Psychosocial work environment stressors for school staff during the COVID-19 pandemic: Barriers and facilitators for supporting wellbeing

Introduction

After periods of remote and/or hybrid learning as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic, the return to in-person learning has been beneficial for both students and teachers, but it has not been without challenges. This study was designed to assess the impact of the return to in-person learning on the school experience, and efforts made to ease the transition in furthering a positive in-person learning environment.

Materials and methods

We conducted a series of listening sessions with 4 stakeholder groups: students (n = 39), parents (n = 28), teachers/school staff (n = 41), and a combination of listening sessions and semi-structured interviews with building level and district administrators (n = 12), focusing on in-school experiences during the 2021–2022 school year amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. A primarily deductive qualitative analysis approach was employed to code the data followed by a primarily inductive thematic analysis, followed by thematic aggregation, thus providing depth and identification of nuances in the data.

Results

Three main themes emerged around school staff experiences: (1) increased levels of stress and anxiety manifested in key ways, including students' challenges with personal behavior management contributing to increased aggression and staff shortages; (2) school staff described key contributors to stress and anxiety, including feeling excluded from decision making and challenges with clear and consistent communication; and (3) school staff described key facilitators that supported their management of anxiety and stress, including adaptability, heightened attention and resources to wellbeing, and leveraging interpersonal relationships.

Discussion

School staff and students faced significant stress and anxiety during the 2021–2022 school year. Further exploration and identification of approaches to mitigate key contributors to increased stress and anxiety for school staff, along with increased opportunities for implementing key facilitators that were identified as important in managing and navigating the increased stress and anxiety offer valuable opportunities for helping to create a supportive work environment for school staff in the future.

COVID-19-Related Facilitators and Barriers to In-Person Learning for Children With Intellectual and Development Disabilities

BACKGROUND

Schools provide essential functions for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), but their vulnerability to infection with SARS-CoV-2 are a barrier to in-person learning. This qualitative study aimed to understand how weekly SARS-CoV-2 screening testing of students and staff could best facilitate in-school learning during the pandemic.

METHODS

Thirty-one focus groups were held with school staff and parents of children with IDD to examine the perceptions of COVID-19 during the 2020-2021 school year. Responses were analyzed using a directed thematic content analysis approach.

RESULTS

Five principal themes were identified: risks of returning to in-person learning; facilitators and barriers to participation in SARS-CoV-2 screening testing; messaging strategies; and preferred messengers.

IMPLICATIONS FOR SCHOOL HEALTH POLICY, PRACTICE, AND EQUITY

Staff and families agreed that saliva-based SARS-CoV-2 screening testing helps increase comfort with in-person learning. Screening testing increased family and school staff comfort with in-person learning particularly because many students with special needs cannot adhere to public health guidelines.

CONCLUSION

To keep children with IDD in school during the pandemic, families found SARS-CoV-2 screening testing important, particularly for students that cannot adhere to mitigation guidelines.

Assessing COVID-19 testing strategies in K-12 schools in underserved populations: study protocol for a cluster-randomized trial

Background

Since March 2020, COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted communities of color within the United States. As schools have shifted from virtual to in-person learning, continual guidance is necessary to understand appropriate interventions to prevent SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Weekly testing of students and staff for SARS-CoV-2 within K-12 school setting could provide an additional barrier to school-based transmission, especially within schools unable to implement additional mitigation strategies and/or are in areas of high transmission. This study seeks to understand the role that weekly SARS-CoV-2 testing could play in K-12 schools. In addition, through qualitative interviews and listening sessions, this research hopes to understand community concerns and barriers regarding COVID-19 testing, COVID-19 vaccine, and return to school during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods/design

Sixteen middle and high schools from five school districts have been randomized into one of the following categories: (1) Weekly screening + symptomatic testing or (2) Symptomatic testing only. The primary outcome for this study will be the average of the secondary attack rate of school-based transmission per case. School-based transmission will also be assessed through qualitative contact interviews with positive contacts identified by the school contact tracers. Lastly, new total numbers of weekly cases and contacts within a school-based quarantine will provide guidance on transmission rates. Qualitative focus groups and interviews have been conducted to provide additional understanding to the acceptance of the intervention and barriers faced by the community regarding SARS-CoV-2 testing and vaccination.

Discussion

This study will provide greater understanding of the benefit that weekly screening testing can provide in reducing SARS-CoV-2 transmission within K-12 schools. Close collaboration with community partners and school districts will be necessary for the success of this and similar studies.

Trial Registration

NCT04875520. Registered May 6, 2021.

Research to Translation: The Healthy Schools Toolkit and New Approaches to the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child Model

BACKGROUND

The Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) model is an evidence-based comprehensive framework to address health in schools. WSCC model use improves health and educational outcomes, but implementation remains a challenge.

METHODS

Working with 6 schools in 2 districts in the Midwest, we used a mixed-methods approach to determine the people, systems, and messages needed to activate WSCC implementation. We report on social network analysis and message testing findings and research translation to develop the Healthy Schools Toolkit.

RESULTS

Social networks for both districts included more than 150 individuals. Both demonstrated network densities less than half of the desirable threshold, with evidence of clustering by role and minimal cross-school relationships, posing challenges for WSCC implementation. Across stakeholder groups, messages that emphasize empathy, teamwork, and action were well-received, especially when shared by trusted individuals through communication channels that align with stakeholder needs.

CONCLUSIONS

The Healthy Schools Toolkit provides an example of a translational product that helps to bridge research with practice. With features that highlight 6 design principles, the toolkit provides complementary activities that schools and districts can use as they plan for integration of the WSCC model.

A tool for rating chronic disease prevention and public health interventions

Bridging the gap between research and practice requires more than evaluating the effectiveness of interventions in controlled studies. To bridge this gap, evidence needs to be defined in different ways, and opportunities need to be provided for practice-based evidence to be replicated and disseminated. Community-based interventions are often not conducted or evaluated in controlled settings, yet they provide more real-world context and have the potential to have a greater effect on population health than findings from controlled studies that are limited in generalizability. The purpose of this article is to describe an approach to identify community-based programs and interventions that have the potential for replication and dissemination. In our study, such interventions met criteria in 3 primary domains: innovativeness, effectiveness, and sustainability. The criteria and tool developed were applied to 2 obesity-prevention programs to demonstrate the usefulness of the tool for identifying potential programs for replication and dissemination, contributing to practice-based evidence. Funders, practitioners, and researchers can apply these criteria to identify programs, environmental changes, or policies that may be replicated and disseminated.