Resilience, collaboration, and agency: Galapagos teachers confronting the disruption of COVID-19

Abstract

In early March 2020, distance education replaced face-to-face instruction for the 7,270 children and 435 teachers in Galapagos, Ecuador. In addition, the Ecuadorian government implemented strict stay-at-home mandates to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. Rather than solely focusing on the effects of these measures and the devastating consequences of COVID-19, our study employed socio-cultural theory and a community-based approach to learn how Galapagueño teachers transformed instruction about the environment during these difficult times. Situating our analyses in the unequal learning situation that has historically occurred in Galapagos, we describe teachers’ agency and reliance on professional networks to contextualize the national curriculum and identify ways to critically teach about local environmental topics through distance learning. Our study highlights the importance of educational efforts to build on the wealth of environmental and educational knowledge that exists in local communities.

Keywords:

• Latin America
• environmental education
• COVID-19
• pandemic
• agency
• resilience
• teachers

Notes

1 The exception to this was second through fourth grade. Here, the MEE provided resources by grade level, starting in month 6 of the academic year.

2 Basic education in Ecuador is divided into four levels of three years each: primary, elementary, middle grades, junior high. This is followed by a three-year high school program.