Teaching after Hurricane María: Exploring teacher leaders’ experiences in the Puerto Rican school system.
Open Access
- Author:
- Sarraga-Lopez, Yamil
- Graduate Program:
- Curriculum and Instruction
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- June 14, 2021
- Committee Members:
- Rachel Wolkenhauer, Major Field Member
Anne Whitney, Chair & Dissertation Advisor
Fran Arbaugh, Major Field Member
Kimberly Powell, Program Head/Chair
David Gamson, Outside Unit & Field Member - Keywords:
- Education
Puerto Rico
School Change
School Reform
Crisis Management
Teacher Leadership
Complexity Theory
Systemic Trauma
Natural Disasters
Schools - Abstract:
- In September 2017, Hurricane María, a category 5 storm, made landfall in Puerto Rico, resulting in incalculable damages and thousands of deaths across the country. This atmospheric system affected the lives of all residents of the island and deeply exacerbated an economic crisis that had already taken hold of the U.S. territory and resulted in a deep exodus of the island’s population. This migration pattern, added to the catastrophic nature of the natural disasters, have brought forward consequences that have been widespread in the island and its education system is now facing deep changes that include the closing of schools, relocation of both students and teachers to other schools, and a re-evaluation of the school curriculum. This dissertation illustrates a interpretive case-study of experiences of teachers from Puerto Rico who were directly affected by both Hurricane Irma and Hurricane María, emphasizing the toll these events took not only in their personal lives but also in the professional lives as part of their own professional learning communities, this through the examination of interviews taken two years after the events. This interview data was analyzed through teacher leadership theories and complexity theory as means to provide a rich description of the challenges faced by teachers in the crisis and their ability to serve as leaders in their teaching community. Teachers’ experiences post-hurricane showed three significant areas in which they were affected: (1) school changes guided by crises-led school reform, (2) a lack of teacher support systems, and (3) a loss of teacher professional communities following the crisis. All in all, this dissertation shows the experiences of teachers during the months following Hurricane María were heavily influenced by confusion, a lack of communication from leadership, increasing demands, unequal response, and a sense of loss not only anchored in material aspects but also a loss of their sense of community within the schools.