"I have people who listen to me:" Faculty Implementation of Social and Emotional Competencies during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the field of education. This capstone project explored a phenomenon: amidst the many pandemic-related stressors weighing heavily on teachers, institutional survey results at the Relay Graduate School of Education New York campus revealed a stark contrast – teachers were reporting a stronger graduate student experience than ever before. In this study, I investigated why Relay New York experienced increased NPS scores and affirming student survey results during the COVID-19 pandemic, based on the hypothesis that faculty acted with social and emotional competencies. Relay leadership may use findings from this research inquiry to codify best practices for faculty to support novice teacher development in the “new normal” of COVID-19.