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A New York City mother said she kept her son in remote schooling during the pandemic because she believes city education officials\u00a0\u201clie a lot.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThese buildings are old and don\u2019t have proper ventilation,\u201d she explained to journalist Melinda Anderson. \u201cThey don\u2019t have the supplies they need, and they don\u2019t even have nurses.\u201d<\/p>\n One of the nation\u2019s teachers\u2019 union leaders has also\u00a0heard repeatedly<\/a>\u00a0that teachers too often haven\u2019t seen soap or running water in school bathrooms.<\/p>\n Teachers in Chandler, Arizona, accused their school board of\u00a0breaking promises<\/a>\u00a0to close schools if COVID-19 became widespread locally.<\/p>\n A New Jersey mother wanting her child to attend school in person \u201clost a lot of faith in the district\u201d and may send her child to Catholic school in the fall of 2021 after she experienced\u00a0repeated, unpredictable openings and closings in her local public school<\/a>.<\/p>\n All of these situations represent cases where trust broke down between parents or teachers and the schools in their communities. While much news coverage and debate during the pandemic has been about things like\u00a0wearing masks<\/a>\u00a0and adequate\u00a0spacing between students<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0ventilation<\/a>, the topic of trust seems to get much less attention.<\/p>\n As an\u00a0education historian<\/a>, I believe that if the importance of trust is continually ignored or overlooked, it could have serious consequences for the nation\u2019s schools.<\/p>\n Trust in school safety varies among communities.<\/p>\n In\u00a0national polling<\/a>, white parents were far more likely than other parents to favor sending their children to in-person schooling during the pandemic. The stark racial differences should not be surprising given that Black and Hispanic communities have been\u00a0more severely affected by COVID-19<\/a>. But pandemic vulnerability is not the only difference.<\/p>\n A parent leader in Memphis, Tennessee,\u00a0told a reporter<\/a>\u00a0of her community\u2019s reaction to the idea of returning students to school: \u201cFor generations, these public schools have failed us and prepared us for prison, and now it\u2019s like they\u2019re preparing us to pass away.\u201d<\/p>\n Asian American parents are worried about the harassment their children may face going back to school. Paul Hennessy\/NurPhoto via Getty Images<\/p><\/div>\n Asian American parents in Chicago, New York City and Fairfax, Virginia, have also been more likely than those cities\u2019 white parents to\u00a0keep their children in remote schooling<\/a>. A key factor has been a desire to protect their children from anti-Asian attacks that have\u00a0escalated during the pandemic<\/a>. These attacks are widely believed to be a\u00a0byproduct of the blame<\/a>\u00a0that President Donald J. Trump has heaped upon China as being responsible for the spread of COVID-19.<\/p>\n How should these different levels of distrust from different segments of society be understood?<\/p>\n The key is relational trust, a\u00a0term coined by sociologists Anthony Bryk and Barbara Schneider<\/a>. Relational trust deals with how much people see unity of purpose around them. Do they believe that the people they depend on have the right intentions, essential competence and integrity to work for the common good?<\/p>\n In schools \u201cthat operate in turbulent external environments,\u201d teachers and other school staff risk their professional careers and sense of self on the job. Parents risk their children\u2019s and families\u2019 futures. Given the high stakes involved \u2013 that is to say, people\u2019s health and safety \u2013 relational trust is essential.<\/p>\n In a pandemic, it has become more obvious that educators and students\u00a0often work and study<\/a>\u00a0in buildings where plumbing \u2013 and especially\u00a0heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 need major repairs.<\/p>\n The physical condition of schools is critical. A\u00a0wealth of research<\/a>\u00a0has shown that the school environment can influence\u00a0student academic achievement, as well as student health<\/a>.<\/p>\n But with the pandemic \u2013 and\u00a0news reporting of failure by the federal government and many state governments<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 relational trust is one of the casualties.<\/p>\n The Biden administration addressed relational trust when it\u00a0pushed states in early March 2021<\/a>\u00a0to prioritize teachers and other school staff for vaccinations. By the end of the month, all teachers were eligible for vaccines in\u00a046 states and the District of Columbia<\/a>.<\/p>\n Americans agree with an emphasis on vaccinating educators: in a\u00a0February national poll<\/a>, 59% of surveyed American adults said that schools should wait until all teachers had the chance to be vaccinated before completely reopening.<\/p>\n State officials can ask whether key decisions might erode relational trust. For example, should students who are learning remotely be required to step into a school for achievement testing? The Biden administration is\u00a0not waiving all testing requirements<\/a>, but it is discouraging the idea that students must \u201cbe brought into school buildings for the sole purpose of taking a test.\u201d<\/p>\n Listening to the needs and concerns of parents is one step schools can take to build relational trust. Spencer Platt\/Getty Images<\/p><\/div>\n In contrast, Florida Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran\u00a0has decreed<\/a>\u00a0that all students must take tests in person. Parents want state and school officials to\u00a0respect their judgment of whether to send children back just for tests<\/a>. If education leaders want to build more relational trust with parents, it will include letting them manage risk to their children.<\/p>\n Beyond the 2020-21 school year, relational trust can be built if public money is invested in what will keep students and staff safe.<\/p>\n The Biden administration\u2019s infrastructure plan has one component of this:\u00a0US$45 billion<\/a>\u00a0to remove pollution sources such as lead-lined pipes from schools and day care centers.<\/p>\n With the pandemic focusing attention on the dangers of being inside, remediating lead, asbestos and other pollution sources should help build relational trust. The lead crisis in Flint, Michigan\u2019s water supply is only the most visible example; tests found elevated levels of lead in 37% of schools\u00a0where drinking water was tested<\/a>.<\/p>\n Addressing facility conditions also requires giving more authority to employees to raise environmental and health concerns. In Chicago, for example, a new labor contract includes a\u00a0provision for school safety committees<\/a>.<\/p>\n [Insight, in your inbox each day.<\/em>\u00a0You can get it with The Conversation\u2019s email newsletter<\/a>.]<\/p>\n The theory of relational trust suggests schools need to build respect and bring the community into school operations and decision-making. Bringing in the community can look as simple as\u00a0a bilingual outreach program to parents around college attendance<\/a>\u00a0or a program to hire parents as\u00a0family liaisons to the school district<\/a>. Or, with\u00a0organizations that specialize in this work<\/a>, education leaders can bring schools, parents and community members together\u00a0to define and solve shared problems<\/a>.<\/p>\n It may sound squishy to assume that\u00a0parents and communities bring unique wisdom<\/a>. But even done imperfectly, this kind of convening helps to build relational trust.<\/p>\n As researchers hear from parents, direct experience with schools that respect parental perspectives changes their relationship with schools:<\/p>\n \u201cI have more coraje (courage) now\u201d in raising concerns with school officials,\u00a0one parent explained to<\/a>\u00a0educational leadership scholar Susan Auerbach<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHere you come and how can I say it, with confianza: There is trust here,\u201d\u00a0another parent told<\/a>\u00a0education professor\u00a0Ann M. Ishimaru<\/a>\u00a0and her colleagues. \u201cWe already know this place and other teachers help us more with the children.\u201d<\/p>\nRacial factors at play<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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Elements of trust<\/strong><\/h4>\n
White House push for teacher vaccinations<\/strong><\/h4>\n
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Investing in safety<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Ways to build trust<\/strong><\/h4>\n