members of the WA staff body surveyed were keen to make the best of the situation, provide as high a quality of instruction to learners as possible and safeguard student wellbeing and mental health. Accessing trained mental health professionals was listed as vital from several respondents, as well as online based opportunities such as dance lessons, online sessions and exercise clubs. Teachers consistently spoke of the need to be able to adapt to the current situation and develop their existing skills in an online medium (Zhang 2016). One educator said they liked that there was a “huge development in the confidence of staff in utilising digital teaching tools… An increase in risk-taking from staff, forced to try out new things or to rethink routines or styles of teaching which cannot be easily replicated online, and a greater willingness to share practice and ideas, irrespective of experience level”.

It was clear across the staff surveyed that student wellbeing was at the heart of their priorities when moving their classes online, and the mental health and wellbeing of young people was expressly stated as a key factor of online provision offered. Recommendations included to “have small group or one to one chats so they feel more supported personally or have an opportunity to talk more informally. Support for how to manage their time and mental health in lockdown that is more hands on, having students do online workshops which are more practical e.g., cooking, exercise, anything physical to help them get away from just typing”. Another recommendation given was to focus on students’ sense of wellbeing; “Teachers and students, we all have to learn to move forward within the current teaching context of Covid-19, so that when everything opens up, we don’t necessarily go back to where we are”. Other suggestions to support student wellbeing included “I think personal response really helps, sharing your day and how you're feeling; allowing students to realise that they're not alone. I do think more can be done on this e.g., one TTB a week where you're able to just chat/go into breakout rooms as they would in the [physical] classroom.” WA students also had clear opinions on how they would like to proceed moving forward in these uncertain times: “I guess to just understand that people (especially teens) are more likely to be stressed and not really in a good mental state while being forced to stay at home so to just be mindful of that… I fear that this new normal [will] become a literal normal”.

However, it was the words of one member of SLT that rang true when considering the needs of young people’s mental health and wellbeing at this time: “[I just want to give] reassurance that everything will be ok”.

Reference List

• Cheng, Gary, and Juliana Chau. ‘Digital Video for Fostering Self‐reflection in an ePortfolio Environment’. Learning, Media and Technology, vol. 34, no. 4, 2009, pp. 337–350.

• Gupta, Adit, and Pathania, Pooja. ‘To Study the Impact of Google Classroom as a Platform of Learning and Collaboration at the Teacher Education Level’. Education and Information Technologies, vol. 1, no. 1, 2020, pp. 1-15.

• Parrish, Mila. ‘Toward Transformation: Digital Tools for Online Dance Pedagogy’. Arts Education Policy Review, vol. 117, no. 3, 2016, pp. 168–182.

• United Kingdom Government. Guidance for full opening: Schools. https://www.gov.uk/government/ publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schoolAccessed 3 Jan 2021.

• Zhang, Michael. Teaching with Google Classroom. Packt Publishing Ltd, 2016.