Schools are up to COVID-19 challenge

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/09/2020 (1471 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THEY are here again: those frosty September mornings when the air tells you it’s time to go back to school. Since I was a kid, and for many years since then as an educator, I have loved the feel of that air. It has meant hope, excitement and new beginnings.

As we all know, this year is shaping up to be different than those past, and those feelings of optimism have had to contend with the collision of doubts, anxiety and uncertainty.

Unlike the lead-up to previous school years, I spent many mornings this August shifting tables and chairs around, criss-crossing through hallways from one room to another, metre-stick in hand, to ensure that rooms were safely in place for the return of their occupants.

As I set up the “frontline” troops on my office desk — chocolate, a bhudda board, Kleenex and temporary phone stand — I took a minute to soak in the two newly minted items, casually added to the scene, that will rest beside the staples this year: a box of disposable masks and an extra large bottle of hand sanitizer. It was a strange sight, indeed.

We know this is a time of great uncertainty, and that means varying degrees of anxiety and feelings of unrest as well. We educators feel it, too. However, we have proven time and again that we know how to come together and support each other in times of need. This year, schools across the country, I have no doubt, will simply reinforce and build on the level of care we have for one another.

This notion of community, which we so desperately need right now, and its importance in our day-to-day lives, has me thinking about a Social History of Canada class I took at Carleton University during my undergrad. It was there I first learned about the once widely popular, community-oriented activity of “barn raising.” The idea was simple: all of those capable of physical labour throughout an entire community would get together and, well, raise a barn. When the next person in the community needed help, folks gathered again.

As we all know, this year is shaping up to be different than those past, and those feelings of optimism have had to contend with the collision of doubts, anxiety and uncertainty.

You were pleased to help build for your neighbour because it was not only good for the community as a whole, but you knew it was good for you, too. It was this type of mentality, one that shared a common vision, purpose and practical need, that allowed communities to prosper. It was the idea that when we all lend a hand, we are all better off as a result.

I have, admittedly, grown more concerned in recent years at a trend in our society that focuses us on individualism rather than collectivism. It is a state of mind that tricks us into believing that we are better off dwelling on our own interests, rather than those of neighbours, friends and colleagues as well. It’s a notion that many historians have used to distinguish Canadians from our neighbours to the south, which has longed served as a source of national pride.

I spend my days in a school, a place where people work, play, and grow. It’s a place where people who crave a better future push back against this thinking that makes us feel as though we have lost our way. I see young people, with brilliant ideas, big hearts and bold character, work tirelessly to try and build a better world for themselves and those around them. Today’s young people are courageously taking on the challenges that the world is throwing at them, and they do so with tenacity, skill and kindness.

We have not seen our students in schools since March. It’s a painful reality that might make the first week of school feel more emotional and strange than ever before. Regardless of how we may all feel personally about policies and provisions related to COVID-19 planning, one thing is for sure: our resolve to come together as a community will only be strengthened by the hope that young people bring us, day after day.

This year is not about COVID-19. We can’t let it be. It is a reality we must live with — and we will — along with all of its emotion-provoking side effects, but at the core of every day in our schools will still be a strong, smart, and caring group of kids, ready and eager to raise a barn.

I am wishing the best to all parents, students and staff as we enter this chapter that will require calm, co-operation and community to ensure that we make it as successful a year as can be. Let’s remember, as the great saying goes, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

Ben Carr is principal of the Maples Met School in Winnipeg.