Date of Conferral

10-3-2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Human Services

Advisor

Gregory Hickman

Abstract

Teachers in predominately Black schools had limited access to mental health resources during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this generic qualitative study was to explore how the response to COVID-19 affected the mental health and well-being (MHWB) of teachers at predominately Black schools during the pandemic to gain an in-depth understanding of their experiences regarding MHWB. The study participants were eight teachers at various schools in the state of Alabama. The goal was to understand how teachers experienced MHWB support during the COVID-19 pandemic, how teachers’ MHWB were affected when there were rapid adjustments to curricula changes, and how policies related to specific adaptations could be improved. The critical school mental health praxis framework was used in this study. Data collected from one-on-one, semistructured interviews underwent coding, mapping, and thematic analysis. The five themes discovered during data analysis were as follows: (a) teachers’ health was negatively affected by the pandemic; (b) access to needed resources was seminal; (c) students were disconnected from learning; (d) school leadership experienced challenges adapting to pandemic-related changes; and (e) uncertainty affected teachers, students, and families. The findings reinforce the need for a more equitable and diverse educational system to promote teacher MHWB. Policymakers, administrators, and community stakeholders should develop contingency plans, which include mental wellness centers for teachers who work in communities with limited resources. Such efforts have the potential to positively change the systems and structures of the educational landscape as it relates to teachers’ MHWB.

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