7.1 The pedagogy of care

The following quote from Maha Bali highlights the importance of care in how we support students and design learning experiences:

“Sometimes, the most valuable thing we can offer our students is genuine care for them, their well-being, their happiness. Not just their grades. Not just their learning. But their whole selves.” (Bali, 2015).

As Bali argues, we can show care for students in a variety of ways; in how we design the course, in how we offer support through our teaching, and in how we interact with students. Simple practices such as asking students how they are doing or feeling shows care. (Bali, 2020). Bali’s perspective on a pedagogy of care resonates with us during the Covid-19 pandemic as, in the face of uncertainty, grief, anxiety and fear, showing care for our students, our teachers, and our communities holds us together.

In this video, Dave Cormier and Sundi Richard talk about pedagogies of care, thinking about the world through your students’ eyes while also taking care of yourself. This video comes from the Online Learning in a Hurry series.