Keeping Our Schools Safe: Examining Perceptions of Crisis Frequency and Preparedness of Educators in a Statewide Online Charter School
Location
College of Education (COE)
Session Format
Oral Presentation
Co-Presenters and Faculty Mentors or Advisors
Dr. Juliann McBrayer, Faculty Advisor
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of crisis preparedness and frequency for educators in online platforms. This quantitative research study surveyed data from 143 online educators in the state of Georgia to evaluate and report their current perceptions of preparedness for in numerous crisis areas that impact K-12 students. The findings provided insight into the lack of feelings of very prepared for suspecting and responding to crisis, with 45.8% of educators noting they were “very prepared” in suspecting neglect, 47.6% in suspecting abuse, 53.1% in suspecting suicidal ideations, and 18.9% in homicidal ideations. Furthermore, educators lacked in feeling “very prepared” to respond to various traumatic experiences with 9.8% in feeling very prepared responding to an unexpected death of a student, 7.7% responding to unexpected death of a teacher, 18.9% responding to natural disasters, and 7.7% responding to terrorist threats. Findings suggest a need for further training in and planning for crisis management for online educators. Recommendations for future research include gathering data on a larger scope from online education professionals across the nation. With the 2020 health pandemic, this research is of utmost importance in maintaining safety in K-12 schooling.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Presentation Type and Release Option
Presentation (Open Access)
Recommended Citation
Fallon, Katherine, "Keeping Our Schools Safe: Examining Perceptions of Crisis Frequency and Preparedness of Educators in a Statewide Online Charter School" (2021). GS4 Georgia Southern Student Scholars Symposium. 69.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/research_symposium/2021/2021/69
Keeping Our Schools Safe: Examining Perceptions of Crisis Frequency and Preparedness of Educators in a Statewide Online Charter School
College of Education (COE)
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of crisis preparedness and frequency for educators in online platforms. This quantitative research study surveyed data from 143 online educators in the state of Georgia to evaluate and report their current perceptions of preparedness for in numerous crisis areas that impact K-12 students. The findings provided insight into the lack of feelings of very prepared for suspecting and responding to crisis, with 45.8% of educators noting they were “very prepared” in suspecting neglect, 47.6% in suspecting abuse, 53.1% in suspecting suicidal ideations, and 18.9% in homicidal ideations. Furthermore, educators lacked in feeling “very prepared” to respond to various traumatic experiences with 9.8% in feeling very prepared responding to an unexpected death of a student, 7.7% responding to unexpected death of a teacher, 18.9% responding to natural disasters, and 7.7% responding to terrorist threats. Findings suggest a need for further training in and planning for crisis management for online educators. Recommendations for future research include gathering data on a larger scope from online education professionals across the nation. With the 2020 health pandemic, this research is of utmost importance in maintaining safety in K-12 schooling.
